I didn’t start training in the morning voluntarily. First, I was forced to do it during basic training in the army. The routine was pretty simple: wake up at 06:00 AM and exercise for anywhere between 15-45 minutes, depending on the officer in charge. You do it every day, rain or shine. Initially, it was tough, but after some time, I noticed positive effects on my energy levels throughout the rest of the day. After I returned to civilian life, I tried to stick to the regime. However, after a couple of months, I had a foot injury, stopped waking up early for a couple of weeks, and that was the end of it. Typical.
I tried a couple more times, but usually just for a few days. It’s way harder when you’re not forced, even though you clearly understand the benefits. I got comfortable, and it was just too hard to get up 30-40 minutes earlier and start the day with a 5k run. I didn’t see the point. Life was too good, perhaps. The gym in the evenings was enough—as it usually is.
After I became a father, I stopped training altogether. Everything about parenthood was new to me, and I lost my discipline. However, every day without physical exercise started piling up. I lacked energy and became angrier and more resentful. I whined to my wife that I didn’t have time to train in the evenings, almost implying she should do something about it. And she did; she told me to quit whining. So I did. The next morning, I went for a short run. It’s hard to sacrifice family time in the evenings, but it turned out you can make some time for yourself in the morning.
So here is the timeline of my morning routine evolution:
- Started very slow: 5-minute run, which is around 1 km, basically around the nearby neighborhood. Maybe 20-30 push-ups after that. It is enough to wake you up for the day, get your blood pumping. I did that for at least 3-4 months. Started at the end of the summer, pleasant weather. In addition, since the training wasn’t stressful for my body and was also short, it was easy to continue every day. All I felt was happiness—a healthy start to the day, some fresh air, and the feeling of being a little better than those sleeping. And that helped me get through the cold autumn and winter months. Exercises remained simple and short.
- Formed a habit: Around spring, I decided that I needed to move forward a bit; it started to get boring. Some days I did a 1 km run and 10-15 pull-ups. Other days, 30-50 push-ups and some body-weight squats. I did variations of these basic body-weight exercises, and it took me around 10 minutes overall.
- Intensified training: After around 8-9 months, early summer, I found an outdoor gym nearby. I ran there for ~5 minutes and did a series of the same body-weight exercises, including parallel bar dips. So instead of 15 pull-ups, it went usually like this: pull-ups x8, dips x10, squats x15, plank 60 seconds, everything for 2-3 sets. Running was still minimal, like a warm-up, but I usually got home with a noticeable muscle pump. Usually spent 15-20 minutes.
- Moving forward: My family and I temporarily moved to Spain in autumn, so that was a good moment to increase intensity a bit more. Runs became 1.5-3 km, sometimes included 5-7 km if most of my muscles were sore. Started some interesting routines, like if I overslept more than 10 minutes, all I did besides running was burpees. Started with ~20 burpees (I was gassed out after even 20) and reached ~80 after around 6 months. Basically, I increased my running and started to broaden the variety of body-weight exercises. Training time extended to 30-40 minutes. This is where I currently am. Right now, I probably do 20 different exercises during my weekly routine.
So to sum up: 3-4 months of a super easy routine to form the habit, and then you work on making it interesting, challenging, and purposeful.
I used to get depressed over the thought that in order to stay in shape, I would have to work out for the rest of my life. It’s not like making a life-changing amount of money—you manage to do it once, and if you’re smart enough, you’re set for life. Training is something that you cannot stop doing. Moreover, to continue, you have to keep it interesting and challenging. But at last, I understood that it’s not about getting fit and muscular. I found comfort in knowing that if I do it slowly but regularly, I will constantly be better in at least one field. An important field, I would say. And I became excited.
JG/xLongRun