I could have never imagined that waking up in the morning can change my entire life.
I know it goes against the ideal routine for a perfect lifestyle, but I tend to thrive on less than 6 hours of sleep occasionally. I have been a night owl for most of my life, Netflix and photography used to take more than half of my daytime and managing to sleep for 2 to 3 hours sometimes came to me by luck. Though I never worried about this much, because no matter how many hours I have pulled it never affected my productivity.
But the only thing that it affects was the only thing that served me with the power to pull an energy-packed life – morning runs.
Every day I would wake up with only a single thought in my mind, get a running session, telling myself how great I will feel for the rest of the day. But I failed to follow it. I would either turn off or snooze the alarm, doze off over the alarm or just watch episodes of crappy last night TV series but would not run. It seemed like work and personal life conspired against me and crumbled down my routine.
I used to be a very active person during high school. From Triathlons to annual sports meets, I never returned without an award. In the beginning weeks of college I joined the Sports Club and in a few weeks was called up for trails. I was over-confident from my previous achievements and the fact that I’m slacking off badly slipped out of my mind. The next thing I remember is the failure. The failure that crushed my soul. The pain was not from the physical exhaustion but of that mental suffering that kept me wide awake for many nights after the games. I was tired of my crappy routine. I needed change.
So, I committed myself to practice running for the next 21 days to make it a habit. The goal was to push myself beyond my comfort and build the long-lost stamina. Slowly I developed the speedy pace and stopped hitting the snooze. The endless pain in my limbs never made it easy but the flashbacks of failing in every sport I participated was scarier. After a few painful months of regret and practice, finally, I got there.
The sight of breath-taking skies as the sun rose changed my whole life. A few times, without any rush, I ran between the dew on the grass and realized how much I was missing out.
In college, we freak out way too often. The assignment we missed yesterday or the exam we have to take tomorrow, nothing is more important than pursuing what you love. So, get out and get it done.
