4 a.m. in Birmingham

It could be the title to a country song, but 4 a.m. in Birmingham was the time and location of my September 1 run. 4 o'clock typically only comes around once each day for me...late in the afternoon. My early to rise attitude was not related, unfortunately, to an early to bed attitude the night before. Instead, it was an attempt to prepare for Sunday's 5 a.m. Tupelo Marathon start and a chance to enjoy some late summer morning running weather.

The view out our door at 4 a.m. is limited to darkness and a street lamp. Today, as I started my short warm up walk around the cul de sac I could see the silhouette of a deer that had stopped to check out my intentions. I joined the deer in stopping and staring to see what might happen next. What happened next was that I turned around and started my run.

It was so early that only two cars passed by me during the entire 45 minute run. There was no wind, only one dog barked and, other than a limited number of air conditioners heard around the neighborhood, I had the chance to run in suburban silence. When it is dark during my run I wear I Petzl headlamp to illuminate my way. It take some getting used to since the only area receiving light is the direction my head is pointing. For me, the other trick to wearing a headlamp is to remember to remove it (the headlamp is on an adjustable elastic band I wear around my running cap) before I take off my cap at the end of the run. Forgetting this simple task has caused me to break two of these lamps in recent years.

The great reward to running first thing in the morning is the day long satisfaction in knowing your goal for the day has been accomplished. No wondering, "should I run at noon," or "can I squeeze in a few miles before dinner." There is just simple satisfaction in having the task behind me. However, when your body craves sleep in mid-afternoon, the sense of satisfaction does little to keep one fully awake.

Four days to Tupelo...sounds like another country song title!