It Almost Happened

I felt it early this morning, as I woke up around 4:30, sensing it immediately.  The disease setting in, slowly taking control, grabbing more and more of me.  No, this is not another dream story, I really was awake.  In fact, I have felt it coming on for a few days now, yet today it was stronger than ever…. No, it’s not what you think, I am not getting sick, at least not in a traditional sense.  The disease I am talking about is of another kind, and it is called Inactivity, A.K.A. Complacency.

Of course, you know what I am talking about.  That feeling when you’d rather drive than walk 100 yards, would rather sit than stand, would rather lie down than sit… Feeling tired upon awakening!  This particular disease has claimed millions of victims, and now, this morning, I felt it grasping me, reaching for my very throat, attempting to take control of me in a tight, death-grip like manner.

For a couple of days now, I have been waking up feeling weak and unwilling to go through the motions.  Like a zombie, you still get through the day, doing whatever it is that you need to do, but the fire, the very essence of life is just lacking.  And interestingly enough, the body responds accordingly, slowly sagging back into this hibernation-like coma, relaxing and staying warm, not moving much, feeling the fat beginning to accumulate somewhere deep inside.  Feeling cozy…

Well, I still remember what happens when you let this disease get too far and take over.  The point of no return; practically impossible to get it out of you, the illness  becomes an integral part of your being, it becomes YOU.  You settle in to the comfortable lifestyle, occasionally shaking yourself up for a quick workout (pointless) and join the hopeless ranks of those who let it go too far….

I reminded myself that this morning and literally had to slap my own face to snap out of it and get back into the rhythm.  “Do you want to weigh 280 lbs again?!”, I asked myself.  “What’s wrong with you?!  Do you remember what you had to go through to change?!”  That flashback actually did the job and I jumped up and ran outside.  Once the dreaded disease takes over, it is so infinitely more difficult to get back on the path, to get motivated again, to turn the “diabolical-metabolic” clock around!  And it becomes much more difficult to build up the endurance and the distance again, you are starting from scratch.  Not again, not ever!

Today, I ran like a madman, pushed by my fears, pushed by the memories of the past, especially by the memory of that gigantic bowling ball of a stomach that used to precede me…. Unfortunately, as we get older, the battle for staying fit becomes similar to running up on an escalator that’s heading down – if you stop for a moment, you get taken back down, and so you constantly have to be making your way up.  No stopping us!

On a final note, I love it when the traffic light outside our development is still blinking red when I return back from my run – meaning, it did not yet have a chance to switch from its night schedule and I am right on time!  Oh yeah, and the next time, I will tell you all about my latest encounter with The Mystery Runner, we finally met face to face!

Read on!