I run, therefore I sleep

cat sleepingTo most, especially those who wake up extra early to do it, running is all about energy. Hit the pavement, get the blood pumping, and have your adrenaline flowing in time for work to begin. Works great, if you can pry yourself out of bed in time.

But for those of us who prefer running after work, there’s another benefit to a good run: therapy for working out the problems of that day getting prepared for a good night’s sleep. It’s common sense that we need a good sleep to run. What we sometimes forget is that we often need a good run to sleep.

Here’s how it works. Temperature is key to regulating our sleeping habits, as it drops a degree or two while you’re snoozing (that’s why spicy foods are a no-no for late night, Taco Bell marketing campaigns be damned). A good workout raises our body temperature by a couple of degrees, so as our body cools down, we’re in the perfect state for a restful slumber.

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New Year, New Runs

new RunsFirst off, I’d like to thank our captain Chris for inviting me to contribute. I’m mainly contributing here because I think this is a great idea. I’ve never been one to get into something in order to hang out with other people (drinking excluded). I like running because it allows me a moment (or 30) of zen. That zen might be Chumbawumba for half an hour, imaginings of a book I’ll probably never sit down to write, or just time to processes my life.

More to the point, I don’t run to run with 300 people. In fact I’ve shied away from invites to run actual 5k’s, because I run my way and honestly don’t want to hang out with anyone else when I do it.

So, I’ll be posting here from time to time about my Anywhere5k’s. Mostly, I think I’ll post an update every week or so about the previous week’s attempts at health. I might post slightly more than that if inspiration hits, but I’ll count on oh captain, my captain to let me know if I’m posting too often or too often of little concern.

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