Being overweight sucks. It is literally one of the worst feelings ever. I set a personal goal to lose close to 10 pounds a month until I get to my final goal weight. I have done pretty well with accomplishing little goals set along the way. I am meeting my step goal every day, meal prepping, cutting out sweets and drinking enough water to contribute to the current drought problem in Cumming, Georgia.

However, I am lacking in one major area. I don't work out. I don't have the time or energy to work out.

I truly mean I don't have the time set aside to workout how I know I need to. See, I don't just want to lose the weight. I want to gain the muscle I once had before I "let myself go." To do that, I have to work out consistently, but how do I do that when my daily schedule goes a bit like this: 5:50 a.m.: get up; 6 - 7: eat breakfast, set up lunch, shower and dress; 7 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.: school/work (meet step goal); 4:30 - 5:30: drive home and start dinner; 5:30 - 6:30: plan for school/work next day/grade papers; 6:30 - 9: work at barn with horses; 9 - 11: unwind/grade papers, eat dinner, shower, collapse in bed. Yep, be jealous.

So, considering my schedule, I decided to try getting up at 5 a.m. to workout in the mornings. Haha! Yeah, that went... let's just say it went. For a night owl by nature, 5 a.m. is an ungodly time to hear an ear-assaulting alarm go off. Talk about waking up on the wrong side of the bed. If I was actually able to convince myself to get out of bed, I felt like Rocky after he had just climbed the wall of stairs in the movie. "Adrianne, I did it!" Now, I actually have to do something not only productive but difficult before coffee? Seriously!?

I soon realized that after the amount of convincing I had to do to roll out of bed and then dress for working out at a sloth's pace, I would have to set my alarm for 4:30 a.m. Believe it or not, that hour actually does exist. It is not just some magical hour you hear about in stories. It is not magical at all. It is dark, cold and unwelcoming to be honest. I pushed through and after many trial and error alarm settings, I got up at a better pace once I adjusted. I now wake up to "Eye of the Tiger," and I use coffee as a reward.

So, we will see how this making working out a priority goes. I make no promises that the witching hour workout with Rocky will stay. I do know that anyone who has to wake up at 4:30 a.m., I now feel your pain, and I grieve for you. To all the people who struggle with weight and balancing a crazy schedule as I do, we can do this. We can't give up!