Flying Feet

I'm one of those crazy people.  I get up at 5:10 to go to the gym, only to have a trainer basically tell me to ride my bike harder/faster/longer.  And I like it.  Yes, at 5:10 when my alarm goes off, 80% of my being is telling me to roll over and go back to sleep, that the 45 min of extra sleep will be so much better than any pre-sunrise exercise could possibly be.  Thankfully, there's that 20% of me that manages to elbow the 80% out of the way.  That's the tough 20% of me that's pulled me through lots of things in my life (hiking out of Havasu canyon, breaking my leg, giving birth, getting through Differential Equations and Physics III, to name a few).

This morning, 20% won, and I got to the gym.  I arrived, still groggy.  I love the 5:30am crew.  It's usually the same 6 or 7 people, with a few additions now and then.  I love the pair of guys who work and workout together, never alone.  If one is gone, the other won't come.  Perhaps they're siamese twins.  I love the lady who, like me, feels that if you're able to talk for 45 min of the class, you need to ride harder!  I love the married couple who lovingly pick on each other.  At FIVE THIRTY.  It's obvious they are best friends.  Most of all, I have a huge appreciation for the instructor.  At that time of day  (ok, let's be honest, it's still night at 5:30), I need someone to push me.  He has the perfect balance of picking on me combined with humor to keep me going, and to keep me wanting to go.

Today I was racing him.  My legs FLY, I'll have you know.  My goal is to spin faster than him, to leave him in the proverbial spin-room dust.  Most days I do.  Somehow I get my legs going so quickly, it's hard to see them in the mirror.  They're a blur, like RoadRunner in the old Looney Tunes cartoons.  Today we were flying to one of my favorite Tiesto songs, THIS ONE, when my shoe came unclipped from the pedal.  Woops!  My left leg was still going around in un-paired circles, while my right foot was left hanging in the air, contributing nothing any longer.  Geeze, foot,...get back on the pedal, and let's GO!