Triumphant Return To Morning Basketball Filled With Average Play

After 11 straight days of rising at 5:00, and knowing that I had Friday off, I figured that I'd try to play with the 5:15 a.m. basketball crowd at Four Seasons and see if I was ready for it.

5:15 After some extremely light stretching enough people had showed up to play, so with some risk I jumped in. I quickly snatched a few rebounds, and missed a few shots, en route to making about 25% of my shots for the day (that's bad, folks).

5:30 We won our first game! Midway through the second, I start feeling what I expected - that burning sensation in the lungs to remind me how long it had been since I'd exerted myself for such an extended stretch. It's all part of the large "no pain, no gain" plan for April though... pushing myself to the limit and beyond in order to build leg strength and quickness that I haven't had in over a year.

5:45 I'm gassed! By now though enough players have showed up to have two games running simultaneously on shorter, cross-courts. I'm trying to determine myself not to let up.

6:00 My 4-man team has lost in an impressive number of ways, close ones and blowouts. We have one player who's our dominant scorer, and I have made a few baskets myself. Only a couple of times has someone I'm guarding completely burned me en route to the basket. It's those confrontations that I'm most interested in - one-on-one matchups that test my ability to pressure the ball handler and stay in front of him.

6:30 Hey, I'm starting to get a second wind! And we've won a few in a row as the team chemistry gels. And of course, it helps that I'm making shots. Other players are tiring, which allows me to make some scrappy, hustle plays.

7:00 Enough people have left that there's enough for a single, full court game, which we win. I'm thrilled... sustained myself to the end, got that unexpected second wind, and I have no discomfort at all in the back, legs or knees.

I actually played another two hours on Saturday, drank a ton of liquid, and bought a bunch of groceries loaded with protein to replenish those aching muscles. I expect my weight to climb in the short run, before the fat-burning muscle starts to kick in.

Of course the real test will be to try to sustain it after the honeymoon phase is over. For now, it's time to savor this accomplishment and pray that the body gets stronger and stays pain-free due to enough stretching.