The bloom of fitness is a near miraculous feeling. After waking countless mornings fatigued from training, a dawn arrives where one rises rested even after a hard workout. The brain comes alive. The body feels ready to do that next thing. Whatever that is.

This is the bloom of fitness. One almost feels as fresh as a flower with that mysterious fine trace of haze over its leaves that says, “I am working it. I am taking nutrients in and sending life-giving breath into the world.”

When fitness blooms, workouts take on a different flavor entirely. For those that hate the track, it becomes a welcoming place, the zone where empiric data traces every step.

Out on the bike, the wind no longer seems like the enemy. Hills are an interesting challenge rather than a dire or dreaded circumstance.

And in the water, even the bubble seem to sing a happy tune as you carry through every stroke. Ahhhh, fitness.

You’ve worked for it. And you must continue working for it. The bloom of fitness feeds on reinvestment. It can last a long time off this cycle. Just like watering plants in a pot with good soil. Fitness has its season and all it takes is a commitment to hydration and a bit of time in the sunshine and things go great.

There is no need for guilt when the bloom of fitness arrives. No need to apologize for drifting on ahead in the group ride or the weekly run. Shrug your shoulders and smile at the crowd. “I can’t help it. The program’s working. I’m in really good shape right now.”

People might be jealous. A few might even be bitter. They might even try to pick a few flowers off your fitness bouquet. But never you mind those pickers. Another bloom will arise to take its place. They’re the deadheads. Not you.

Then you take that bloom of fitness with you on the road. In the water. Up the hills and through the passage of time. It is hard earned, this beautiful bloom. But it’s your time for a trip in the sun.