Bzzz. Bzzz. The sound rings in your ears and yanks your eye lids open. For most, the sound of an alarm in the early morning is unwelcomed, and the snooze button is magnetic to your fingertips.

However, for science teacher, Kate Graham, the “bzzz” of her alarm sets off at 3:30 a.m., and she does not hesitate to begin her day with action.

Definitely a morning person, Graham hits the Renaissance Gym in Aliso Viejo at 4 a.m. and runs the treadmill till around 5:15. She finishes off her daily workout with 20 minutes of weights.

“I know that if I don’t do it I am going to be in a bad mood for the whole day, and I am going to regret it,” Graham said.

On average, Graham runs six miles every morning.

“[Running] is where I work my problems out,” Graham said.

Outside the gym, she rotates her race participation, switching off between running a half marathon or a 10K each month.

“Last week I did the Long Beach half marathon and then this next month I’m doing the turkey trot,” Graham said. “Then the following month, I’ll do a half marathon.”

Graham was not always a run-aholic, in fact her running craze did not begin until her last year of college.

“I was in a bad car accident and the doctor said the only way to strengthen my back was through something like running, so I started running and kind of took it overboard,” Graham said.

The last time Graham skipped out on her early morning workout by choice is unrecallable. Not even a serious accident could keep away her addiction.

“The last time I didn’t go to the gym was when I tore my ACL,” Graham said. “Because I still wanted to do exercise, I bought myself a rowing machine because I knew that I could do that without my legs.”

Openly, Graham admits her workout habits have formed into an addiction.

“It is definitely a problem,” Graham said. “The thought of skipping a day of exercise stresses me out insanely. It’s really bad.”

Graham is the definition of a power-house. Listening to her ecstatically teach, it is hard to imagine she is running off of five hours of sleep.

Nevertheless, Graham loves her job and is just as committed to her students as she is to her treadmill.

“All of my classes this year are awesome,” Graham said. “All the kids are seriously great.”

When the 2:05 bell rings, and Graham enters her eleventh hour, it is still far from nap time. After school Graham has office hours, tutoring, grading and some cheering on of her favorite football team, the Green Bay Packers.

Around 10 p.m., Graham decides it is time to hit-the-hay. Before she knows it the familiar “bzzz” is ringing in her ears as she grabs her running shoes to begin her daily routine all over again.