Early Mornings
Ever dreamed you could have longer days?
How about just waking up early? Yeah, I know, it does make you go to bed earlier and lose some precious YouTube watching time from the evening. I haven’t yet been completely converted to the idea either. But quite many people claim that days feel longer if you wakeup early, so let’s give it a shot.
Actually, I have been waking up rather early during the whole past year. Mostly around 06:20, which allows me to be at the office around 07:30. That seems to work for me. I get the benefit of quiet morning hours at the office to be productive, while also being able to leave reasonably early and use the evening for something else.
When I spotted this lifehack campaign for learning to wake up early, I decided to push the bar a bit. How about trying to wake up around 05:30 and do some morning exercise? I’ll give it a shot. If you wish to take part, see the campaign and join in!
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UPDATES
Record of my success for the campaign is updated here:
Monday, March 22nd: Alarm set to 06:00; Got up at 05:50
Out of courtesy to my wife, I only set the alarm to 06:00. I still managed to get up before the alarm went off! So even if missed my target time by 20 minutes, I’d consider this a great start.
Stretching had to for the exercise part. As I replied to Seth in the comments, the snowy / icy / slushy pavement does not really encourage jogging in the morning. Maybe later. For now, getting in some stretching and still managing to arrive at the office by 07:30 is, as said, a good start.
The weirdest thing? I don’t generally remember by dreams, but this time I woke up while being sworn at with the words “son of a mother duck!”
Tuesday, March 23rd: Alarm set to 06:00, Got up at 06:00.
Second day of challenge was not so glorious. The alarm rang. Then it rang a bit louder. And it probably rang a few times more before I actually woke up. Not nearly as nice as waking up without the alarm.
Anyway, managed to jump right out of bed and got in some good stretching before heading for the office. It is definitely worth it – even the commute time feels better as you are more awake.
Wednesday, March 24th: Alarm set to 06:00, Got up at 06:00
Third day of the challenge. Managed to wakeup, although tucking in for another half an hour seemed like a great option. However, as I had persuaded my wife to get up at the same time, which she did, I couldn’t just snooze away. I think I will have to consider getting one of the vibrating alarms suggested in the comments
This time the morning exercise felt a bit more forced, and didn’t have that much enthusiasm for it. But pushing through was definitely worth it. The commute time has gotten so much more energetic, that I even stopped by a bakery to buy a bunch of croissants to share around the office
Yesterday I really felt that perhaps just sleeping in and taking enough time for yourself in the morning before coming to the office would result in just the same effect. After this morning I can’t agree with myself anymore. There is something great about being awake early.
Thursday, March 25th: Alarm set to 06:00; Got up at 06:00
This feels like a normal routine by now. And it seems to really work. The morning exercise really gives the day a faster start. I’m definitely going to keep to this new morning routine, even if the actual wake up time changes.
That being said, now it’s time to be productive rather than write these updates.
Friday, March 26th: Alarm set to 06:00; Got up at 06:00
Waking up poses no problems at all. Although there is a downside – I fall asleep at 22:00 in the evening. That’s when my social life with my friends (=irc) generally begins. Oh well, one thing at a time I suppose.
Before I go on to sketch together a full post on my thoughts about the campaign, I’ll end this by saying that I’m definitely going to keep on the habit of exercising in the mornings, even if my wake up time starts to slide.
Thanks and good luck to all other participants of the challenge!
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I’m not naturally disposed to either exercise or rising early so doing both at the same time has always helped to “cut the pain” as it were. It’s a wonderful feeling to get out of the shower at 6:30am knowing you’ve already run 5 miles and got some good thinking done!
Glad to have you along for the challenge!
Seth
Exactly. I’m still going to keep my morning exercise indoors, as the huge amount of snow outside makes jogging rather unpleasant. Perhaps next winter I’m tough enough for that
Have you tried to go jogging during the winter? Don’t know what temperatures you have outside but I tried jogging at about -8°C in the snow this year. I thought it would be tough, but it was much more enjoyable than I thought.
At this time of year it’s mostly between 0 and -10 in the morning. You are right, it probably wouldn’t be that bad, especially now that the sun seems to be visible more often. Might try that next week and see how it turns out.
-10 is my limit. Winter jogging is enjoyable especially if you find a nice trail. I usually stick to one route per season as it’s easier to measure progress against one route. Watching Rocky 4 helps
I think I like a bit more variety than just sticking to one trail for a season. Now I think the theme of Rocky is going to loop in my head for the rest of the evening
Hi Timo, looks like a great start.
How does your wife react to the new regime? My missus is NOT a morning person at all and does everything she can to discourage me from getting up early. It’s a shame because I really enjoy the extra quiet time.
Any advice?
Andy
http://www.andycairns.com
Hey Andy,
Well, she is a bit annoyed by me trying to wake up early. I’m quite a solid sleeper, and she sleeps very lightly. Meaning that whatever alarm is going to wake me up is certain to wake her up as well. She even woke up when I woke up without an alarm. That’s why I usually have my alarm 10 minutes after she gets up
No advice yet, I’ll welcome any tips
Same situation with my wife. She wakes up from a slightest sound, I can sleep during a rock band concert. Since it’s so hard for me to wake up, I usually end up with few alarm clocks and an angry wife, until I purchased an alarm clock with a vibro thing (instead of the alarm beep) that I can tuck under my pillow and that wakes me up pretty well, while (most of the time) keeps my wife asleep. Here’s the model I’ve purchased – http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/B000EX7LNM?tag=betteraddons-20. The only thing I miss there is a dual alarm.
Hope that will help in your situation as well.
Hey Alex!
Great tip, I will have to consider that alarm clock if I’m going to keep up waking early.
I use my cell phone on vibrate for my alarm clock. Most alarm clocks just annoy me and make me want to stay in bed longer. The vibro thing mentioned above is a good idea!
The Early Riser Challenge has done wonders for me… I’ve been able to get an exercise session completed in the morning. Love it!
Good luck with breaking away from the “standard”. I’m trying to do the same thing.
Slow but sure!
Have a great day!
Mary
Hey Mary!
I actually have disabled the vibrate on my cell phone now just because I hate it with the alarm! Also means I definitely won’t notice if someone calls me while I’m anywhere outside. Not generally a big problem, don’t talk much on the phone anyway
The specific vibroalarm on the other hand might be worth a shot. Or perhaps I should try putting my cell phone under my pillow instead of the night stand.
I only managed to move my wakeup time by 20 minutes, but I think that is good enough. I think the more important lesson was that doing some exercise to make your body wake up is definitely in place in the mornings.
Good luck your efforts too!