So, I decided last night to sleep in a little early (though I failed, couldn’t sleep before 11) and wake up between 3:30 and 4 am, just like the old times to read, reflect and journal. I woke up at 3:50 a.m., made myself a hot cup of coffee and read for the a solid 2 hours!
Ah, that feeling! Of accomplishment, satisfaction and gratitude. It felt as if I’ve conquered my day, although it wasn’t as productive as I’d planned due to unforeseeable circumstances but damn, it still felt great!
While I don’t believe in getting a (5 am) club membership to impress everyone, I do appreciate and have experienced the powerful effects of getting up early. Several years back I used to get up at 3 am to read, reflect and write my journal. It was deeply gratifying.
I wish I could follow that routine now, but life is more demanding now — kids, morning duties (dropping them and the wife off to their respective “schools”) and training is a quite draining. Add my day job, side projects and coaching calls to that list and what you have is a big ball of stress!
The body needs rest to recover from all the hard work you make it go through. And ignoring that part of the equation is outright dangerous. You ought to aim for at least 6-9 hours of sleep with at least a 15-30 minute nap during the day for optimum performance. Catching up on weekends isn’t the solution though hitting a 6-7 hour sleep schedule during workdays and 7-9 hours on weekends is healthier than 4-5 hours on workdays and 8 hours on weekends. It sounds negligible but it’s not.
Yeah, I know, I know… you’re thinking you can’t get “soft” about sleep or have to get your “mind over mattress” to reach the top. I believe what reaches the top doesn’t stay there forever, it eventually has to come down and be replaced. And it’s so darn better to come down than come crashing down! Adequate rest makes all the difference.
Nonetheless, it’s close to 8:45 p.m. and I’m feeling quite tired. Plan to have my dinner in a few minutes, read a little and then snooze by 10:30 p.m. The next few weeks I’ll try my best to wake up between 4 and 4:30 and monitor my energy levels. One of the best things about waking up early is that it forces your body to shut down after a specific time in the evening, which for someone like me is a boon!
Get some sleep tonight, folks! You’ve got the world to conquer before sunrise tomorrow!