On April 2, I gave myself a new challenge. The task was simple: for 21 working days I had to wake up at 4:30 am. I'm already used to waking up early (at 6 am almost every day), but this time I wanted to go even further. I wanted to test myself and find out my limit.
I decided to follow this regime only on weekdays, because weekends and holidays are a different story. Of course, I don’t have time to do some things on weekdays, so I have to move them to Saturday-Sunday, but mostly weekends are a time for fun and night outs.
Yes, of course, I could follow such a regime every day, but in that case I would upset my life balance. Since I planned to continue waking up early after 21 days, it would have been a real torture rather than an advantage.
Why exactly 21 days? Well, I relied on the age-old idea of Dr. Maxwell Moltz, who states that in order to form, you need exactly 21 days. I don't know if it actually works, I just needed to set a goal.
I have one rule that I try to stick to: always give yourself specific goal, because only in this way can you understand whether you succeeded or failed to achieve what you wanted.
What was the ultimate goal of all this? Increased productivity. I wanted to make the most of every day. I'm always thinking about how to improve my work, how to improve my life, and I like to think through all the details and take actions that will help me achieve what I want.
I always knew that I was a morning person, and my goal was to get up even earlier and see if it would increase my productivity.
So what have I learned during this time? A lot of everything.
1. If you want to change something in your life, you need support.
When about your new habit people will find out, they will become interested, they will ask questions. The most useful thing is that you will be afraid to show your weakness, and this alone is enough to prevent you from quitting what you started. Moreover, I wanted to ignite someone else with my idea. Of course, I understood that if I didn’t succeed, it wouldn’t be a tragedy, but the thought that other people could follow my example helped me move on.
2. People pay attention to details.
Some people think that such early awakenings are not entirely normal, so I had to defend my position very actively in the comments. People were worried about me. They asked a lot of questions. And at the same time, they believed that they themselves would never be able to train themselves to get up just as early.
I have had long and meaningful conversations with people who have read my posts, and I am grateful to everyone who has responded. These people gave me a lot to think about, and this article you are reading now was largely due to these conversations.
3. People don't want to wake up earlier because they think it will make them sleep less.
At the very beginning, many people were actually very worried about me. Most of the questions asked boiled down to one thing: when do I sleep? Of course, I planned everything in advance.
I knew very well how long it takes my body to... And since I changed my wake-up time, it was necessary to also change the time I went to bed. For me it turned out to be simple. I need 6-7 hours of sleep to get enough sleep, and I had no intention of sleeping less.
So if it's 9:30 or 10:00 pm, then I know it's time for me to go to bed. To my surprise, most of the people who asked me when I slept actually slept a lot less than I did. And I began to sleep much better than before.
4. Remove obstacles that come your way
People are very fond of saying that it is impossible to do this or that. Yes, of course, there are certain circumstances that can become an obstacle. But I believe that many people are simply lazy and don't want to put in the effort. extra effort to improve your life. They just go with the flow, without really thinking about their real capabilities.
Yes, maybe it’s easy for me to say, because I had the right conditions: I’m not married, I don’t have children, my life belongs only to me. But, on the other hand, a lot depended on my desire and motivation.
If I lived with my parents, this would be much more difficult, because I would have to take into account my family, their habits and rhythm of life. So, I started this path, making sure in advance that nothing would interfere with me.
Think about everything that is stopping you from achieving your desired goal.
This applies not only to the desire to wake up earlier, but also to the desire to quit smoking, start going to the gym or, say, eat vegetables. How to get rid of all the obstacles that prevent you from achieving your goal?
I knew that I would need the following: complete independence, the ability to fall asleep when I want, the ability to not wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, realizing that I have a lot of unfinished tasks, the ability to work anywhere and at any time... Fortunately , I had it all.
I usually work in startups, which means I have free and flexible schedule, and that's why I can start working at 4:30 am. This schedule allows me to return home earlier. Besides, no one depends on me, and I do not depend on anyone. And despite the fact that seven other people live in the same house as me, it was easy for me to fall asleep so early.
Photo by Filipe Castro Matos
5. Your physical condition will help you a lot.
If we talk about sleep, I was very lucky. I fall asleep very quickly (on average it takes me 5 minutes). I sleep well (I rarely wake up at night). There are no problems with: I get up immediately when the alarm goes off.
Of course, this is a consequence of my lifestyle: I eat well, exercise every day, and there are no constant and global worries in my life. And I believe that most people can also wake up earlier if they decide to change their lifestyle.
All changes start with small things, but after a few weeks or months you will realize the benefits of all these small changes.
6. Forget the phrase “Just 10 more minutes”
Many of us are guilty of this: we don’t get up immediately when the alarm goes off, but move it another 10 minutes later. Fortunately, I rarely did this, and now I am finally convinced of the futility of this activity.
If you want to wake up in certain time, then please forget about this eternal “well, just 10 more minutes.” This will seriously affect your day: you will not get enough sleep in those 10 minutes, and you will also feel more tired, which is the most in a negative way will affect your business.
7. I love to sleep, but my body only needs 6-7 hours to get enough sleep.
After 6–7 hours of sleep, I can no longer sleep, but just toss and turn in bed. It's better to get up and do something interesting and useful. I'll sleep in the next world.
8. More time left for work
Once I started waking up at 4:30 am, I had an extra two hours to devote to work. How? As I said above, I’m a morning person and after 6 pm I can’t do anything particularly useful; mine falls off in the afternoon.
So I moved these two evening hours, which I spent uselessly on the Internet, to the morning and devoted to work. Now I could finish work earlier and rest exactly when I needed it.
9. I now have time to sort out my mail.
Typically, in these two hours I have time to answer all emails and plan my day. Seeing the number zero next to your inbox at 6:30 am is wonderful. The most gratifying thing is that few people can answer my messages at such an early hour. This is especially true for Facebook - it is the most malicious enemy of our time. Message after message, we can get stuck in correspondence all day.
And if you think about it carefully, you will notice that most people do not need immediate answers to their questions, and nothing bad will happen if you answer your letters tomorrow.
10. More time to train
Photo by Filipe Castro Matos I went to the gym before I decided to wake up early. But since I started waking up at 4:30 am, I decided to add another workout per week. Before this, training three times a week was enough for me, but now this is not enough: I need 4-5 training sessions.
Early awakenings help me with this: I don’t come to training tired, as was usually the case before. Plus, I go to the gym with a sense of accomplishment - I’ve already worked for two hours.
11. New look at the world
My early awakenings allowed me to notice details in the world around me that I had previously paid little attention to.
Going for a run or a walk while the sun was still up was impossible before when I lived according to a standard schedule.
Photo by Filipe Castro Matos 12. And of course, you need willpower to change your daily routine.
If you don't have willpower, then it's more than likely that you will give up. Train your willpower, learn to achieve what you want.
In the end, if you really want to, no one will be able to stop you!
Hello! I ask for your advice on the following problem. Around March, sleep disturbances began - I wake up at 5-6 in the morning and can’t fall back to sleep. The problem appeared quite suddenly, “one fine day.” The first few days I woke up around 7 am, then at 6 am, and after a week or two - at 5 am. I wake up at 5-6, no matter what time I fell asleep. Due to the sufficient number of things to do, I usually go to bed and fall asleep at 22.00-01. 00, not earlier (it happens later, and I also wake up at 5-6 in the morning). There are no problems with falling asleep (the exception is that if I go to bed after 23.00, then during this period I want to sleep less, and I can lie for up to an hour before I fall asleep). Thus, chronic lack of sleep accumulates every day, which on the 5-6-7th day manifests itself in very severe fatigue of the body, even dizziness, and loss of appetite. On such a day, it is already possible to sleep normally (up to 10-11 hours) without waking up, i.e., wake up at 9-10-11 am well-rested. And then everything starts all over again. When I wake up, for the first 10 minutes I want to sleep (as if I didn’t get enough sleep), but then the body turns on quickly enough, and there is no desire to sleep. But by 12-13 o'clock you feel very tired. And even before this time, you feel that you haven’t gotten enough sleep - a feeling that your body has partially replenished its energy reserves to some minimum and is immediately rushing into battle again. There are exceptions - very rarely, once every 2-3 weeks or less - that after waking up early by 8-9 o'clock (or even almost immediately) you manage to fall asleep and get a good night's sleep. I can’t understand the cause of my sleep disorder - bad habits no, a sports lifestyle (non-professional sports, swimming/running/basic physical exercises several times a week “for myself”, I also tried to quit for a while - it didn’t help), there is no stress either at work or in life in general. What is surprising is that with the transition to summer time I thought that I would start waking up at least an hour later according to the new time, because the body doesn’t know time. And on the same day, when the clocks were changed, I woke up at 5-6 in the morning at a new time :) Due to the constant lack of sleep, the brain and physical function are noticeably reduced. Activity, and it also gets on your nerves quite a bit. A similar problem also happened a couple of years ago, also in the spring. But then I had a daily schedule - I fell asleep at 1-2 am and woke up at 10-11 am. Just like now, I started waking up earlier for no reason at all - at 8-9 in the morning. But then by early summer the problem disappeared on its own. Now I tried to take Novo-Passit, Notta, Barboval - I felt absolutely no effect even with max. In doses. I did not take sleeping pills. The only thing I “took” that really helps is alcohol. When I drink one bottle of beer, I fall asleep, wake up at 5-6 as usual, but immediately fall asleep again and wake up already well-rested. But I drink extremely rarely, so this is not an option :) Please tell me what could be the reason this problem and how to fix it.
Nikolay Ch, Kyiv
ANSWERED: 07/10/2014
Hello, Nikolay! The duration of normal sleep is individual for each person, on average - 6-8 hours. There are cases when a person sleeps only 2-3 hours a day, maintaining increased performance(e.g. J. Bernard Shaw (lived 94), Leo Tolstoy (82), Mahatma Gandhi (78), Charles Chaplin (88)) Before old age they all remained clear-headed, active, and slept very little. For normal recovery of the body, it is not the duration, but the quality of sleep that is important. It is important that you wake up with good mood, felt refreshed after waking up. There's no point in laying big hopes for medications. Exist simple rules“sleep hygiene”: 1. Remove all carpets, furs, heavy curtains, if any, from the bedroom, carry out wet cleaning (once every 3 days, floors daily) including the floor, walls, ceiling, replace linoleum, synthetic coverings, etc. P. to “environmentally friendly” ones, for example, paper wallpaper, wooden floors, cotton or linen curtains and bed linen, remove pets from the bedroom, remove flowers. Change pillow, mattress. 2. Use “earplugs” (simple cotton wool plugs in your ears), 3. Don’t sleep during the day. Always go to bed and get up at the same time. 4. Never drink tea (including green tea, it contains more caffeine than black tea), coffee, energy drinks after 6 pm, avoid chocolate, citrus fruits, and alcohol in the evening. 5. Exclude physical activity, as well as TV and computer 6 hours before bedtime. Before going to bed, take a warm, relaxing (not hot) shower or bath for 5-10 minutes. 6. Persen or Novopassit, or sedative herbal tea with honey (motherwort, valerian, hop cones, etc.) - 30 minutes before bedtime, 7. If you can’t sleep, don’t force yourself to sleep: do something calm and monotonous , for example, read, draw, light housework, try to fall asleep again after 30 - 60 minutes, if not, get up again, knit, read, etc. 8. Melaxen - is not a sleeping pill (tranquilizer), unlike Donormil, Phenazepam, Corvalol, it helps normalize night sleep: accelerates falling asleep, improves sleep quality, well-being after waking up in the morning, does not cause a feeling of lethargy, weakness and fatigue upon awakening (unlike most sleeping pills), dreams become more vivid and emotionally rich. It also adapts the body to rapid changes in time zones, reduces stress reactions. Does not cause addiction or dependence. A good and safe drug. It should be taken 1 tablet 1 time in the evening, 30-40 minutes before bedtime. The course of treatment is 4-6 weeks, repeat regularly 4-6 times a year.. C Best wishes
Clarification questionQUESTION FOR CLARIFICATION 02.12.2016 Nikolay, St. Petersburg
Hello! Faced the situation described above; I tried a lot (even alcohol before bed) except medications. At the same time, the conclusions that I came to are the following: 1) People who are faced with early turning on of the body know that they SHOULD (they must, must, they should) get up on the alarm clock. This is confirmed by the queries that I studied before writing this message; 2) Light sleepers wake up at the slightest noise. Earplugs may help; 3) Metabolic processes of the body; 4) Food, drink and schedule for their intake; 5) The state of the body, its health; 6) Uncomfortable sleeping position. All points except the first are quite simple to implement. The first item on the list most of all attracts my exclusive attention; I feel like I have programmed myself somehow to wake up earlier and the reason is that I know that I “should” wake up by a certain time, but in reality I wake up much earlier, even if there is no need for this. This setting applies even when changing time zones. I consider this as an automatic mechanism for premature activation of the body. Replace the word in your head from “should” to “want” or the question “how to get up on time.”
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We all remember from childhood that we need to get up early and go to bed earlier. But who came up with such rules and why are they needed? Blogger Egoza Eikhi has been waking up at 6:00 am for the last two years. He credits this habit with changing his world. Here are 5 reasons that, according to the author, motivate you to get up earlier.
You will have a lot of time to understand yourself
Many people fail to achieve their goals simply because they lack focus. If you don't start the day by figuring out what you should focus on first, then you're unlikely to remember your big goals during the day. As you know, it is in the first half of the day that your brain works most efficiently. Use this time to take control of your life with your mind, not your emotions.
You can plan wisely
Larks have the opportunity to plan their day in advance, before going to work. The earlier your plan for the day is made, the more efficient and productive you will spend your time.
Planning for tomorrow in the evening is counterproductive. It's stupid to make plans when your brain is stale and wants only one thing - rest.
You can make yourself better, correct your shortcomings
Who said you have to rush to the office immediately after waking up? At the same time, many of us complain that we constantly lack time for family, entertainment or the gym.
If you start waking up at 6am, you'll have a few more hours before your workday starts to get to the gym. When you exercise in the morning, your body is saturated with endorphins. These are hormones that are released during active physical activity and give us a feeling of joy and euphoria. The charge of endorphins received in the morning may well be enough to keep you energetic and alert throughout the working day.
You will learn to have breakfast early, this will provide you with energy for the whole day.
All your life you've heard that breakfast is the most... important technique food for the day. If you wake up a couple of hours before the start of the working day, you definitely won’t be able to miss it.
The habit of having a full breakfast is extremely important positive value for Your health. Our body needs food to function properly. Especially in the morning.
Jack Dorsey, the Twitter founder starts his day at 5:30 am. Dorsey uses the time before his work day to meditate and go for a 10-kilometer run.
Tim Cook, CEO Apple begins answering partner emails every morning at 4:30.
Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, is also a big proponent of waking up early. In one of his interviews, he admitted that he wakes up at 5:45 and immediately gets to work. First, he sits at the computer for a while, and only then has breakfast.
You will always be ahead of those who get up later
The habit of waking up early, research shows, can help you discover your... creative potential. Plus, it develops your self-confidence: you start working even when all your competitors are asleep. I learned to solve all the most unpleasant work matters before 8 am. This habit allows me to live the next day with high level energy and a sense of accomplishment. The habit of doing the most unpleasant tasks early in the morning reduces my stress and anxiety levels. And further. If you can train yourself to wake up two and a half hours earlier than usual, you will gain an advantage of 150 working minutes per day. This is 17 and a half hours a week, and more than 70 hours a month. 840 hours per year. The choice is yours.
People often associate waking up early with success in life. Blogger Egoza Eikhi has been waking up at 6:00 am for the past two years. He believes this habit has changed his life.
1. You will have time to understand yourself
Many people fail to achieve their goals simply because they lack focus. If you don't start the day by figuring out what you should focus on first, you're less likely to remember your big goals throughout the day.
As you know, it is in the first half of the day that your brain works most efficiently. Use this time to take control of your life with your mind, not your emotions.
2. You will have time to plan your day.
Larks have the opportunity to plan their day in advance, before going to work. The earlier your plan for the day is made, the more efficient and productive you will spend your time.
Planning for tomorrow in the evening is counterproductive. It's stupid to make plans when your brain is stale and wants only one thing - rest.
3. Morning - great time to work on yourself
Who said you have to rush to the office immediately after waking up? At the same time, many of us complain that we constantly lack time for family, entertainment or the gym.
If you start waking up at 6am, you'll have a few more hours before your workday starts to get to the gym. When you exercise in the morning, your body is saturated with endorphins. These are hormones that are released during active physical activity and give us a feeling of joy and euphoria. The charge of endorphins received in the morning may well be enough to keep you energetic and alert throughout the working day.
4. You will start eating breakfast
You've heard all your life that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. If you wake up a couple of hours before the start of the working day, you definitely won’t be able to miss it.
School Research public health Hopkins-Bloomberg showed that eating a full breakfast has extremely important positive effects on your health. Just like your car needs gas to run, your body needs food to function properly. Especially in the morning.
5. Many people do this successful people!
New York Magazine, in its article about Jack Dorsey, the founder of Twitter, told readers that he starts his day at 5:30 in the morning. Dorsey uses the time before his work day to meditate and go for a 10-kilometer run.
Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, begins answering partner emails at 4:30 every morning.
Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, is also a big proponent of waking up early. In one of his interviews with Business Insider, he admitted that he wakes up at 5:45 and immediately gets to work. First, he sits at the computer for a while, and only then has breakfast.
6. You will be two steps ahead of everyone
Waking up early, research shows, can help you unleash your creativity. Plus, it develops your self-confidence: you start working even when all your competitors are sleeping.
I learned to solve all the most unpleasant work matters before 8 am. This habit allows me to go through the next day with high energy levels and a sense of accomplishment. The habit of doing the most unpleasant tasks early in the morning reduces my stress and anxiety levels.
And further. If you can train yourself to wake up two and a half hours earlier than usual, you will gain an advantage of 150 working minutes per day. This is 17 and a half hours a week, and more than 70 hours a month. 840 hours per year. The choice is yours.
People often associate waking up early with success in life. Blogger Egoza Eikhi has been waking up at 6:00 am for the past two years. He believes this habit has changed his life.
Here are 6 reasons that, according to the author, motivate you to get up earlier.
1. You will have time to understand yourself
Many people fail to achieve their goals simply because they lack focus. If you don't start the day by figuring out what you should focus on first, you're less likely to remember your big goals throughout the day.
As you know, it is in the first half of the day that your brain works most efficiently. Use this time to take control of your life with your mind, not your emotions.
2. You will have time to plan your day.
Larks have the opportunity to plan their day in advance, before going to work. The earlier your plan for the day is made, the more efficient and productive you will spend your time.
Planning for tomorrow in the evening is counterproductive. It's stupid to make plans when your brain is stale and wants only one thing - rest.
3. Morning is a great time to work on yourself
Who said you have to rush to the office immediately after waking up? At the same time, many of us complain that we constantly lack time for family, entertainment or the gym.
If you start waking up at 6am, you'll have a few more hours before your workday starts to get to the gym. When you exercise in the morning, your body is saturated with endorphins. These are hormones that are released during active physical activity and give us a feeling of joy and euphoria. The charge of endorphins received in the morning may well be enough to keep you energetic and alert throughout the working day.
4. You will start eating breakfast
You've heard all your life that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. If you wake up a couple of hours before the start of the working day, you definitely won’t be able to miss it.
A study from the Hopkins-Bloomberg School of Public Health found that eating a nutritious breakfast has huge health benefits. Just like your car needs gas to run, your body needs food to function properly. Especially in the morning.
5. Many successful people do this!
New York Magazine, in its article about Jack Dorsey, the founder of Twitter, told readers that he starts his day at 5:30 in the morning. Dorsey uses the time before his work day to meditate and go for a 10-kilometer run.
Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, begins answering partner emails at 4:30 every morning.
Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, is also a big proponent of waking up early. In one of his interviews with Business Insider, he admitted that he wakes up at 5:45 and immediately gets to work. First, he sits at the computer for a while, and only then has breakfast.
6. You will be two steps ahead of everyone
Waking up early, research shows, can help you unleash your creativity. Plus, it develops your self-confidence: you start working even when all your competitors are sleeping.
I learned to solve all the most unpleasant work matters before 8 am. This habit allows me to go through the next day with high energy levels and a sense of accomplishment. The habit of doing the most unpleasant tasks early in the morning reduces my stress and anxiety levels.
And further. If you can train yourself to wake up two and a half hours earlier than usual, you will gain an advantage of 150 working minutes per day. This is 17 and a half hours a week, and more than 70 hours a month. 840 hours per year. The choice is yours.