HEY-LO!!!!
Wow two posts a day, two days in a row. It feels like the good old days. I told you that my blogging was much quicker now! Thank you Eric, techie genius. ;)
I feel literally ah-may–ZING since I have started NOT multitasking and the Early Rising Challenge. I have an extra kick to my step. I can’t wait to see what I feel like in a few weeks if this has only been a few days. They say it takes 21 days to form a habit, so that is what I am shooting for.
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Some of you have been asking me how I am getting up early so I thought I would talk about it a bit tonight and tell you what has worked for me so far.
Here are some of my Early Rising Challenge tips:
- GET WARM: If your place is like mine, it is freezing when you wake up. The walk from the bedroom to the bathroom is the most painful thing I experience all day. COLD. I have found that it is much easier to get out of bed if my fluffy robe and slippers are beside the bed. As soon as I get up the robe and slippers go on and I instantly feel a bit (bit) better about getting up. I also have a small space heater in our bathroom that I immediately turn on when I get up. I look forward to the warmth and I stand beside it for a few minutes while I brush my teeth. These little rewards add up in the early morning!
- WAKE UP NATURALLY WHEN POSSIBLE: I don’t use an alarm clock. I have this strange internal clock that I can ‘set’ before bed and I magically awake for that time. I prefer not using an alarm clock because it means that I am more likely to wake up at the end of a sleep cycle– and not being jolted awake in the middle of one! This method is not for everyone of course (i.e., my hubby). If you can’t go without your alarm clock, I suggest putting it across the room so you have to get out of bed to turn it off.
- CAFFEINE: I will bulldoze anything in my path to get to the kettle in the morning to make my Japanese Sencha. It has just enough caffeine to wake me up and energize me. While I don’t suggest consuming massive quantities of caffeine, I think a little bit is nice!
- GET YOUR ENDORPHINS: If you are going to the trouble of getting up early you might as well cross off your workout while you are at it! I feel ‘ok’ after 15 mins. of rising, but I feel especially AMAZING after an early morning workout. I will be honest though, the first 10 minutes of my workout are often brutal and I feel like I have no energy, however after 10 minutes I magically wake-up and it goes pretty well. When I workout in the early morning I have half a Glo Bar or a Run bar to tide my hunger over until breakfast, which is usually 1-1.5 hours later (after workout and showering).
- REWARD YOUR SUCCESS- TWICE! I want a morning reward and a weekly reward for my hard work! My morning reward is having more time for a relaxing, delicious breakfast. I also spend a bit more time reading fun blogs or reading my book. For my weekly treat, I was thinking giving myself ‘permission’ to buy a special item at the grocery store that I typically don’t buy. Nothing motivates me more than good food! ha!!! ;)
- BE FLEXIBLE: A reader named Ariel gave me this great tip. She says to be flexible with the goal time that you set for your early morning. So for example, if Ariel’s goal time is 5am, she won’t be hard on herself if she gets up at 5:30 on some mornings. We have to take into account the fact that some days we will just need more sleep than others and that is OK! Be flexible with yourself and you will be less stressed and happier (this applies to all areas of life too!).
I was asked if I have a ‘goal time’ for the Early Rising Challenge.
The answer is YES.
You know me, I need goals to strive for in everything that I do. I find they are so motivating. My goal is 4:45-5am wake-up time, and a more realistic goal is probably 5:30am, given Eric’s sleep schedule and the fact that I do need to spend quality time with him in the evening! :) I can’t see myself going to bed much earlier than 10pm, but maybe that will change with the earlier mornings. Baby steps…
All in all it is only day two of the challenge and I am already feeling so much more productive and overall much happier. That is in part thanks to my NOT multitasking too! My life is feeling more simplified with each passing day and I am really excited to keep at it and see what benefits I get from it.
Would you like a chance to win a 2 pound bag of CHIA SEEDS from Chia Seeds Direct?
Just answer this simple question below:
- What time do you get up in the morning during the weekdays and WHY!
Contest open to Canadian and US residents only please. Runs until Friday Jan 15th at 8am.
BONNE CHANCE MES AMIES!
See you tomorrow AM for Pumpkin Pie Baked Breakfast Cake.
I’m off to do Whittle My Middle 2 with Eric, then make some din dins. Ta-ta!
If I have to go into the office for work I get up at 6am to start at 8am. If I work from home I get up at 7:59am to start work at 8am :) I really need to work on setting a better sleep schedule.
I get up around the same time each day without an alarm- around 7:15. Guess I just have an internal body clock that wakes me up then!
I get up between 6:30 and 7:00 every day without even setting an alarm! It works great, because I can work out, make myself breakfast, and relax. I love having the mornings to myself and it makes me feel so accomplished knowing that I have done so much by the time so many other people are just starting to wake up.
seriously… your baked breakfast things look SO delicious, i am going to HAVE to try them one of these days… SOON!!!
i usually wake up between 9 and 10 am. I work second shift, 4 10 hour days from 1:40 to 11:50, so I usually get home around 12:15. By the time I wind down and sometimes watch a recorded show, I am usually in bed between 1 and 2. the last couple months i have been lazy and sleeping later (11 am feels nice sometimes, hahaha)… but now that i’m getting back to healthy eating and exercise, i need to wake up earlier so i have time to work out and shower! i would like to work on being able to get up closer to 8/8:30, so i may need to work on a “early rise” challenge of my own. :)
i would LOVE to try some chia seeds too!!!
Hi lady,
Chia seeds are my new favorite seed! A lovely getaway on a lovely blog!
I normally wake up between 5:00 and 5:30. Just beginning the second semester of the Ph.D., and also have been training for a marathon so I have to get up and get going. It definitely gets easier the longer you do it. 5:00 is definitely the earliest I can get up and feel good during the day, though, no matter how early I go to bed. (Normally around 10:30.)
Cheers,
Kate
I get up at 5:30 am if I’m working out or 6:30 am for work if I’m not!
I wake up at 5:30am this month because of a new project at work, but without this project usually I wake up at 6:30.
I get up at 7 because of school. On weekdays that I don’t have an 8am class I still get up to study, do yoga or go for a run! I like to be consistent and try to get up by 7:30 even on the weekends.
During the week, I’m up by 6. I’m thinking of trying to ease that back to 5 so I can get a workout in before leaving for the day… your success with the Early Rising Challenge has been helpful to see!
Believe it or not, my alarm goes off at 3:57 am. It used to be 4:00, but I found myself running a few minutes late . . . the owner of the gym I belong to opens the doors for me at 4:30 (b/c I have to be back home by 5:50 in order to shower and leave for work by 6:35 am. I’m a teacher, and need to be at my desk, ready to help my students before classes start at 7:10 am. Crazy, I know.). Truth be told, however, I usually wake up a few minutes before my alarm and get up on my own. Beyond crazy, I know. But that’s okay–I’m definitely a morning person and wouldn’t want it any other way! :) Also, I’d love to win some chia seeds–I put them in my oatmeal every morning (that I eat as I drive to work!).
I have been wanting to try chia seeds! My wakeup time varies because of school. But I ideally wake up at 9am. Anything before 8 is early!
Usually get up between 6:45 and 7:30 depending on when the kids get up. I always hope that they sleep later!! :P
What can I sat? I like to get up early!! O
I get up at 4:50 to get to the gym by 5:00. I work out till 5:50ish to get hone and shower so I can eat oats+pb+banana in time to leave for work at 7:00. I loooooove getting up early…..
I’ve been getting up around 7:00 (but I almost never get up with an alarm clock.) I work afternoons and evenings so there’s no hurry on that end. I do like to get up earlyish though so I can exercise, catch up on e-mails and blogging, practice (I’m a musician) and any other errands that need to be done.
wow, a lot of early birds here. I wake up at 830 just because my eyes automatically open during that time. Since school is starting, it should be 645.
I work nights 3 days a week, so I usually sleep until about 4pm. When I’m on a normal sleep schedule, I try to get about 8hrs of sleep…so I am usually up at 8:30am. No matter what the time, I definitely need some coffee.
I wake up when the hubb’s get up for work… Usually between 7-8 am.
I’m a lifeguard who works the early morning shift. So, I get up at 4 am, start work at 5, workout at 8, and am off to school by 10. Crazy start to the day, eh?
The motivation for me to wake up is being attentive on the job. If I start to snooze, people in the pool may be endangered.
I think my efforts deserve Chia seeds. :)
Ooooh, awesome! I have been wanting to try chia seeds since seeing them all over Blog Land!
I wake up between 8 and 9 AM. I’m a student, so my schedule is different everyday, but I like to get up around the same time so my body is on a schedule.
When I’m taking classes, I rise and shine around 8 in the morning – but during my winter break, I’m in full hibernation mode and don’t roll out of bed until around 11!
How funny, I have that internal alarm clock too and it’s pretty darn reliable :)