Waking up earlier, from 12 to 7!

[tsjechov]

Hi !

As i work independently, i can choose how late i wake up. It has been a challenge every day to wake up earlier. Sometimes it worked for weeks, i woke up at 6 and wow did i feel good! But lately it totally did not work and i woke up at... 12. And the day after again. And again.

My luxury problem is that i like evenings to much. But that gives another bigger problem: if i stay up late i wake up late and i do less and less in a day. And then i don't reach my goals! And as my goals are important to me... I want to wake up earlier again!

As i want to wake up at 7 again i want to start going back one hour every few days and log here at that time That must help me i hope!

Fr 12 june: 8
Sa 13 june: 8
Su 14 june: 8
Mo 15 june: 8
Tu 16 june: 8
We 17 june: 8
Th 18 june: 7
Fr 19 june: 7
Sa 20 june: 7
Su 21 june: 7
Mo 22 june: 7


In July i want to wake up at 6. Yieha!

Goodluck to myself here ;-)
Tsjechov

[hugofortin]

Hi,

Yes, good luck to yourself!

Even if you work independently, you have to stay focus on your goals.

bye

Hugo

[tsjechov]

Thanks!

Yesterday I took a warm bath with relaxing stuff in it, and that really got me sleepy early! But i guess a little to sleepy... Today i woke up at 11... Ahem!

Thought about it and I am going to change my way though... because of experience
Want to wake up tomorrow at 10, then 9, then 8, then 7 seems like a better idea.

Be back again tomorrow!

[hugofortin]

Hi,

Step by step, little bit a the time. This is the way to do it.

Hugo

[vincentbal]

This is the same way I implemented this habit, I used to wake up after 12 o clock when I had a day off. Gradually I changed this, first to 11 o clock, 10 o clock and so on.
Right now I wake up at 7 during the week and 8 or 9 in the weekend. In the weekend I go to bed a lot later then normal so I need that few hours extra.

[MartinP]

This sounds great!

One question:

If you are more of an evening person, does that mean you are more efficient in the evenings? If so, does that mean, you should be doing more work in the evenings (since that is your prime time) and less at other times.

Just because the world is run by people who like to wake up in the mornings, doesn't mean you have to march to their drum. I think the key is more to work to your own rhythms and make sure you are working at times when you are most efficient.

[tsjechov]

Day 2. Woke up at 12 again. :-/ I really tried so much over the years, offcourse when i have an appointment i'm alway awake on time. But when i have only meetings with myself then i don't seem to wake up. I did try and skip nights, or only sleep 4 hours or 3 but in the end - that did not work better as gradually waking up an hour earlier as i am trying now.

Vincent, great that you are there allready! A few hours in the weekend is a good idea, for now i have a siesta in my mind. I try that.

MartinP, I am an eveningperson but i can also learn good in the mornings when i start the day active and not lazy behind the computer. And when i wake up earlier i really do lot more usefull things. As i have loads of goals i do need the time gain i get from waking up early. I just want to get my goals concrete and not only as ideas.
But you are right that there is a different drumbeat for everyone. I'm trying a different one this year... *Starts longing for long nights again...* Maybe when i manage to get my goals i change back again to waking up late.
Are you an eveningperson?

[tsjechov]

Day 3. Woke up at 11 on a Sunday. Short night so this evening i will sleep ealier -> early rise tomorrow

[tsjechov]

Day 4. 11 o'clock. Tomorrow appointment so then 8 o'clock. Looking forward to that!

[mbk1382]

My understanding is the it take about one month to make a new habit permanent. If you change the time by 1 hour every week or two it is going to take you few months to get to your target during which a continuous straggle with your wakeup time.

If might be less effort to go for the 7 AM time directly and straggle for a few days only.

[tsjechov]

thnx mbk12382, but that is what i did a few times allready. in the long term it did not work better, because every morning is the same struggle.

now i wake up tomorrow at 8, and the day after too. but only because of appointments. my problem really is that if i donnot have an appointment that i dont wake up because i don't need to. if i work in the evening or morning does not matter.

one idea is to make appointments every morning to get into it.

[tsjechov]

I woke up at 7.15 this morning and because i slept a lot lately i felt tired but very focused. Talking in an other language can be quit difficult when you are under stress i noticed, o my god! I have to work on that really.

Tomorrow i want to wake up at 7.15 too. Yiehoo!

[tsjechov]

I woke up at 9 today... ! Tomorrow again, day after 8 o'oclock and then 8 o'clock too.
Went to sleep earlier yesterday, i could not stay awake anymore I did so much more yesterday, wanted to stay active too.

Although i am a night person, i also like the mornings. It really started when i quit smoking, became a few years older and also when i got allergies an could not eat out for a long time. So the nightlife was not so interesting anymore. Next to that, i noticed i did not make me goals, although they are in a territory where alcohol an cigarettes are 'legend' (but not always).

Well i am going to rewrite down these years goals and dreams and work on that. Waking up early is going to be a habit that will help me a lot, i am sure!!

[tsjechov]

I also want to start making appointments early in the morning, something i was alway avoiding But now i have one every friday at 8 o'clock so that is great.

[tsjechov]

Woke up at 10, 1 hour later as planned. But no 12 or 13 or worse
Tomorrow i made an appointment and i have to get up at... 6.30, really!
I do love it though!!

[tsjechov]

YIEHA!! I woke up at 6.45 (set the alarm on that time)... first i was feeling strange, my body said hey you should be asleep deeply... then i just got out of bed, made some coffee and went straight behind the computer as 'reward'
I feel a little tired, but not too much i can stay awake the whole day now... WOW!
Tomorrow i want to wake up the same time again, then i go for a dayhike into nature.
I love it, wow do i have loads of usefull time ahead!!

[Lena Carpenter]

Good job on your progress! I use my computer time as a reward too, although I notice that getting moving wakes me up faster, so I'm thinking about moving computer time to later in the day.

[tsjechov]

Hi Lena, Thanks
Yeah, my main goal is keeping the computer off untill as late as possible. I noticed that i surf way less then. And although moving in the morning makes me (really) awake sooner, and makes me more active throughout the day i want to focus on getting up earlier first... But you are right.

[tsjechov]

Day 9: 8.59 I woke up an later than planned because i really felt tired and there was no need to wake up... yet. That is not a good excuse but a motivation to find the reasons why this has happened and to find a cure.
Lesson: Next time i make my appointment earlier, so i have a reason.
Lesson: Next time just stay out of bed, you can do that if you have the clearness to change 3 (yes THREE) alarmclocks in the morning to ring an hour later


Well, i watched a dvd yesterday, with some white wine and i just went to bed to late. I was tired the whole evening because of (a) waking up at 6.45 and (b) because i really did THREE times MORE than in a normal day?!?! Crazy! It makes me feel really good, is this the step i missed? This way it is so much easier to reach my goals! What the hell will i do with so much time ;-)
Lesson: Tonight after the dayhike in the forest with my friends and dogs, i want to go in the bath and read a book after in bed - and fall asleep earlier.

Small experiment: Then tomorrow i want to wake up between 7 and 8. See how that works, then i have something to think about in the morning
The thing also is, i like to dream, and i love the halfsleep in bed in the morning... it is just different in the evening. But... if i work and excercise and make myself very very tired i can sleep earlier. And enjoy my halfsleep in the evening. Have to try that too.

Goal: Tomorrow: I want to go to 7 o'clock (Max 8 o'clock, it is weekend)
Idea for later goals: later to 6 o'clock and even maybe, when i'm into it and becoming sortoff a morningperson



(sorry for my lousy english, i am just awake in this timezone and feeling a bit tired)

[Kaybee]

My son is a night owl. He stays up to 3/4am doing whatever he needs to get done and then sleeps until 12/1pm in the afternoon.

You know the old saying, "the early bird catches the worm." Well, my son tells me it's not about how early you get up, but how productively you use the hours you are awake.

I think most people find they get more done when they wake up early....I'm one of those people.

Good Luck!

Kim

Self Improvement and Motivation

[tsjechov]

Day 10 11 o'clock.
(1) First, this is a Sunday. Sundays are ment for relaxing! Ok i admit, i did not reach my daily goal between 7 an 8. I have 3 more excuses for that.
(2) Second: Yesterday i had a dayhike of 13 miles (21 kilometer), which was a little longer than i was used to.
(3) And third, although i was deadly tired at 9 in the evening (could have slept then), i wanted to watch the boxingfight between Klitschko and Chagaev. And i drank some white wine. So i slept at 1.30 in the night.
(4) Fourthly: I did NOT hear the alarm!! Really!! I only had ONE alarm... the aggresive one that is... poor neighbours!!

lesson: don't be to hard on yourself in the weekends, but rather have the same rhythm. Will be: between 6 and 7 o'clock.
lesson: use three alarms (one talking voice, one sweetly ringing, one agrresive)

But i'm not so happy that i did not wake up earlier... i also feel totally crap, as i seem to have slept on my back the whole night without moving!

Goal Tomorrow between 7 and 8: I have an appointment, so then i have to wake up between 7 and 8. New changes!

[tsjechov]

Thank you Kim! Well i was a night owl, but i felt the night is good for drawing, getting ideas, writing, but in the morning i learn much better and in the day i am much more physically active. As i plan to do much more outdoors in the nature (hike, kanu, footbike, run, bike, camp, walk with dog etc) you really have to get up earlier with the sun.

So going outdoors that is one BIG reason why i want to get up earlier. I did not even mention that i believe.
Second reason is that it is better for my work (i tend to need a long time in the morning before i am customer-ready).
Third that i think it is healthier to wake up with dawn.
Fourth is that i want to reach my goals, and the difference for me is so big - i really do somuch more when i wake up earlier. Wish i knew that before!!

[tsjechov]

Day 11: 8 o'clock!
This is going in the good direction
I woke up directly, without snoozing.

[Lena Carpenter]

Originally Posted by tsjechov

As i plan to do much more outdoors in the nature (hike, kanu, footbike, run, bike, camp, walk with dog etc) you really have to get up earlier with the sun.

Fourth is that i want to reach my goals, and the difference for me is so big - i really do somuch more when i wake up earlier. Wish i knew that before!!

Wow, that is a great idea. I noticed that I started going outside in my back yard more. I even started doing yoga outside in the mornings!

What is it about getting up that makes us get more things done? I think maybe a lot of it is psychological. Personally, I feel like I'm ahead, instead of like I'm catching up all day, when I'm up early.

[tsjechov]

Day 12: 8 o'clock!!
Woke up right away, without having an appointment I am so happy to have gone back to 8 o'clock... Before end of june i have to be at 7 and then 6. Yeah!

Originally Posted by Lena Carpenter

Wow, that is a great idea. I noticed that I started going outside in my back yard more. I even started doing yoga outside in the mornings!

What is it about getting up that makes us get more things done? I think maybe a lot of it is psychological. Personally, I feel like I'm ahead, instead of like I'm catching up all day, when I'm up early.

Hi Lena, yeah i have that with cleaning the house and other activities - i seem to get so much done! I also think it is psychological, when there is daylight people want to do more 'usefull' things, and at night you soon have the feeling: hmm, time to relax now
But i also have the feeling it is something 'biological', just waking up when the sun rises. That we should wake up earlier. The only fact that we stay up so late is offcourse artificial light otherwise most of us would not even be nightowls. The drive i have now is so different, i love it really.

Good luck to you too Lena, you ultra-early-riser

[tsjechov]

Goal tomorrow: wake up at 8 again.

My body does have to get used to it. (After trying 100 times hardcore sleepskipping i dont't want that to interfere that with my work).
I am still more sleepwalking in the morning than i want to, but that will change the next days i guess. I am just so happy that i woke up at 8.

Maybe my new idea for June will be: wake up at 6 and go to the gym in the morning.
WOOI! That will be so NOT LIKE ME !! But hey... i am very interested to get a lot of things going the next 3 months... will see how much it will effect me.

I would love it when i would be swimming at 8 for example. (Not so expensive and quiet.) Or go to the gym. Or walk in the forests. Then work afterwards. Or work at 7 allready.

[tsjechov]

Day 13: 9 o'clock.
One hour to late because i was deadtired. I went to bed at 12 yesterday although i was very very tired. I should have went to bed at 10 with a book. I also drank some wine again. It is easier to stay awake when you are 'under people', but i have to work at my home-studio again today.
Well, i keep on going...

Goal tomorrow: 8 o'clock again!

[Lena Carpenter]

Originally Posted by tsjechov

Maybe my new idea for June will be: wake up at 6 and go to the gym in the morning.
WOOI! That will be so NOT LIKE ME !! But hey... i am very interested to get a lot of things going the next 3 months... will see how much it will effect me.

I would love it when i would be swimming at 8 for example. (Not so expensive and quiet.) Or go to the gym. Or walk in the forests. Then work afterwards. Or work at 7 allready.

Sounds like you have the same idea as I do. I always feel like something more active might get me moving better. I do like my yoga and meditation, and right now, if I don't get them done in the morning, they just don't get done. I decided that I'll try to accomplish my most important tasks, but I might reconsider adding like walking or running in there. Going for a swim sounds fantastic too!

[tsjechov]

Day 14: 9 o'clock again.
I went to bed late again! But, it is still better than a while ago (can you imagine how late someone wakes up when normally the alarm goes at 12 in the day? 2 or 3 sometimes...)
What is also positive, i still feel much more active, as if all my cells say 'GO!'.
Also positive: day by day i am less tired! I don't need naps too. I do need my 8 hours sleep, but when i've settled for one time to wake up every day, i can go to 7 or 6.

Still thinking about july and going to the gym every workday... the plan is to start waking up at 6 every day and then go to the gym in the morning. When i don't do that the whole gymthing is going to go. I wanted to start swimming in the autumn anyway, and there are enough outdoor possibilities too.

Goal tomorrow: i want to wake up at 7. The rest of the days in June too.
Yieha!

[tsjechov]

Ok the above is a little too positive for the achievement - ahem - of waking up at nine in the morning. But for me it is going really well, without too much tiredness.
When i have one time to wake up in the morning (say: 6) then it is so much easier to wake up every day. I used to wake up at different hours al the time.