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Waking up early (Read 1028 times)

    I get up at 4 every day and run at 5. Here's what helps me:

    1. Go to bed at least 7 hours before you're going to get up.
    2. DON'T hit the snooze -- that's personal torture in my book. Just get up!
    3. Have a cup of coffee and read the news for a bit before going for your run (I look forward to this every morning -- so I'm usually eager to get up just for this.)
    4. Get your running stuff together before you go to bed.
    5. Keep focused on how good you're going to feel getting your run done early and having that rush from your run all morning.

    But it sounds like you've got a ways to go. 8:00 a.m. is late in my book. I can't remember the last time I even slept until 6, let alone 8!!

      I get up anywhere between 3:15 to 3:30, depends on mileage.  I have to be at work at 0630.   #1 for me is that great satisifaction that it's done.  As everyone else has said, do it for a week and you will have no problem  going to bed earlier.   Lay out clothes, no snooze.  Your body does adjust and will.  Just need to force it until it becomes second nature.  


      Mmmmm...beer

        I wish I could get 8+ hours of sleep.  I'm up at 5 to run regardless of what time I go to bed, which usually is close to midnight.  Altho, I do make sure to get to bed early the two nights before a race, but for my regular runs, I just suck it up. 

         

        I still don't like getting up early, but I love running early, when it's dark out and the world is still asleep.  It's the best way to start my day.

        -Dave

        My running blog

        Goals | sub-18 5k | sub-3 marathon 2:56:46!!


        Oh roo roooo!

          I get up anywhere between 3:15 to 3:30, depends on mileage.  I have to be at work at 0630.   #1 for me is that great satisifaction that it's done.  As everyone else has said, do it for a week and you will have no problem  going to bed earlier.   Lay out clothes, no snooze.  Your body does adjust and will.  Just need to force it until it becomes second nature.  

           

          A kindred soul!  My husband and I get up at either 2:30 AM (summer) or 3 AM (winter) for pretty much this same reason, having things done.  We usually take about a half hour to feed our 3 dogs, have coffee and get suited up to go dog-walking (less suiting in warm weather, obviously).  Then we walk dogs for about 45 mins.  Then we come home and do a 20-minute yoga tape (and if we skip this part for more than a few days in a row, we can really feel the effects, so it's important for these two 50-something folks!).  At this point, my hub will either do a short bike ride (warm weather) or a short elliptical trot (cold) and I will hit the road for that day's run, so this is around 4:30-ish.  Hub starts work at 6 AM; I currently start much later, but this did not used to be the case, hence this arrangement.

           

          I would like to reiterate what was already said about going to bed early in order to get up early (and/or vice versa, as it was mentioned too!).  When people find out how early we get up, they are just freaked out.  I tell them that we go to bed early, so it's not a big deal, really.  Typically they will be like "omg, but HOW DO YOU FALL ASLEEP AT 7 PM?" to which I just answer "get up at 2:30, do your workout, do your job, etc., and then tell me if you are tired at 7 PM and if you still wonder how to fall asleep then."  I think an awful lot of people are running around on 4 or 5 hours' sleep, having gone to bed in the wee hours and then gotten up at 6 or 7, and wondering why they are sick all the time, why they feel crappy, why they are spending $15 a day on Starbucks to stay awake, etc.  I know someone posted here about only needing 6 hours, but I do think that is an exception, and people in general need more sleep than they are getting, for the most part.

           

          Anyway, I hope you find some useful info here.  As a confirmed early AM runner, there is so much to recommend it--there is the satisfaction of having it done, so that whatever happens in the rest of the day, at least you accomplished that, but there is so much more, too.  The quiet of early morning, the feeling of having the world to yourself, of being part of an exclusive club that gets to see the sun come up, the animal tracks in the snow, the owl drifting silently off the rooftop--I would not trade it for anything.  Best wishes!


            Anyway, I hope you find some useful info here.  As a confirmed early AM runner, there is so much to recommend it--there is the satisfaction of having it done, so that whatever happens in the rest of the day, at least you accomplished that, but there is so much more, too.  The quiet of early morning, the feeling of having the world to yourself, of being part of an exclusive club that gets to see the sun come up, the animal tracks in the snow, the owl drifting silently off the rooftop--I would not trade it for anything.  Best wishes!

             

            You just get used to it. Early to bed, hit the pillow and out almost instantly.

             

            Overhearing talk about meds to take to get to sleep, for high blood pressure, diabetes' and on and on. 50 years old, no meds, and no problems sleeping. (nor staying awake if need beWink

            Get off my porch

            MJ5


            Chief Unicorn Officer

              I agree about going to bed early. Many people say they "can't" but honestly, I think if you'd just turn off the TV, put away your laptop, put away your phone, and let your brain come down off the electronics buzz you'd fall asleep much faster (proverbial you).  If I get less then 7-8 hours, I am tired, sluggish and miserable.  I frequently get 8+ hours of sleep and have no trouble getting up or getting through the day without coffee.  It goes without saying that I'm not a party animal, either.  I just really prefer to feel refreshed and energized the next day rather than tired and hungover!

              Mile 5:49 - 5K 19:58 - 10K 43:06 - HM 1:36:54

              Butter Tart


                 If I get less then 7-8 hours, I am tired, sluggish and miserable.  I frequently get 8+ hours of sleep and have no trouble getting up or getting through the day without coffee.  It goes without saying that I'm not a party animal, either.  I just really prefer to feel refreshed and energized the next day rather than tired and hungover!

                 

                Same here! Six hours of sleep and I am tired and grumpy all day long. I hate being sleep deprived. I need 8 hours or more to function optimally and have lots of energy.


                sugnim

                  This is probably the least helpful tip ever, but I'd say wait until the brighter times of year, such as late spring, summer, & early autumn.  If it's light out, I am up & ready to go at 5:00 am.  If it's dark out, such as now when it isn't fully light out until after 8:00, it's very hard for me to get up early & be ready to run.  So, I run in the evenings after work on weekdays, and in the late morning (10ish) on the weekends.  for me, it feels better to alter my schedule with the seasons.  If you aren't able to do that, my only other suggestion might be to get a sunrise alarm clock to wake you up & trick you into feeling that it is a bright, sunny morning before you even open your eyes.

                  Butter Tart


                    sugnim is right that it is easier to get up early when it's light out. Right now is probably the harder time of year: not only is it EARLY but it's also DARK and COLD. It's dark and cold in the evenings too though, and it's so much easier on my schedule to do the running first thing.  Less than a month until the days start getting longer...

                      sugnim is right that it is easier to get up early when it's light out. Right now is probably the harder time of year: not only is it EARLY but it's also DARK and COLD. It's dark and cold in the evenings too though, and it's so much easier on my schedule to do the running first thing.  Less than a month until the days start getting longer...

                       

                      True, but I have to start running by 5 to have enough time, and here it's never light until after 6--even on the longest days. Sometimes you have to just suck it up and get used to it.
                      LedLincoln


                      not bad for mile 25

                        I still don't like getting up early, but I love running early, when it's dark out and the world is still asleep.  It's the best way to start my day.

                         

                        Yes.  I do it because I'm looking forward to how I will feel during and after the run.

                         

                        I have to discipline myself to get to bed by 10:00.  Seven hours later, the alarm sounds, and I'm running by 5:30 am.

                         

                        MTA: I kind of like the morning darkness, too.


                        Oh roo roooo!

                          MTA: I kind of like the morning darkness, too.

                           

                          I have long held the belief that I am significantly faster in the dark than once the sun comes up! Joking (Not that that takes a lot, especially these days!)

                          FlippyNoodle


                          Not a dude

                            I really, really hate getting up early, but I do it because that is the only way I'll be able to run. I try to ensure that my running interferes with family life as little as possible, so it's best for me to do so when they are all still sleeping. As much as I hate getting out of bed, I'm generally glad I did and I feel energized for the rest of the day. I try to be up by 5:00 and out the door by 5:15. Sometimes that doesn't happen and I have to cut a run shorter than planned, but I'm working on being more consistent in that regard.

                             

                            If you're having trouble getting up before 8am, I don't know what to tell you other than to get used to it. I know you're in college now, but eventually you're going to have to be up early every single day when you enter the working world. Might as well adjust to that inevitability now and get your runs in early if that's what you need to do. Smile

                              It's been pretty well covered.  Start waking up early and you'll start going to bed early enough.

                               

                              I also find setting the alarm clock clear on the other side of the room helps.  

                               

                              I also know, for me, I WILL NOT run before work if I could "just run after."  It was the desire to integrate doubles that got me to make it a habit a few times a week.

                              "When a person trains once, nothing happens. When a person forces himself to do a thing a hundred or a thousand times, then he certainly has developed in more ways than physical. Is it raining? That doesn't matter. Am I tired? That doesn't matter, either. Then willpower will be no problem." 
                              Emil Zatopek

                                The time you get up is not so much the issue - it's whether you get enough sleep.

                                 

                                A good test is whether you're routinely woken by an alarm clock or whether you wake up naturally. 

                                 

                                I'm not saying it's a bad idea to have an alarm clock set in case you sleep more than usual on the odd morning. But if it's the normal way you wake up then you could probably do with more sleep.

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