The first thing you need to know is that I love my sleep; I’m the girl that once woke up and ate breakfast at the same time her housemate was eating dinner. So when I first heard about the 5 a.m. club, in which people wake up and start their day at 5 (in the morning), my initial reaction was that of utter confusion. Who the hell would choose to wake up at such a time if you weren’t on the way to the airport?
However, I became more intrigued after seeing the YouTube video “Sleep vs. Success” by LiveDaily owner Stephen Doran, and I have to say his argument was persuasive (hey, if it’s good enough for Richard Branson, who am I to say no?). I mean, who wouldn’t want a chance to live 13 and a half months a year? Yes, seriously. Watch the video.
But what really got me was his assertion, “If you’re gonna have the audacity to tell me you’ve got dreams, visions, aspirations…and you’re sleeping on them? Then you don’t want them bad enough.” Now, there’s lots of things I want; I want to do well in my final year of college, I want to continue with my blogging, I want to keep fit, take part in societies… the list is endless. But in five years will I really be able to say I tried my absolute hardest to get them, or am I just doing the minimum because I “don’t have enough time” to fit it all in?
So this is why I find myself, at 5:30 in the morning, writing this piece — my one-week diary of joining the 5 a.m. club.
Day 1
It’s 5 a.m. and my house is freezing. And since when is it so quiet? It’s genuinely like the middle of the night… which, to the majority of the students, I suppose it is. However, in the back of my mind I think of Winston Churchill (can you tell I’m a history student?) and his famous quote, “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” Seeing a clear connection between this and my current situation, I get up, sit on my bed like a zombie for 30 minutes just staring in to space, and then do some reading.
Related: The Truth About How Much Sleep You Actually Need
I would be lying if I didn’t mention that I may have drifted off mid-way through note taking at around 7 a.m., but hey, I’d still gotten more done by 7 than I normally have by midday. Yes, I got very tired in the evening, but because I already have my work for the day out the way, my evening is just time to relax and have a guilt-free night of Netflix.
Day 2
Although I am tired today, of course, it’s rare that I sleep as deeply and fall asleep as quickly as I did yesterday. To be honest I can give myself an extra half an hour a day just by not being on my phone in bed before going to sleep.
Well, the plan for today was to get up go for a quick run/jog/walk to wake myself up properly but, needless to say, that didn’t happen. Maybe I should be easing myself into this new lifestyle slightly easier, as I’m really not the kind of person who says “go for a quick jog.” To be honest I felt stupid just writing it.
Day 3
So last night I didn’t manage to get to sleep at a reasonable time. Did I go out? Maybe, maybe not. Moral of the story is, I didn’t get to bed till about 1 so today I gave myself a “lie in” and got up at 5:30 a.m. (yes, I can see the contradiction there). I have to say, today was the first day I woke up slightly energized and completely alert. By lunchtime, though, I am definitely ready for a Red Bull — or a nap.
Related: How Electronics Are Sabotaging Your Sleep
Day 4
Rules are meant to be broken. Sunday is a day for rest. These kind of clichés help me not to feel too bad that today I cancelled all my alarms and went back to sleep.
Day 5
I’m not sure if it’s because I caught up on sleep yesterday, or because I went to bed at a decent time but today is definitely not as bad as the previous mornings. I normally don’t even feel this good at 10 a.m. so this is pretty much a first. Even though my house is freezing, and I can’t leave my room to go to the toilet for fear of waking up my housemate who has an interview tomorrow, I’m feeling genuinely energized and productive. I can honestly see why people choose to get up at this time to work or exercise, there’s something to be said about being up and productive when most people are asleep.
Well, my whole “this is a new me” realization didn’t last too long, as I started lagging a bit in the afternoon. But, I have still got hours worth of reading and note taking done already so clearly my positivity in the morning is paying off.
Day 6
I have been lucky enough to be able to speak a bit to Stephen Doran and a member of his LiveFit/LiveDaily team, so I have a new activity to be doing at 5 a.m.. To get more of an insight into the actual 5 a.m. “club,” Steve messaged me at 5 to give me some “personal reflection” questions to write answers to at the start of the day. Now this isn’t the kind of thing I would normally do but I thought, well, if you’re going to do it, better do it right. And who is better to determine what is “right” to do at 5 a.m. than the man who inspired me to do so in the first place? The questions were along the lines of “What do I want to finish this day thinking?” and “what would I be doing today if money were no object?”
Related: Up All Night: Your Sleep Issues Solved
I don’t think this is something that I will be getting into regularly, but I can definitely see the advantages of having your goals and aspirations in a tangible form in front of you every day.
Day 7
I wake up with slight relief that this is the last time I will have to see this time of the morning. However, I was determined to at least once get up and actually do something active. So I watched a LiveDaily/LiveFit video on movement and motivation, and it is true what they say, exercise is a great way to start the day. As hard as it is to motivate yourself to do exercise first thing when you get up (or any other time of day for that matter), it does keep you alert and energized for the morning. Well, I can’t really act too high and mighty, I did just do a bit of moving around my bedroom in my pajamas.
So there is my insight into the 5 a.m. club. In all truth I did find it difficult but I only did it for a week, so I haven’t quite gone through the hard part and fully made it to the other side yet. I think I’ll take some things away from this, like the benefits of exercising in the morning and getting up early to get more done in a day, but I won’t take it on as a lifestyle.
The one thing I would say to anyone considering joining the 5 a.m. club? Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.