Fully Into It.
Posted by: Tom
Well over a week into this little expirement, and I am fully into it. Last night I even stayed up late and had some junk food while watching some sports (alma mater's football game), but this morning was up at 5am. It was certainly harder than normal and I have been more tired today as a result, but it's beginning to feel normal to me.
So I thought I would post some thoughts of my own at this point (instead of pointing to tips from others).
- Attitude is critical. I believe that my attitude adjustment regarding this change has been the single biggest factor in the success of it so far. While I have tried many times to make this a habit in the last five years, I was never truly excited about getting up so early. I am now and I think that is what has made the difference. I love getting up and getting some important things done before I get trapped in the "necessities" of the day.
- Eating adjustment has been extremely important. Eating a smaller meal at night has had some unintended, but fantastic, consequences. I am not a breakfast eater, but am forced into it now because I'm so hungry in the morning. But that's a great result, because I feel better throughout the day. Also, I make lunch my "big" meal and love it. I don't even feel guilty about an occasional Vanilla Coke at lunch, because I'll be eating so little at night.
- Wake up "gimmicks" seem unimportant. All of the different alarm clock tricks and tips seem not necessary ... for me anyway. I simply decide to get up and do it, and my body seems primed and ready for it because it is following my desire (from the first point above) and my need for food (point two from above).
There have been a ton of nice side benefits resulting from this, one is my new found ability to get to sleep quickly at night. I have always struggled falling asleep, often lying in bed for an hour before finally drifitng off. I have come to the conclusion that I was coddling myself, allowing for TOO MUCH sleep. I would pay the price for that through a mild case of insomnia. Now I am tired and ready to sleep at night, even though I have to say I have more energy in the middle of the day than I used to.
Anyway, hopefully this doesn't read as a "travelogue" too much. I hope my experience proves useful to others.
The last thing I have to say is that I totally believe this change is worth making. I know I still have 2/3 of the month left, but I think this is definitely going to end up being a High Impact Change for me. It's worth getting excited about!