A few mornings ago I woke up at 4:30a.m., an hour before my alarm clock. Struggling for a few moments on whether to go back to sleep or make use of the time, I decided to get up and head to the gym. The 24-hour gym we have in town is great because there is never an excuse to not stay fit.
Have you ever woken up early and not felt like going back to sleep? Waking up before the alarm can be a blessing in disguise if the time is used effectively. I will share my five favourite things to do in the early morning before the hustle and bustle of the day gets underway.
1) Exercise
There is nothing better than getting in an early-morning, unplanned workout. In these sessions I often do yoga as it is low-impact and gets the blood circulating. Stretching the muscles out at this time of the morning when it is still dark allows the perfect opportunity for some quiet contemplation on what is important to you in life.
On the other hand, with my most recent early gym session, I decided to hit the boxing bag. I just moved around the bag and picked my shots, working up a good sweat without any real stress on the body. I imagine it was about as relaxed as you could possibly get while throwing punches!
2) Write
My mind tends to be exceptionally clear in the morning. There hasn’t yet been a day of activities to mull over as can be the case in the evening. Each day presents a new opportunity to begin anew.
I have found it effective to write personal finance articles and stay on track for a few hours when writing before even 7:00a.m.. During my prolific period in March when I earned over $1,000 freelancing, I did most of my writing before noon most days.
3) Read
I often like to mull over annual reports or quarterly financial statements in the early hours when my focus is at its peak. I toss on some classical music and let my mind wander. This is a perfect time to conduct research for a new stock buying opportunity or for an article to write.
I don’t read many novels in the early hours as I am more prone to falling asleep if I am lying on the couch reading.
4) Organize my computer files
There is no better time than early morning to casually do some organization that you have been putting aside. I do so much work on my computer that it is easy for it to become cluttered. I like taking some “bonus” time from waking up early to arrange my folders in a more coherent fashion when it is needed.
This can extend beyond the PC, of course, to organizing your home or other areas.
5) Make a list for the day
Many highly successful people swear by the concept of making a list early each day or the night before to set yourself up with some goals to accomplish each day.
Going beyond the immediacy of each day, early morning can be a great time to even reimagine your quarterly, yearly, or overall life goals. Reconsidering ideas in a different frame of mind can allow new angles to be considered.
Conclusion
I hope this article will encourage you to not waste away those extra hours that come along in the morning. While sometimes there is nothing sweeter than simply drifting back to sleep, I believe there is an opportunity to be had by effectually rethinking the early hours.
Thank you for reading.
– Ryan
What do you like to do early in the morning?
Pictures courtesy of pixabay.com
You are much more productinve at 4:30 AM than I am….not even close. Like DH, I would be fast asleep haha I like your idea of a lighter workout in Yoga. Often I’m too tired to jump into a full workout, so that would be a nice middle ground.
The one productive thing for the blog that I’ll sometimes do when I can’t sleep is follow new people on Twitter. Very easy, doesn’t require thought, and it helps lull me to sleep.
DD,
No doubt, it’s not a time most will get up and I often do catch myself drifting back to sleep occasionally. Nevertheless, a very light workout is a great way to get the blood pumping for the day.
Doing some social media work is another great use of downtime. It can be a time consuming endeavour to keep up on.
Take care!
– Ryan
If I woke up at 4:30am I’d go back to sleep. No doubt about it. But, at least you have made good use of your time and was productive rather than plop yourself in front of a television and zone out till you had to get up.
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DH,
Haha, no doubt. I can’t say I get up early every time I wake up pre-dawn, either. It’s just that every now and then you get an opportunity to make use of those wee hours!
Take care, brother.
– Ryan