4 ms·

Benefits of Rising Early, and How to Do It

15 points by danhak 17y ago

JacobAldridge 17y ago
Another Benefit - reading an article like this leaves you with a feeling of acknowledgment and pride. As opposed to my current feeling of guiltily agreeing with all of these points and knowing I won't do anything about it.
- Goladus 17y ago
  There are benefits to rising late as well. Some of them are similar to the ones listed in the article. If you are in your room by yourself, 1AM to 2AM tends to be a quiet and peaceful time. A lot of social activity also happens around midnight, and if you are an early riser you may find yourself burnt out and unable to participate by the time midnight rolls around. If you are forced to stay up late a few days in a row and you naturally wake up early as well, you may start accumulating a sleep deficit. A sleep deficit will eventually catch up to you and you'll stop appreciating those morning benefits. There was also an article posted a while back of a study done that showed people who tend to wake up late performed better on some cognitive tests at certain times of the day, while there was no similar advantage for people who naturally woke up early at any other times. I do think this article does point out some of the practical advantages that the experiment in that other article wasn't interested in; like how a sunrise makes you feel, the value of beating commute traffic, the value of getting a head start on daily activities, etc. (I like rising early and have tended to for the past 5-6 years. In my case, natural light and no drugs[1] is all it takes) [1] Alcohol, caffeine, as well as ibuprofen and other painkillers can all help me sleep through a sunrise.
  - roundsquare 17y ago
    Additionally, working (and therefore staying up) late can be out of your control. If you have a job where you have "fire drills" with some frequency then your sleep early/wake up early schedule is going to be hard to maintain. However, if you have a sleep late/wake up late schedule then a last minute fire drill might cut into dinner, social life, etc... but its less likely to cut into sleep.
ryanwaggoner 17y ago
The article is OK, but in my opinion, it gets a few things wrong. And I should know: after struggling with getting up my whole life, I became an early riser (pre-5am). Rather than rehash it, here's a previous comment on the subject: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=525334 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=525334
mhd 17y ago
As with most Zenhabits posts, it's just filled with feel-good hokey (come on, the Dalai Lama? How is he an expert on good working hours? I'd rather get sex tips from the Pope). No actual evidence. And if you've got flexible hours (which a lot of programmers have), most of it is moot anyway. Late risers can have their breakfast and prepare for the day at 12 o'clock if they want to...
- ojbyrne 17y ago
  I didn't see a single thing in there that couldn't be replicated by rising late. I have done both early rising and late rising for extended periods of my life. Both have things to offer. Even the 9-5 routine has some advantages (the word "routine" basically captures it). s/sunrise/sunset/, s/breakfast/leisurely dinner/ You win.
  - Goladus 17y ago
    Having done a lot of late rising and early rising in my life, s/sunrise/sunset/ and s/breakfast/dinner/ doesn't apply. You can go to bed at 22:00 every night and unless you live in the Arctic Circle you'll see a sunset every night you care to, all year long.
- chrischen 17y ago
  I think there was a study that showed sleeping during daylight is not as good as during night time. Don't quote me on it though.
- archon810 17y ago
  The guy is clearly not a programmer. Programmers' most productive time is at night - everyone knows that.
  - vyrotek 17y ago
    I actually get a lot more done early in the morning. All the distractions are gone. No one is sending me email or trying to chat with me on IM.
Adaptive 17y ago
Agree with ojbyrne that this could all be replicated on a late night schedule as well. How about this: 10 benefits of conforming to your bodies natural rhythm? I've read plenty of research on innate, physical inclination to rise early or late. Regardless of whether I work late or early, I tend to rise at the same time (unless acted upon by an outside force). Working late means I need less sleep and am more productive. Of course the downside of this is that the world is on a morning schedule. I am currently conforming to this due to children. I look forward to reverting to a night schedule. http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1903838,00.html http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1903838,00.ht...
chrischen 17y ago
Wow that putting alarm clock away from the bed is ingenious. I've gotta try that.
- bfung 17y ago
  Don't worry, you'll learn to sleep through the alarm clock =P
  - spydez 17y ago
    You think you jest... I have to have 2 alarm clocks on normal ok-if-I'm-late days, and 3 if I absolutely have to wake up by x:00 AM. Each a progressively further zombie walk away from the bedside. I have 3 for the important days because walking to the kitchen is apparently not enough to wake me. The problem now is that my third is my cell phone, and if I forget to turn my ringer way up, I can sleep right through that since it's so far away. I am not a morning person. -_-
  - tigerthink 17y ago
    I recommend buying a vibrating alarm clock like this one: http://www.amazon.com/ila-Vibrating-Alarm-Clock/dp/B0017TPFY4/ref=pd_sbs_hpc_4 http://www.amazon.com/ila-Vibrating-Alarm-Clock/dp/B0017TPFY... and putting it under your pillow.
- mrtron 17y ago
  I have difficulty waking up and sleep through alarms. Clocky has worked wonders. I just can't believe my gf puts up with it (and actually bought it for me!). It is loud as hell and you can make it drive away from you. http://www.nandahome.com/products/clocky/ http://www.nandahome.com/products/clocky/
  - trafficlight 17y ago
    I didn't know they actually make these. I saw it in Make Magazine a few years back and thought it was a great idea. Thanks for sharing.
TweedHeads 17y ago
When I was younger I used to wake up at 4pm and code till early 6am, pure zen. Now that I am older I try to go to bed the same day I wake up. The older I get the earlier I want to wake up, the less I want to sleep.
californiaguy 17y ago
If I'm healthy and exercising 3 times a week and eating right, I can wake up whenever I want and be productive the entire day. If I'm not, it's simply impossible. This stuff really isn't that complicated, people.
socratees 17y ago
Total irrational BS. Just like mhd said, that whole site is full of feel-goodey things - doesn't belong on HN. The comments clearly reflect that.
Encosia 17y ago
The benefits of rising early are so profound that he decided to do the opposite: http://zenhabits.net/2009/04/how-to-become-a-late-riser/ http://zenhabits.net/2009/04/how-to-become-a-late-riser/

15 points by danhak 17y ago

Another Benefit - reading an article like this leaves you with a feeling of acknowledgment and pride. As opposed to my current feeling of guiltily agreeing with all of these points and knowing I won't do anything about it.

Goladus 17y ago
There are benefits to rising late as well. Some of them are similar to the ones listed in the article. If you are in your room by yourself, 1AM to 2AM tends to be a quiet and peaceful time. A lot of social activity also happens around midnight, and if you are an early riser you may find yourself burnt out and unable to participate by the time midnight rolls around. If you are forced to stay up late a few days in a row and you naturally wake up early as well, you may start accumulating a sleep deficit. A sleep deficit will eventually catch up to you and you'll stop appreciating those morning benefits. There was also an article posted a while back of a study done that showed people who tend to wake up late performed better on some cognitive tests at certain times of the day, while there was no similar advantage for people who naturally woke up early at any other times. I do think this article does point out some of the practical advantages that the experiment in that other article wasn't interested in; like how a sunrise makes you feel, the value of beating commute traffic, the value of getting a head start on daily activities, etc. (I like rising early and have tended to for the past 5-6 years. In my case, natural light and no drugs[1] is all it takes) [1] Alcohol, caffeine, as well as ibuprofen and other painkillers can all help me sleep through a sunrise.
- roundsquare 17y ago
  Additionally, working (and therefore staying up) late can be out of your control. If you have a job where you have "fire drills" with some frequency then your sleep early/wake up early schedule is going to be hard to maintain. However, if you have a sleep late/wake up late schedule then a last minute fire drill might cut into dinner, social life, etc... but its less likely to cut into sleep.

ryanwaggoner 17y ago

The article is OK, but in my opinion, it gets a few things wrong. And I should know: after struggling with getting up my whole life, I became an early riser (pre-5am). Rather than rehash it, here's a previous comment on the subject: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=525334 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=525334

mhd 17y ago

As with most Zenhabits posts, it's just filled with feel-good hokey (come on, the Dalai Lama? How is he an expert on good working hours? I'd rather get sex tips from the Pope). No actual evidence. And if you've got flexible hours (which a lot of programmers have), most of it is moot anyway. Late risers can have their breakfast and prepare for the day at 12 o'clock if they want to...

ojbyrne 17y ago
I didn't see a single thing in there that couldn't be replicated by rising late. I have done both early rising and late rising for extended periods of my life. Both have things to offer. Even the 9-5 routine has some advantages (the word "routine" basically captures it). s/sunrise/sunset/, s/breakfast/leisurely dinner/ You win.
- Goladus 17y ago
  Having done a lot of late rising and early rising in my life, s/sunrise/sunset/ and s/breakfast/dinner/ doesn't apply. You can go to bed at 22:00 every night and unless you live in the Arctic Circle you'll see a sunset every night you care to, all year long.
chrischen 17y ago
I think there was a study that showed sleeping during daylight is not as good as during night time. Don't quote me on it though.
archon810 17y ago
The guy is clearly not a programmer. Programmers' most productive time is at night - everyone knows that.
- vyrotek 17y ago
  I actually get a lot more done early in the morning. All the distractions are gone. No one is sending me email or trying to chat with me on IM.

Adaptive 17y ago

Agree with ojbyrne that this could all be replicated on a late night schedule as well. How about this: 10 benefits of conforming to your bodies natural rhythm? I've read plenty of research on innate, physical inclination to rise early or late. Regardless of whether I work late or early, I tend to rise at the same time (unless acted upon by an outside force). Working late means I need less sleep and am more productive. Of course the downside of this is that the world is on a morning schedule. I am currently conforming to this due to children. I look forward to reverting to a night schedule. http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1903838,00.html http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1903838,00.ht...

chrischen 17y ago

Wow that putting alarm clock away from the bed is ingenious. I've gotta try that.

bfung 17y ago
Don't worry, you'll learn to sleep through the alarm clock =P
- spydez 17y ago
  You think you jest... I have to have 2 alarm clocks on normal ok-if-I'm-late days, and 3 if I absolutely have to wake up by x:00 AM. Each a progressively further zombie walk away from the bedside. I have 3 for the important days because walking to the kitchen is apparently not enough to wake me. The problem now is that my third is my cell phone, and if I forget to turn my ringer way up, I can sleep right through that since it's so far away. I am not a morning person. -_-
- tigerthink 17y ago
  I recommend buying a vibrating alarm clock like this one: http://www.amazon.com/ila-Vibrating-Alarm-Clock/dp/B0017TPFY4/ref=pd_sbs_hpc_4 http://www.amazon.com/ila-Vibrating-Alarm-Clock/dp/B0017TPFY... and putting it under your pillow.
mrtron 17y ago
I have difficulty waking up and sleep through alarms. Clocky has worked wonders. I just can't believe my gf puts up with it (and actually bought it for me!). It is loud as hell and you can make it drive away from you. http://www.nandahome.com/products/clocky/ http://www.nandahome.com/products/clocky/
- trafficlight 17y ago
  I didn't know they actually make these. I saw it in Make Magazine a few years back and thought it was a great idea. Thanks for sharing.

TweedHeads 17y ago

When I was younger I used to wake up at 4pm and code till early 6am, pure zen. Now that I am older I try to go to bed the same day I wake up. The older I get the earlier I want to wake up, the less I want to sleep.

californiaguy 17y ago

If I'm healthy and exercising 3 times a week and eating right, I can wake up whenever I want and be productive the entire day. If I'm not, it's simply impossible. This stuff really isn't that complicated, people.

socratees 17y ago

Total irrational BS. Just like mhd said, that whole site is full of feel-goodey things - doesn't belong on HN. The comments clearly reflect that.

Encosia 17y ago

The benefits of rising early are so profound that he decided to do the opposite: http://zenhabits.net/2009/04/how-to-become-a-late-riser/ http://zenhabits.net/2009/04/how-to-become-a-late-riser/