Morning glory:

Early risers sometimes need a little something extra to get moving

If you recently woke up before the rooster crowed to get to work early for a specific reason— wanted to get things done before your vacation, had to finish a proposal by 10 a.m., needed to scrub off that blaze-of-glory ‘I-quit’ message you Sharpied on your manager’s computer screen— you probably share two things in common with other temporary early risers— one, you’re probably still a little tired from your pre-dawn experience and two, you are incredibly proud of yourself or what? I mean, you woke up at like, four in the morning, right? Who does that? Well, a lot of people. In fact, before you pat that sunburn on your back too hard, remember this: There are numerous people who do what you do on that rare occasion every single day of the week.

Routine matters

“I’ve been waking up at 3:40 every morning for the past 13 years,” says Kevin Donovan, a trainer in Athens, Georgia. “I have clients who want to work out at five in the morning before they go to work and I can’t roll out of bed at 4:30 and be at the top of my game at 5, so I get up pretty early.” Donovan says he does the same few things every morning but switches up the order based on how he’s feeling. His basic rituals include: Light stretching, cup of ice coffee, cold shower, email to his son, 10 minutes with a motivational podcast and a breakfast of egg whites, turkey sausage, peanut butter and granola. “It’s what works for me,” says the 33-year-old Chicago native who graduated from the University of Georgia in 2008, “met a local girl in school and never left town.” Donovan’s routine is what keeps him focused and on time. “I’m a guy who likes structure, by nature, but especially in the morning,” he says. “I don’t want to be running into the gym at 4:55 with a Styrofoam cup of coffee, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. I need to hit the ground at full speed.” During the pandemic, Donovan says he scheduled online sessions early so he could be finished with his work by early afternoon. “It would be 5, 6:30, 7:30, 9, then a break, then 10, 11 and noon,” he says. “It was rough but it freed up a lot of time later in the day. And to be honest, I like getting up early and getting going. It makes me feel productive.”

Step into the light

If you’re having trouble working the a.m. shift or trying to prepare yourself for a change to an earlier work schedule, here are several tips that can help brighten your day, even if you’re waking up in the dark. -- Get some sleep: The obvious advice is often the most under looked. Don’t kid yourself and think you can get your usual four hours of sleep a night, whether you’re working early or not. Adjust your schedule to lighten the load in the evenings so that you can be in bed in time to get seven to eight hours each night. -- Join other early risers: Whether it’s a group of commuters who head to their offices before the masses start pouring in or a walking or running group that meets in the early-morning hours, you’ll be more likely to stick with a morning routine if you have a commitment to others. Brenda Blaire, a Los Angeles accountant who chose a 6 a.m.-to-2 p.m. schedule to work with her firm’s East Coast clients, says she calls her father in Sarasota, Florida, every morning as soon as her alarm goes off at 4:30 a.m. “It’s 7:30 in Florida so he’s usually been up for about 2 hours,” Blaire says. “It’s something I started doing after my mom died a few years ago, just to check in. We speak for a few minutes and tell each other the same boring stuff. He tells me a new joke, which is funny in a bad-dad-joke way, but it’s great to hear his voice at the start of the day and I know he appreciates hearing mine.” On the rare occasions Blaire forgets to make the call or oversleeps, her phone rings at 4:35. “Five minutes, that’s all he gives me,” she says. “It’s kind of like having a second alarm clock that’s 2,500 miles away.” -- Do something you love when you wake up: For some, an early run or workout is more than enough motivation to get out from under the covers each day. Not you. You have no desire to release those morning endorphins. In fact, you’d rather practice the piano or work on your French language skills to prepare for your trip to Paris this fall. If that’s the case, set aside some time in the morning to do something you feel strongly about. Maybe it’s writing a few more pages of the Great American Novel or watching a few TikTok videos. Whatever it is, you’ll be waking up to do something other than work, which just might make things a little easier.