Day Nine - Snow

I missed yesterday, so I was determined to get back on track today. I got to bed earlier than I have been, had the Sleep Cycle App running, gym stuff was packed - I was ready for the morning. For some reason I wake up at six-thirty again, an hour before my wake-up time. I get back to sleep, but of course a deep sleep, so when I do get up at 7:30, I'm groggy. You can see the graphical evidence here:

A nice, light sleep cycle right before seven(when I wake up by myself, I assume), then way in deep sleep when the alarm goes off. So, while the app isn't working, it's not at fault. My natural tendency(of late) to wake up at six-thirty in the goddamn morning is. 

After two weeks, my desire to become an early riser has led to mixed results. Eight out of nine days isn't bad, but my goal was twenty days straight(weekdays). That one day missed was a result of my inability to change my night-time lifestyle to match my newly desired morning lifestyle. 

So, for the next eleven days, I'm going to go to bed earlier on weekdays. I love the results of getting up early: the gym is out of the way, more productive at work, a free lunch hour, more time after work, falling asleep right away...

I just have to get the bed time part sorted out.

Day Eight - Bump In The Road

I was out late, the weather sucks, the bed was comfy, morning sex - all reasons I failed to get to the gym before work this morning. Broke my early-riser streak at seven days. So, my original goal of uninterrupted 20 say streak won't come true(at least not in the original time frame), but, tomorrow morning, I'll get back on track.

I still got up earlier than I was prior to this experiment, and I still think I can cement this as a habit. Have to bear down for the next two weeks and two days. 

Day Seven - Sleep FAIL

If I don't adjust the time I go to sleep, even if I make it through the next 13 days, I'm afraid this habit won't stick. The thought of missing a day(and the threat of being called a slacker on Facebook) gets me up as much as the motivation of forming a new routine. Will it stick, or will I sleep in the first day I don't "have" to do this?

Last night, I was in bed around one in the morning, which would be fine if I wasn't trying to get up at 7:30. Tonight, I have pool, so I'm not sure what time I'll get to bed, but it has to be earlier. It's been easier getting up but the lack of 7-8 hours sleep every night is starting to catch up to me; I get really tired late in the day before hitting a second wind after six. I met a friend for drinks last night. Waiting at the bar, I felt like collapsing(this was around ten o'clock). Then I hit my third wind;it's funny how social drinking does that. Talking, drinking, laughing - they all serve to keep me going. 

The Sleep App failed this morning, but it's at least partially(fully?) my own fault. Here's a graph(I do love that it generates graphs, such a stat geek!):

I slept for about six hours, but the big spike right before 7 is when I woke up at 6:30, an hour before my alarm was set. So, I went back to sleep, into a deep sleep and the app had no choice but to wake me up in the deepest sleep I was in all night. So, not really Sleep Cycle's fault, but I was really groggy, so at least it(seems) accurate.

At least pool starts at seven tonight, and not nine. These late nights are killing me.

Day Six - More Rain

Well it's back to gloomy weather. It's wet, cold and gray outside. My morning run went fine, though I can tell I've been neglecting my cardio. I do interval training on the treadmill, running for two minutes then sprinting for one, and I've had to reduce my sprinting speed a bit.

The sleep cycle app worked great last night. Set up was easy: I just put it on the corner of my bed, under the sheet. After testing it to make sure it could tell when I was moving, I set the alarm, and fell asleep. It woke up me up 13 minutes before my alarm time(it will wake you up during your lightest sleep phase during a half-hour window before your alarm time), and I was more refreshed than I have been just waking up at the same time every weekday. The app also keeps stats and graphs, which I'll be sure to share at the end of this experiment.

That said, I wasn't exactly bright-eyed and ready to go. I keep staying up late, even though I'm tired. Whether from being out or just chilling at home, I can't remember the last time I fell asleep before one in the morning. Granted, because of this new wake up time I'm falling asleep much, much faster. I'd say within five minutes of turning off the light, I'm out like one.

Taking advantage of doing my workout in the morning, today I'm going to have lunch with my girlfriend - something I couldn't do when I was waking up late and going to the gym during my lunch hour. Yesterday I read and wrote some during my lunch hour. Plus, I'm getting more done during the day at work(I think, I never really measure my productivity level at the office but I feel more efficient).

Day Five - Monday, Monday

A common tenet in the many strategies for becoming an early riser is to pick a time and wake up then, every day, even weekends. I totally ignored that rule this past Saturday and Sunday;it's hard enough in New York when any night can become a late night, but I was in Maryland visiting my family and me and my brothers always stay up late. I slept in, rested, drank, stayed up late, played Guitar Hero: Metallica(singing/screaming until my throat was sore, playing solos until my fingers hurt) and Super Mario Bros Wii(with four players, it's chaotic and hilarious), and drank some more. Good times.

Now I'm back, up in the morning, at the gym, five days down, 15 to go. Tonight I'm going to start using the Sleepy Cycle app I talked about Friday.

We'll see how that goes.

Day Four

Day four, and still going strong. I was running a little late this morning, but still made it to the gym. I had to pack for a weekend trip back to Maryland, plus, I was at my girlfriend's place and forgot to bring along gym stuff. So, train from UES back to Brooklyn, get gym stuff and pack, then back into the city for the gym. Still got up, still made it to the gym - four consecutive days of morning workouts. So far so good.


This week, I used my iPhone alarm combined with a sweet wake-up call from my girlfriend. Next week, I'm going to try something new: I came across the Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock iPhone application:

The Sleep Cycle alarm clock is a bio-alarm clock that analyzes your sleep patterns and wakes you when you are in the lightest sleep phase.

So starting Monday night, I'll be using/testing this app. The idea of waking up in a light sleep phase is very appealing; that combined with the very positive reviews gives me high hopes for this upgraded alarm clock.

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So how has it been with my lunch hour free? Pretty good - Tuesday I read, Wednesday I left work a little early with no worries because I'd gotten there early and had more than enough time to get everything I needed done, and yesterday during my lunch break I was able to get cuff-links that I needed for a dressy-dinner.

Plus, I fall asleep a lot faster now - but next week I want to get to bed before one in the morning(most nights... OK at least two).

Day Three - Delays, Snacking

This was the hardest morning so far. Pool started at 8:30, and afterwards I stayed for a beer(or three). So I didn't get home until a little after one. I was asleep almost instantly, though, which is a lot better than when I'd be restless until about the same time and sleep until 9 or 9:30. This was good, deep sleep.

Had a couple of delays on the way to the gym: my roommate was unusually up at the same time I was(important morning presentation), and then there was half a fight at the Union Square subway stop. It's always very crowded, and one gentleman was trying to squeeze down the stairs to catch a train while another gentleman was forcing himself upstream along with 90% of the people on the platform. They must have bumped, or stepped on one another's shoes, because all of a sudden they were shoving and grabbing the other's face, as an old-school people-circle formed around them.

The downstairs gentleman then started shouting up the stairwell for...well I have no idea. It was a crazy yell - it could have been for a cop, it could have been for his own personal God. A brave woman tried to separate the two, but after the upstream(and possible saner) gentleman heard the yell, he backed off. Evil eyes ensued, the circle collapsed, and everyone went on their way.

Crazy Yell missed his train.

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I read somewhere(probably Men's Health) that chocolate milk is a great post-workout drink, so I'm having a grande¹ mocha. I'd be having one, eventually, anyway but now I feel like it's serving a purpose other than wiring me right for a functioning morning. It's not all milk, but it's at least one-half and hopefully two-thirds.

Snacking during the day can be a problem. We have a great vending machine here, and the last month it's addicted me to Strawberry Frosted Pop-Tarts. I'd feel bad about this, but the packaging clearly states it has seven vital vitamins and minerals(and frosting!).

So, I bought some trail-mix that mainly consists of dried cranberries and almonds, and I've been snacking on that. I like it, but I know I'll get bored soon. I have to come up with some new, interesting snacks; snacks that take away from the allure of the vending machine. Snacks always seem better when they fall though².

¹I'm addicted to Starbucks.
²Apologies to the late, great Mitch Hedberg.

Day Two - Running

Today, I actually dressed appropriately. My North Face coat on, hoodie underneath, I ventured out into the cold this morning.

I was running a little late because today, in an effort to save money, I packed my lunch: two chicken sandwiches. Monday night I fixed chicken-strips, the leftovers are now between slices of wheat bread. I feel economized.

The last few weeks, I've done a lot more lifting than cardio. In fact, last month I did hardly any running, and all lifting. I expected a little weight gain, but at first, the scale always read (about) the same every morning. Recently, though, winter comfort food and less cooking have added to my natural insulation. Which is fine, I don't want to look like a male model(rather, I would but I like eating more), but I'd still like to get back to running - being in good cardiovascular health has other benefits, especially once the weather gets warmer and it's time for sports.

So I got on the treadmill and did twenty minutes of interval training, listening to the following:

"All Summer Long", Kid Rock
"Worlds Collide", Powerman 5000
"The Wicker Man", Iron Maiden
"What You Waiting For?", Gwen Stefani
"Mama Said Knock You Out," LL Cool J

I have a random cardio play list in iTunes, and I have a good variety of tunes(I think) that it picks from - but I haven't updated it in years. These same songs(with the addition, last year, of "Poker Face" and "Let's Dance") have powered my running for the past three or four years.

Any suggestions? What gets you guys pumped?

Day One

What a cold, wet, gray day to start my new morning gym habit. Wet, slippery sidewalks, cold winds, and sour faces. Still, one down, 19 to go. March 15th isn't that far away.

I woke up at 7:30 easier than I expected - a wake-up call from my girlfriend certainly helped. I brushed my teeth, grabbed my bag, and was out the door before I could think about it. Into the cold and the flurries, under-dressed in a hoodie¹ and my fall jacket. See, I never check the weather before I leave my apartment - I just put on whatever I was wearing the day before. It has to be really, really cold to force me back up the three flights of stairs to my apartment to change, and this morning it wasn't that cold. A little uncomfortable, but I'd make it. Besides, I was motivated.

The gym is emptier in the morning;not a graveyard by any stretch but it was much easier to get the stations I wanted. At lunch, the squat rack and the benches are very crowded. The same trainers are there, working with different clients; the girl at the front desk is still the same, though perkier then she is at one-thirty;everything is slightly different, but mostly the same.

Thursday morning is going to be the real challenge, because Wednesday nights I have a pool league. Match time is 8:30 this week, and I usually stay for a beer or two afterwards.

Can't really worry about that yet, though, still have Wednesday morning.

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¹My spellchecker refuses to recognize the right of the hoodie to exist, insisting I replace it with "hoodoo": 1) a body of practices of sympathetic magic traditional especially among blacks in the southern United States, 2) a natural column of rock in western North America often in fantastic form, 3) something that brings bad luck.

First Thing: Become An Early Riser

It bothers me that I go to the gym at lunch. Don't get me wrong, I like that I go the gym. Having that habit has greatly improved my life(thanks Miriam!), but going during my lunch hour causes problems. For one thing, I never get to have lunch with friends or co-workers. If things get crazy at work, I miss my work-out.

I want to change this - I want to work out in the morning. More generally, I'd like to become an early-riser. Or, more accurately, an "earlier" riser: 7:30 seems an ungodly hour to me right now, but I'm sure a lot of people would read that and think Man, it'd be great to sleep in past six.

Since this is the first thing I'm attempting, I expect a few bumps in the road - and not just from trying to wake up earlier. The blogging process will undoubtedly evolve. For now, though, I'll try this: I'll define my goal, why I'm trying to achieve it, how I'll achieve it, and a reward.

So here it goes:

Goal: To get up at the same time, every morning, for four straight work-weeks(five days a week, M-F), and make it to the gym.

Why: I want to get more out of my day. I have a lot of projects, personal and work-wise, I want more time for. Not having to workout at lunch will give more time for work, and I can use my lunch hour to read, write, or do whatever. 

How-to:

1. Set wake-up time of 7:30 AM
2. When my alarm goes off, I won't think, I'll simply get up, grab an apple and my gym bag, and head out the door.
3. Instead of setting a bed time, I'll simply go to bed when I'm tired each night and gradually make my body adjust to me set wake-up time.

Reward: A new gym bag, something like this: http://reviews.lululemon.com/7834/Classy_Classic_Gym_Bag/reviews.htm, and a steak dinner.

The first day will be tomorrow, February 16th. I'll end on March 15th.

I should check in to New York Sports Club on foursquare in the morning, before going to work(I usually get to the office around 10-10:30 - it's the ad business), and it will show up on my Facebook profile. If I don't, feel free to write on my wall and remind me I'm slacking.

Wish me luck.

Kris in Beta

I'd love to be a superman, a man who gets up at five in the morning, trains for a marathon, hits the gym to lift(bench pressing twice his body weight, naturally), showers, fixes his own breakfast(eggs and turkey bacon, manly yet sensible), strides into the office impeccably(but not overly) dressed, inspires co-workers and impresses the boss, spends his weekday evenings playing basketball or pool or writing and reading in his favorite cafe, eats a sensible dinner(that, most nights, he fixes himself) before throwing back a few drinks with his friends, walks into his clean, organized, warmly-decorated apartment at the end of the night to fall asleep(nevermind the weekend, when the superman really cuts loose and plays with his band, runs in the park, reads to children, puts the finishing touches on his watercolor before having a few glasses of wine with his lovely girlfriend). He plays an instrument, is well-read, speaks another language, knows a martial art, writes short stories; all a product of his willingness to try new things. A never-ending life of awesomeness, self-assuredness and a small dose of cocky bad-assery.

I can't do that, but I can try for a slice. I can try new things. With this in mind, there are several things I'd like to change, add/subtract and otherwise shift around in my life. I'll use this blog to journal my endeavors, successful or not(hopefully successful).

I'll be trying to make new habits, learn new skills, and challenge myself - improve on the Beta version of myself and become "Kris 2.0". Hopefully, it won't be as stupid as it sounds.