Rowena Recommends

I used to think that individuals who woke up at 4 AM or 5 AM to start their day were “hardcore” individuals or wanted to do it for bragging rights.

I now have joined this group of individuals and realize that working out at 5 AM is truly the best way to maximize the day to do all that I need to do in a day. Don’t get me wrong- there are definitely days where I sleep in until 6:30 -7:30 AM but the day just doesn’t unfold in the same way.

I’ve struggled to get back into a routine for physical activity since having my first child in 2020 and my second child in 2021. I have done a decent amount of stroller walks with both children as I have a mini golden doodle but I just haven’t been able to get back into the exercises I love (e.g. running and pilates).

I decided to join the 5 AM work out crowd as I figured this hour of the day is protected (i.e. free from children and distractions). Here’s what I’ve learned so far:

Waking up at 4:30 AM to be in the lane to swim at 5 AM isn’t the most fun; however, once I start doing the laps in the pool, I feel great! This is coming from someone who is a morning person; however, I haven’t been in control of my own bedtime in a while (i.e. my daughter has held me hostage for a while and I’m not able to escape her room until 10-10:30 PM) so getting to bed at a reasonable hour these days is a bit more challenging. Thankfully, my son is the more reasonable one when it comes to bedtime; however, he’s been known to wake up at 4:30 AM (i.e. the minute my alarm goes off, he’s fussing) so I’ve had to cancel the lane swim last minute. 😦

I started lane swimming at the end of March and was able to go into the pool for an hour each time; I was able to consistently go for two to three times a week. After my morning swim, I genuinely cherish the hour between 6-7 AM as this hour truly was “me” time. Everything about this hour is so peaceful and so serene. It gives me time to prepare myself for the busy day ahead. Then something called summer came along and I’ve finally fallen off the bandwagon.

Since summer, I’ve been trying to get back into routine but I’ve only been able to go on the Peloton for a ride, use the Peloton app for a strength training session and/or yoga session or go on YouTube to follow Caroline Girvan for a kettlebell workout. Because the Peloton and YouTube is done in the comfort of my own home, I haven’t needed to wake up at 4:30 AM. I’ll wake up at 6 AM and squeeze in the workout; however, I miss out on that 1 hour of peacefulness and serenity before I have to get all the kids (including my husband) up.

The truth is I’ve been fearful about getting back into running since I really can’t even remember when I last ran; however, a friend recently said that we are going for a run after our little get together. I surprised myself by not not needing to stop on the little 5 km run mid day. Since then, I’ve done an additional 5 km run on my own. It feels so great!

I want to take advantage of the beautiful fall weather; however, we’ve had a serious heat wave the same day we sent the kids back to school. To make sure that I wouldn’t be caught in the hot and humid weather, it gave me motivation to wake up early again.

I can’t promise that I’ll be able to wake up at 5 AM everyday but I’m going to try my very best to wake up between 5-5:30 AM three to four times a day to ensure that I’m getting some sort of physical activity in before the craziness of each day settles in.

Final Words: Have I inspired you to get up earlier in the day to get your day started off on the right food?