Why I Wake Up So Early

​For those who do not know, I wake up at 5:30 in the morning, every day. After retiring from the Marines, I went on for years without structure and leaders telling me what to do. I developed my own structure over a year ago, and I have been improving on it through constant trial and error. Though there is a lot that goes into structure development, one of the most crucial parts is having a standard and consistent wakeup time.

QUIET HOUR

​Who, under normal unprovoked circumstances, gets up before the rising sun? Not too many. Here in Alaska, I have been waking up in the winter to freezing temperatures that greet me for my morning jog. In the summer, the mornings around this time are humid and even foggy at times. Everything at 5:30 is quiet, and even my dogs are not in the mood to play. If you enjoy having peace and quiet while you proceed with completing your morning routine, then waking up early is probably for you.

LESS DISTRACTIONS

Due to this tranquil time of peace and quiet, you will have little distraction, enabling you to fully concentrate on other things. For myself, I like to read at these early hours, do dry fire training, and conduct PT on a timer.

STRUCTURED SCHEDULE

​I wake up early by choice, but I also follow a strict schedule for myself as I used to in the military. I have to give myself a rest day or two now and then from fatiguing myself in training, practice, or PT. Even when my girlfriend has days off work, I still stay on a schedule and only disrupt it when absolutely necessary. In effect, I rarely have time off from my own schedule. It can be tiring and demand lots of discipline, but you know things will be accomplished and done. I don’t recommend a strict schedule for everyone, but it has helped me as a writer, vlogger, and firearms enthusiast in staying practiced and keep content flowing.

SELF-DISCIPLINE

​In order to consistently wake up early, you need to have a good amount of discipline. To start this routine can be hard as you figure out just how much sleep you will need and how to get to sleep at a proper time for optimal rest to start your day so early. In order to stick with this schedule, my life as a night owl basically died off. Though I have found myself staying up until 1AM when really committed to an article, it is a rare occurrence. But having the discipline to wake up early, even on a day off is a hard thing to start and keep up on. I RARELY sleep past my alarm, but often I will wake up earlier and just get started early. This affords me a nap later in the day if I so desire. Discipline can indeed equal freedom, as Jocko Willink has said.

REWARD

​What could possibly be the reward for waking up so early? Well, you have more time to do what you want without distraction. Instead of staying up late to complete a task, sometimes waking up early instead is the best idea. You can read in peace, get a solitary workout in, go for a relaxing drive before the roads get occupied, get groceries and a good parking spot, or just bask in the silence of the sleeping world. The choice is yours, but for me, I love the freedom of getting up and attacking the day before the world wakes.