Like a lot of people, my day is pretty much foot on the gas pedal from the time my kids wake up until they go to bed. For us, it's about 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. It's exhausting, and at the end of the day, I don't want to do anything.
The last couple of weeks, I've been doing an unscientific experiment. Waking up early and doing something before my kids get up. With my kids waking up around 7, I've been trying to get up around 6. This gives me about 45 mins to do something. (The math says 60 mins, but "around" is pretty squishy.)
As I was experimenting, DevDuck came out with a video about the topic. It's a good watch.
The days I've been able to actually get up and do something have been great. I feel like 1,000% better when I get up early and do something outside of my "normal responsibilities." When my kids get up, I'm already awake and somewhat alert. It makes the morning routine much easier to handle. The problem is, with a new baby in the house, I'm so sleep-deprived that I just can't regularly get up when I want to. It is easier to get up when I'm excited to work on something—projects are more exciting than exercise for me—but right now, most days it just doesn't feel reasonable. But maybe it's possible if I just do it™ and have lots of Coke.
Having a plan for each morning definitely helps. I need to be better at making a plan for the next morning at the end of the morning. If I wait until the evening to plan the morning, I'll be too tired, and then I won't feel like getting up when my alarm goes off.
Basically, I think the experiment is a success. I've seen many benefits. But at this point, I'm not sure how to make it a habit. But I feel like I need to. The knock-on effects throughout the day totally make it worth it. Probably about time to read Atomic Habits again.