5AM Club: 66 Days Challenge [Week 1 Review]

Updated: Jun 5, 2022

Just completed my first 5 days of the 5am Club and thought of sharing my first week reflections. I don't wake up at 5am for weekends because my body will need the extra snooze time and my family also wake up later. The whole point of the 5am Club is to make use of the quiet moments before the daily grind starts - to me, that is when my family wakes up and I need to put on my "mum hat" and start working around the house. On weekdays, that would mean starting work from around 6.15am while weekends would be around 8am.

So, the extra weekend snooze is definitely a great welcome!

[ WEEK 1 UPDATES]

Day 1 and Day 2 had been shared in my earlier posts.

Fatigue sets in real from Day 3.

By Day 5, I was back on track but I can so imagine the potential ups and downs I will face throughout these 66 days challenge. Honestly, I don't really start at 5am sharp but typically starts at around 5.10am to go through the 3 pockets of 20/20/20.

Pocket #1 - MOVE

I typically go for my Yoga for a good 10 - 20 minutes. 20 minutes if I am skipping cardio exercises on days where I am scheduled to go for my cardio classes at the gym, or if its a muscle recovery day after a cardio workout the day before. For days when I want to add some cardio burn, I typically go for a 10 minutes Yoga session followed by my preferred way of cardio workout. You can check out my options in the upcoming post where I will share my resources.

I don't follow the 20/20/20 strictly and prefer to have my quick shower first before moving on to Pocket #2. These days, I like to add a quick 10 minute sheet facial mask routine before I moisturise and put on my makeup before heading to Pocket #2. I am thinking of sharing my makeup routine and products I use in future posts too.

Pocket #2 - REFLECT

This is when I will reflect on my previous day and how I could have done better. I use a lot of mantras to help me get through my triggers and tough moments. I find myself getting overstimulated very easily and I am also easily triggered by noise. Mantras is like my mental amulets that I hold on to to help myself. The difficult part is remember them during the tough moments. I must remind myself that I am a work in progress.

I also try to plan an overview of how my day would be spent and try to minimise the work that I need to do. Sometimes I forget the work I do at home as a mum and expect myself to be managing my business and keeping the house in pristine condition at the same time.

Pocket #3 - GROW

I am still slowly reading "In Love with the World" by Mingyur Rinpoche. This pocket of time is the hardest to keep to. I tend to spend around 10-15minutes only. But it is better than nothing.

Celebrate small progress!

This book really is enlightening and I find myself rereading some parts to reinforce the teachings and finding comfort in the struggles the monk/author shares. It makes me feel better to know that we are not alone in our struggles.

[Overall Reflections]

Generally, I think that my bio clock is adapting to waking up early. On Saturday that just passed, my eyes just opened at 5.30am automatically and I made myself go back for an extra 1 hour snooze. What I love about waking up this early is watching the sunrise. I love watching the colours of the sky change from dark to crimson. It is an indescribable feeling. The first thing I do when I wake up is to go to my windows, open them wide and look for the stars and the moon. There is so much comfort in that.

And also, these sessions make me want to create more lantern art to decorate my living room area to spruce it up even more, which would further incentivise me to show up for the 5am Club session. Moreover, my good friend in Malaysia has started waking up early too, and she would send me her morning photos of the sky every day. I love how we are connecting through the same sky every morning.

The only downside is, well, if you can consider it a downside, is that by evening, I will be all drained. Typically by 9ish, I will be walking like zombie. But with the exercise and early rising, it preps me for a really good and deep sleep at night.

I am looking to my Week 2 (Day 6 - 10) challenge and see you at my next update next week~