Sleeping in for 5am-ers
jasonleow • 23 Nov 2021 •
Most people sleep in on weekends to pay back the sleep debt they owe during the week. But for someone like me who wakes at 5am anyway on weekends, how do I sleep in?
By sleeping earlier.
While folks switch off their alarm clocks on weekends, I would switch it on. Not to wake up early, but to sleep early.
As a reminder that I need to get in bed by 8:30pm latest.
I came to this habit hack out of pure necessity. It’s been a while since I last had a sleep score that’s above 90%. That was back in September. In fact, sleep quality and quantity had been down-sliding. Baby cries are back. I get woken up multiple times per night. I’m busier and I end up working later, and sleeping later. I can feel my brain turning into mush. Again.
Something has to change.
So I decided to implement sleeping in on the weekends. For at least one day a week, I’ll plan to sleep early and hit my 90% score.
- Alarm clock at 7:30pm to remind me to shower and start to prep for bed
- Alarm clock at 8:00pm to remind that I should be in bed now
- Sleeping in the study to avoid getting woken up that day
So far so good. Hit 92% on Sunday night!
Finally.
Comments
This makes so much sense. I’m on 2nd shift and I know my time after work is often garbage. My brain is exhausted and I make terrible decisions. Thinking back, days when I get to sleep earlier do lead to productive mornings. Why not make that the default, especially going into the weekend?
@therealbrandonwilson right? So simple yet effective.
@Winkletter yes give it a try! I went from night owl to early bird recently. Been quite a wild ride making the transition, but enjoying productive mornings now.
The bedtime alarm is a great idea.