Waking up and getting up is dam HARD!

HellsCyclist

Contrary to that other thread, the hardest part for me is getting up early enough to commute by bicycle instead of the car. I wake up but I feel absolutely exhausted and my eyes just dont wanna open. I end up getting up at the last possible minute before work and just drive instead. Even if I have a particularly early night I still feel totalled on waking. I have always been like this. Is there anything I can do to actually feel refreshed when I wake up?

Doris Day

What's your diet like? Hows your mood?

Stress, poor food and unhappiness can be a factor

davis

Have you tried one of them "sunrise" alarm clocks?

cookeeemonster

It's gonna be easier now he weathers getting better and it's lighter in the mornings.

Get everything ready the night before...get up, breakfast, go out - once you do it a few time and get into a rythim it'll be a lot easier.

Just get a good nights sleep also!

HellsCyclist

oxoman wrote:

I tend to just get up get changed and out, preferably without waking the family up at 4:15am. However in an ideal world a shower, strong coffee and then out would be ideal especially after an early night. I only do 3 days on and 3 off all be it 12hr shifts and 11 mile each way so not far. I also always put stuff ready to go the night before and travel light. Ie no rucksack.

I do have a rucksack, plus its all uphill. However the journey itself is easy enough given the low ratios typical of a MTB, its the morning tiredness. As for my diet, it is varied. Plenty of healthy stuff, plenty of not so healthy stuff but I do binge drink once a week, may not be helping. My mood is generally fine lately. Cheers for the replies.

Agent57

HellsCyclist wrote:

I wake up but I feel absolutely exhausted and my eyes just dont wanna open. I end up getting up at the last possible minute before work and just drive instead.

Maybe you're just one of those people.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-25777978
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2996364.stm

I'm definitely a night person. I can happily stay up late, but hate getting up in the mornings. My old nan used to be up at 5am and in bed around 7pm. :shock:

I try to have my cake and eat it by setting the alarm for 20 minutes earlier than I intend to get up. Then I get to snooze, and I have another alarm set for 20 minutes after the first.

Stevo_666

I have never been a morning person but if one thing wakes me up it's getting on the bike and pedalling. Once I'm out, I'm fine. And it usually keep me awake at work even when I haven't had enough sleep the night before.

BelgianBeerGeek

^wot Stevo said. I spend my day being surrounded by mooks talking at me, and Radio 4 in the morning is now hateful with Michal Husain. So I take the opportunity to have a half-hour or so to myself. It wakes you up, and I've found a bit of a ride in gives me more energy for the day of pish ahead.

SlipSpace

I can't cycle commute everyday so for me I have to go to bed in the right frame of mind, looking forward to the cycle in the morning. I'm often awake before the alarm on these days. I do tend to get everything ready the night before though so when I get up I get dressed straightaway, clean teeth and then out. Breakfast and ablutions is done at work.

When I don't do it for whatever reason I end up in a grump

snowley

I'm the same as above, if I don't get up and commute out of my own choice I end up in a grump at myself for the rest of the day.....

chris_bass

I'm quite weird, I get about 5 or so hours sleep a night and never really get too tired, even on the weekends when I don't set an alarm I'm up pretty early.

LiveGiantly

I love waking up (thank God) and waking up early is a pleasure especially on weekdays when I know I'll be cycling into work....

iLove cycling....

stev412

I have very little motivation when i wake up. Once i am up, out the door and pedalling i feel great. I guess its different for everyone but my tips for getting out there would be....

1. Set three alarms on your phone. My first alarm goes off at 0415 this gives me enough time to get ready and be out the door for 0430. I then have time to take the long route to work of 10+ miles and be at work and showered for 0530 (early shift). The second alarm goes off at 0500 which gives me just enough time to take the short route on the bike of around 3 miles. The third alarm means i'm taking the car. The trick for me is to leave the alarms set , its a great feeling to be out on the bike having already done half the journey and hear the second alarm going off! Thinking that i would have still been in bed and wasted the opportunity to be out on the bike.
2. As mentioned before have everything set ready to go. I need everything down to keys, lights , water , all ready to go as i hate the faff of trying to sort things out when i get up.
3. Track your miles using strava, endomondo or similar, i like endomondo and at the moment i have a target of 75 miles per week, having this goal every week means i want to get out there and equal or beat last weeks total. Without tracking mileage it would be too easy to say i'l bike tomorrow instead.
4. Use the bike at every opportunity. Going to work. Take the bike. Going to visit friends, take the bike.
5. Find a sheltered route for windy days. I use the mountain bike and go through the local forest to get to work when its windy. It is sheltered from the wind so no excuse when i hear the breeze outside.
6. Simlarly i have roubaix tights, warm gloves, overshoes etc as and when required for cold mornings.
7. Enjoy better health, also i think not so much about what cycling is doing for me but more what my weight/health would be like if i didnt get the excercise.
8. Vow never to go back to day one, cycling is great and i love it but its all too easy to get out of the habit, i have had periods where i stopped cycling for a couple of days for whatever reason then next thing you know its a couple of months, i never want to have the feeling of being back at square one again. This pushes me to keep getting out there even if just for a few miles.

You get the idea, i have never been a morning person and all the sleep in the world wont change that , i just get as many reasons as i can to drag myself out of bed and reap the rewards when they come. After a while it becomes second nature. Find out what works for you.

vs4b

I arrange to meet a friend and ride together, the commitment of not letting him down is a good motivator and he tells me it works for him too. If I didn't have that sense of guilt id take the car more often. It also make the ride go quicker, but this is rural Cambridgeshire not through the mean streets of London...

Juddlinski

Some good tips here already.

The only thing I would add is to get everything packed, prepared and good to go the night before.

So when you wake up you just need to chuck your clothes on and you're all set.

I know that in the past If I wake up, intending to commute but I've got a lot of packing to do I'll just think 'cant be arsed' and go back to sleep for an extra half hour and get a train

But agree with someone earlier, 5 minutes into the ride and I'm fully awake and exhilarated.

andy_s_t

I'll lend you kids if you like, always up at a stupid time, normally between 5.30 and 6.00. Plenty of time to get ready then and you'd be wide awake from my son jumping on you!

goonz

I think waking up for a week early and getting to bed early with a good dinner will eventually change your body clock. Try to stay off coffees as this is addictive and counter productive. Change your diet, more fruit more healthy cooked foods and less junk.

Im in bed usually by about 12 latest and have to be up before sunrise to pray. So this usually ties in with the time I need to be up for work. In the height of summer, I go back to bed after praying and snooze till 6.30 and then head out.

HellsCyclist

Since making this thread I have restored my old road bike, much better to ride to work on. For the last 2 weeks I havent been near an internal combustion engine and this has saved me quite a few £££. I very nearly jumped on my motorcycle one day but it stopped raining at the last minute so I cycled anyway. I despise getting up early but there is something to be said about cycling in. I will be continuing to do this for as long as possible on days that I wont end up arriving soaked.

Im definitely an owl though, I just ride tired.