Guest post by Evolve MMA, Asia’s premier championship brand for martial arts. It has the most number of World Champions on the planet. Named as the #1 ranked martial arts organization in Asia by CNN, Yahoo! Sports, FOX Sports, Evolve MMA is the top rated Martial Arts gym in Singapore.
Many dread having to get up out of bed super early, for any reason. Who can resist staying under the covers for a few more hours before you actually have to wake up and be productive? If you’ve never tried it before, now may be the perfect time to give it a shot.
Experts have long sung praises on the benefits of starting the day in the wee hours of the morning, and a lot of successful people strive to rise and shine as early as 4:00 am on the daily. In fact, many say waking up at 4:00 am every day is the key to success.
Some notable figures who practice waking up at 4:00 am include Apple CEO Tim Cook, US President Donald Trump, former US First Lady Michelle Obama, actress Jennifer Aniston, and celebrity matriarch Kris Jenner, among others. It’s a habit that has stuck with them throughout their lives.
So why do successful people wake up extra early? Well, there is a myriad of different reasons. A lot of the benefits of waking up at 4:00 am every morning are practical, and can impact our daily lives in many ways.
If you’ve never given it much thought, we’ve come up with a few reasons why you should apply this to your life.
Today, Evolve Daily shares four benefits to waking up at 4 am every day.
1) You have extra time to pursue your passions
We realize there are two kinds of people in this world — you’re either an early bird or a night owl. If you’re a night owl, you pretty much do the opposite of wake up early and instead stay up late. While technically, it gives you the same amount of extra hours, there are drawbacks to delaying your shut-eye.
Our bodies were designed to rest and recover at night, and taking away from that is definitely not considered healthy — sorry night owls. Instead, try to get to bed earlier, so you have enough sleep before you wake up at 4:00 am.
It’s basically your free “me time.” Waking up at 4:00 am gives you about three to four extra hours of doing things you want to do without anyone bothering you, without having to take care of obligations. You can use this time to meditate, train Muay Thai, get some passion projects done, read, or simply get a jumpstart on your day.
By the time you start heading off to work, you’ve already spent the first part of your morning chasing your inspirations, and the good feeling should carry throughout the rest of your day. And because you’ve chosen to wake up early as opposed to just staying up late, you’re not sleepy and drained as the day goes on.
Waking up early brings an extra dose of energy and positivity that will no doubt help in performing your remaining daily tasks.
2) While they rest, you’re grinding
In competition, you’ve got to be willing to do what your opponents aren’t. In order to achieve success, you have to grind while they rest. But sometimes, your greatest opponent is your own mind.
Each day, you have the opportunity to get a leg up on everyone else. The secret to success is outworking everyone, including yourself. When you start your day at 4:00 am, you’re basically telling yourself that you are committed to working twice as hard to reach your dreams.
Once you experience the solitude that these hours of the day give you, it’s addicting. You get so much more done, and are so much more relaxed, without the time pressure that you get during normal hours.
When you do anything at 4:00 am, whether that’s checking off the boxes on your to-do list for the day, or putting in an hour of intense exercise, you do so uninterrupted. You’re completely focused and in the zone. And because your body is well-rested from a good night’s sleep, you have the energy to function like a well-oiled machine.
Waking up at 4:00 am in the morning and working will become your secret weapon for success.
3) It’s quiet and serene
Talking more about the concept of peace and quiet in the early morning, it’s essential for good brain health. Your mind already has to deal with so many things throughout a busy day, it’s amazing what starting the day with peace and quiet can do for your overall mood. For one, it’s much less stressful.
Many things you are required to do in your day involve thinking constantly, total focus, and more often than not — silence. The advantage of waking up at 4:00 am means you get all of this and more.
At 4:00 am, before the sun even rises, it’s quiet. There’s no noise, and you’re met with an unparalleled silence. And sometimes, this is all you really need to get stuff done and be productive.
Another added benefit is that pretty much nobody is active on social media at this hour, so you have less of an impulse to check your Facebook account, your Instagram feed, let alone get a dance in on TikTok. It gives you a chance to unplug and redirect your attention to more important things.
The bottom line is you have no distractions at this hour, no phone calls, no meetings, no having to deal with noisy kids.
4) It’s the best time of day to work out
You can work out at many different times of the day, but one of the best times to exercise is early in the morning, before you’ve even had your first meal.
Many professional athletes, including martial artists, like to wake up early to get road work done, or put in an intense workout. US Navy Seals do so as a part of their physical fitness routine. Celebrities like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Mark Wahlberg have been known to wake up 4:00 am to hit the gym.
Simply put, working out at 4:00 am is one of the best things you can do for your body.
To those who always complain that they don’t have time to work out, well this is the answer. An extra three hours per day, seven days a week gives you 21 extra hours to work out. There should be no more excuses.
Every successful person in history has woken up at 4:00 am at one point or another to get stuff done. It truly is the secret ingredient to victory you’ve been waiting for.
