Tuesday 13 September 2011

Larkism – the sequel

Three months ago, I began an experiment into Larkism. The question was whether I could turn this hardened night owl into a lark.

It was a tough call. There’s nothing I like better than tapping the keys after midnight in an otherwise silent house with no untimely interruptions and no nagging to-do lists – none that can’t be hushed until morning for fear of waking the family, at least.  And there are few things I like less than getting up on the command of the alarm clock when it’s still dark, to take that long, lonely walk downstairs to the kettle, knowing I could just turn over and have-a-few-more-minutes.

Or so I thought.

Since that life-changing day in June, I have been jumping out of bed at 5am like the archetypal lark and have discovered that my love for that chunk of day rarely previously experienced  (following sleep, anyway) knows no boundaries. These days, if I wake after 5am, I’m cross. This is why:

- Having a set two hours of time at the start of the day has made me more focused and thus more productive. Whatever happens, by 7am I have two hours of writing behind me and I feel more fulfilled than I often used to feel all day.

- I’ve discovered that the hours between 10pm and 2am weren’t four but two and a bit. Midnight was the beginning of ‘faffing’ time. I was slower at every task than I’d realised, easily distracted and much as I think there’s a place for Facebook, Twitter, emailing and home shopping, I don’t think it’s worth a lethargic two hour chunk of my life every day.

- I’m tired at night and I like it. I can’t pretend to be exhausted like my they-broke-the-mould-when-they-made-this-particular-lark husband but I’m happy to wind down. The day has more structure and it feels more natural.

- I like the fact that by 4pm and home from school time, I can have double digit hours of constructive work behind me. The pressure of always trying to figure out just when I could fit in another hour of writing is no longer there. I still write in the evenings but now it’s a bonus.

- Before my foray into Larkism I was not firing on all cylinders. People used to marvel at how I could survive on four hours sleep a night, comparing me to Margaret Thatcher (DON’T even go there) but I’ve realised that survival was exactly what I was doing. I had a diet of tea (I still do tea) and lists. In my owl days, notes scribbled in the small hours were the only way I could possibly get my children to school with the correct allocation of sandwiches, clothing, homework and plaits. It took me until around 10am to manage anything near lucid thought without my array of prompts.

So, after my three month experiment into changing body clocks, it’s a definitive yes to Larkism for me. I think underneath I’ll always be a natural owl – I can’t imagine ever leaving a party early because my bed is calling – but for an easier, more fulfilling way of living, this lark is setting her alarm for 5am for the foreseeable future. In the words of the wonderful, Jimmy Cliff, I can see clearly now the rain has gone.

How about you?

17 comments:

  1. You're an inspiration, Jax! I love the idea (used to prefer marathon training in the morning actually) but these days sleep seems to call more loudly. I'm definitely a night owl. I'm wondering how I can get myself to bed earlier when my lark is away next week!!

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  2. Thanks Jo :) And yes, I think it's really hard to get to sleep when your lark's away, it's just so tempting to wallow in the night time hours without feeling guilty, isn't it? Maybe you should start when he gets back?! Looking forward to seeing him, even if I'm petrified about the actual cycling, your turn next time...

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  3. It's funny, I was just beginning to wonder how the larkism was going. If I was an owl trying to work as you do I think I would be very convinced by your arguments and try and follow your example but as a natural somewhere in the middle (is there a word for such a person - perhaps your next task can be to think of one?) and not someone currently trying to fit two lives into one I'll just carry on as I am but at the same time applauding your efforts greatly.

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  4. That's a great comment, thanks for your support! My first reaction was that the term for someone in the middle might be 'normal' but actually, I wonder if it's very unusual?? People do tend to describe themselves as an owl or a lark, don't they? Perhaps congratulations are in order for being unique-ish :)

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  5. I'm a night owl too but you make a great case for being a lark! I would definitely do it if I thought I could do away with all my reminder notes and lists but I think my memory is too knackered regardless.

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  6. Excellent update - well done ...just please don't text me whan you get up ;-)
    I tried it for a few days and it did work but I spent a chunk of the weekends catching up on all the TV I'd taped as I was too tired to stay up and watch it...perhaps this says something about my viewing preferences, I dunno *shrugs*
    Thought of you this morning though as I was out on the ponies at 7.30am, I get in and you've posted this... coincidence ??

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  7. Love it, Ella! But maybe you'd surprise yourself, maybe your memory isn't as bad as you think? I remember reading about sleep deprivation once, it detailed what happened at every stage. Get only an hour less sleep than you need and you start searching for words when you speak. And that's just one hour! It's no wonder we can't remember everything needed for our complex lives! Thanks for stopping by.

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  8. That's funny you should say that, Hazel, I used to get told off for texting people at 2am (Ooops! I didn't realise people don't all switch off their phone at night!) so I need to watch out I don't start upsetting the owls now instead of the larks...I'm impressed you can ride at 7.30, I think getting out of the house early into the cold/ dark is a whole different ball game to having a cup of tea at your desk with your slippers on. I have got up early to cycle a few times lately but wouldn't choose it. Lovely when you're out though, I imagine! Thanks for reading and how nice you were thinking of me :)

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  9. Thanks for the update, Jax. Like Lyn I think I'm somewhere in the middle - hate getting up, but don't usually stay up too late. Do rely on lists though. It must be my age.
    Your blog makes me think of Ceri. Before she met her impossible lark of a man she only knew that 5am existed if she was not yet home ( and yes, she used to text me at 4am to say 'I'm staying at Jess' tonight!) Now she is working in a gym and starting at 6am, so it's rise and shine for Ceri. And she seems to be loving it!
    Definitely more productive than staying in bed all day, and they went to watch dawn rise over the lighthouse.

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  10. Looks like Ceri discovered 5am 20 years before I did, Pauline :) So you're the second person in the middle (I won't call you an 'Inbetweener' in case you know the programme/ film??). I'd really love to know what the percentages for each type of person are the usual factors for change - ie whether it's age or lifestyle. Thanks for reading!

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  11. I recently started writing in the early morning while everyone in my house is still asleep, and I LOVE IT. I can't believe how much better my brain works when it's just waking up, than when it's wanting to go to sleep. Plus, there's something awesome about being up before most the world is. :)

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  12. Peggy, as of three months ago, I'm with you all the way! Thanks for popping by!

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  13. Oooooh... interesting... I've been an owl for as long as I can remember but, as you say, from 10pm to 2pm is two-ish hours. It makes sense for us to be up early (dawn, anyhow) and allow ourselves to sleep at night. I might be inspired to give it a try!

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  14. Oh go on Martha, try it and let me know how you get on! Now you see, if you'd had enough sleep last night, you wouldn't have mixed up your 'pm' and 'am's!! Thanks for reading ;)

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  15. Love your blog. My suggestion to anyone wanting to embrace larkism is to get chickens. They wake me up at dawn to be let out then have to be safely put to bed at dusk. I used to faff around until all hours but now I have a strict chicken based regime.

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  16. Love that, DJ, those chickens sound a lot like small children. Alas, now mine are almost teenagers, I have to wake up to wake them up so that doesn't work at all! Thanks for reading, glad you like the blog.

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