Crunches and clarity at 5 a.m.

The first step to personal mastery.

Photo by Majestic Lukas on Unsplash

Voluntarily starting my day at 5 a.m. Tuesday wasn’t my plan.

But after almost 11 hours of brainwashing, my conditioning has changed. My body clock no longer functions like it used to.

I don’t know if the bathroom bug bit or what. But I never intended to roll over before the crack of dawn. When I did, I couldn’t believe my eyes. After leaning forward in bed, stretching to touch my toes, I spotted the oven clock switch from 4:59 to 5 a.m.

It was the last sign I needed to see.

I popped up.

Since the final Saturday in June, I binge-listened to “The 5AM Club” by Robin Sharma. I finished the 11-hour audiobook Wednesday morning — my second day showing up to the club.

Hopefully today I’ll be on a three-day streak.

I’m committing to the principles within Sharma’s bestselling book, which is all about the transformational value of rising early.

I told you in May that I’ve morphed into a morning person. But a 5 a.m. daily alarm puts me on par with even the earliest birdies. It’s part of my plan to go from good to great.

A commitment to the book’s method is a commitment to self-love. More than that, it’s an avenue to achieve personal mastery.

Successfully joining the 5 a.m. club could be the key to unlocking new heights. After only two days, I can see how the strategy will help me with some of my biggest areas of improvement, such as procrastination, time management and organization.

But I already have tremendous respect for the 5 a.m. club. Membership isn’t easily obtained. There are very specific rules for admission.

The book calls for a minimum of 66 straight days of bouncing out of bed promptly at 5 a.m. If that’s not taxing enough, exercise might be.

But the “20-20-20 formula,” finally revealed in chapter 13, actually adds structure so that I’m not just waking up and trying to stay awake.

The formula mandates that the first 20 minutes of the day be spent doing intense exercise. It’s the best time of the day for it. The next 20 minutes are to be set aside for meditation and journaling. The final 20 minutes are for learning, whether reading or listening to an audiobook or podcast.

For my exercise, I begin with stretching, something I’ve known for years I need to incorporate. I then rotate between jumping jacks, push-ups, crunches and squats. To end my session, I do a one-minute plank. It’s my least favorite part, but I’m striving to build my ability and perhaps even strengthen my core.

To meditate and journal, I head to my favorite place in the city: my always entertaining, always enjoyable stoop. I like to stay put and get at least 20 minutes of reading in while the sun rises and birds chirp.

The book calls those first 60 minutes the victory hour.

The book also advocates for treating yourself to a reward for each successful day. It could be a chocolate bar. It could be a midday nap.

The allowance of a nap sold me on the strategy.

By noon Tuesday, I was dead-dog tired. My “reward” wasn’t victory hour. It was the 4 o'clock hour, when I happily crashed for about 90 minutes. Wednesday, I didn’t make it past noon. I got caught snoozing in the living room loveseat before marching back to bed.

But I can feel a life-changing habit forming.

In order to be successful, in order to join the 5 a.m. club, I must evolve.

I must adopt a consistent bedtime and prioritize my sleep, which the book discusses. My final hour before bed has a lot of room for improvement. The bedtime itself, around 10 p.m., will be difficult but not impossible.

I’ve changed the alarms on my phone and removed the device from my bedroom at night. Now my first alarm goes off at 5 a.m., with the second set for 5:01 a.m. — just in case I so much as sit back down.

I’m sticking to my Monday-Friday gym sessions. On Wednesday, I completed my mini “two-a-day” before 8:30 a.m. My lower back is killing me, and I blame the planks. It must be why the book also recommends two 90-minute massages per week. It’s cheaper than death, the author reasons.

Last month, I reached out to Adam Verner, narrator of “The 5AM Club,” for advice about doing voice over work. I had just published my column about adding voice over work to my revenue streams. Verner actually responded and provided me with valuable resources that might help me someday make some money.

His narration and his kindness enhanced my experience with “The 5AM Club.”

On Oct. 10, I can become a card-carrying member.

For now, let’s just hope I made it to day three.