Unpacking Social Trends: The 5am club. Mapema ndio best?

Let’s start with this: The 5am club is not just about waking up at 5am.? For those of you in the back, I’ll say it a little louder ??:? The 5am club is not just about waking up at 5am.?

For the majority of this year, I have seen quite a few social media posts about “The 5am Club”, a renowned book authored by Robin Sharma, which is mainly centred on owning your mornings to elevate your life.

From my understanding, the 5am club uses a set of principles for actions to build your foundation to owning your mornings by getting up at 5am and completing a set of 20/20/20s:

1. 20 minutes in intense exercise
2. 20 minutes reflecting on your goals?
3. 20 minutes learning a new skill

What the 5am club principles personally brought to light for me is the fact that there is power in using positive intentions when we do get up to fuel our personal/ physical growth and development. Mornings don’t have to be a routine to prepare for your day by meeting your basic physiological needs (eating, showering, dressing etc) but living by the principles can actually set you up for life! Relating back to Maslow’s EXTENDED hierarchy of needs, they are an avenue to fulfilling:

• Cognitive needs: knowledge and understanding, curiosity, exploration, and the need for meaning.
• Self-actualization: realizing your potential, self-fulfilment and seeking personal growth…
• ….and eventually transcendence: selflessness, spiritual connection, and helping others achieve their potential.

The 5am club concept also brought back memories of growing up and my regular struggles getting up early in the morning for school, activities and other life matters. I’m sure we’ve all heard the saying “The early bird catches the worm.” With good, very good, warm intentions, my mother would constantly chirp these words in my ear (among many other phrases) that somehow were instilled in me and eventually become muscle reflexes more than anything. Now granted going to school and work (before we had hybrid, remote or flexi-work hours), there were allocated times to have students and employees start their learning or their jobs which roughly ranged from 7AM - 9AM. Essentially we didn’t and perhaps some still do not, have an option of choosing when we got up but rather we needed to get up and start our day to avoid serious repercussions. As an adult on now reflecting on some of the early morning i.e. e operating in a routine fit for institutionalised societal standards, it truly hit home that yes I am indeed an adult which gives me more power of choice, and secondly an individual, meaning I have the power to choose what works for me and customising my path to becoming said better/ best self.? ??Call it my AHA moment!

The thing with muscle reflexes is they don’t actually require any thought. When I looked up the actual definition of muscle reflexes, it struck a chord in me that led to deep thought as to why I term it as a muscle reflex versus a mindful habit. Allow me to start by sharing the definitions of:

1. A muscle reflex: an involuntary,repeatable, automatic reaction which does not require input from the brain (TeachMePhysiology Series, 2023).
2. A mindful habit: Small, intentional actions taken on a daily basis to cultivate greater mindfulness and awareness in our lives. These habits can range from simple, everyday activities such as taking a few deep breaths before starting the day, to more structured practices such as meditation or journaling (The Simplicity Habit, 2022).

What I loved about researching on ‘Mindful Habits’ was coming across a golden list of principles to guide you through developing these habits (you can read the full list here). My favourite one supported my AHA moment Find what works for you - There is no one-size-fits-all approach to mindful habits! Experiment with different habits and practices, and be open to trying new things.Don’t be afraid to adapt and adjust your habits over time to meet your changing needs and goals.

Before any of us begin divulging information on the scientific benefits of starting your mornings early, let’s also gather information on the scientific benefits of embracing your biological clock as well ??. My biological clock in regards to peak performance, creativity and deep thinking ticks is typically between 7AM -9AM and much later in the evening, between 8PM - 12AM. Let’s call this “my ticking time” for the sake of this article. I have tried sleeping earlier and waking up earlier - from coffee to no coffee, exercise to no exercise, meditation (through Yoga) to no meditation - but ticking the way I best do, just doesn’t work for me at 5AM.

So what next?

??My “Ticking time” and “The 5am club” principles met in the boardroom (my mind) for a very deep discussion around observations and reflections on my experiences with the two. After a heated debate (a tug and pull between what should be done, what can be done and what the world says to do), the two came to a resolution. What was it? I decided to apply the 5am Club other principles (Reflecting on goals & Learning a new skill) to my “ticking time” and what a world of difference it’s made! I have better clarity of thought, I genuinely look forward to my learning time which I also use as writing time sometimes because I often read articles to explore whatever piece I am working on. To be quite frank I am a lot less irritable during the day! Why? Simple because my biological clock isn’t thrown off.

My Key takeaway: It’s very ok to apply “Your ticking time” to mindful habits vs. a social standard where you can. Call it a hybrid model towards self-actualization. It’s your choice after all. Isn’t it?

Until next time my radicals....

-GM