Hi Amber. Thanks for your reply to my musings and suggestions. Really like your contributions to the podcast.
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Been doing morning workouts for a long time, CrossFit, trainer or outdoor during months where we have light in the morning.
The keys that everyone explain above are really helpful, especially getting yourself ready the night before so you aren’t rushing around in the morning trying to find things.
Lately I’ve had some slight motivation issues so I make a bit of extra coffee and give myself to drink some before the workout or I put a few ounces in a bottle and drink some during the warmup. Really helps.
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Agreed, prepping everything the night before and coffee are key. Thanks to discussions during the podcast, I’m trying to take in calories even if I could do the workouts without them. This is more to stabilize my eating habits outside of sports. Otherwise I have to have four meals rather than three.
Training in the morning fits my schedule best, I have some alone time while the family is still sleeping, everything is quiet and I start the day having done “my homework”.
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May I ask: how do you get all this superearly morning workout balanced with your family life? Does your partner not mind the early morning turnoil? What about the kids?
Currently I am doing my workouts in the evenings after my kids go to sleep but naturally this means I am sacrificing some leisure time with my wife. Thinking about changing this.
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My wife can sleep through earthquakes (literally), pretzeled up in a plane or a bus and potentially also if the house is on fire, but hasn’t reached her room yet. 
I’m extremely jealous of this superpower of hers. Our daughter’s sleep schedule is quite good, I just have to be careful to not wake her when I leave the room. That’s why I have to start early so that I don’t finish too late.
Personally, I like this arrangement, because I am sacrificing zero family time and don’t need to cash any goodwill checks from my wife. During the weekend, I should add, I usually am on the bike when our daughter is taking her nap and my wife is in the gym.
I think it might be an issue when we have another young one. Then I just know I will prioritize sleep and spend half a season or so in maintenance mode.
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Least intrusive for me rather than more intrusive, albeit I’m a 6.15am alarm for 6.30am start at work from home at mid volume. Pre-covid, I was 5.45, on the road for 6ish and then hybrid rollers beside the car!
I have everything prepped, straight into the en suite, “ablutions” and then out to the shed. Only complaint I got was over the summer from my daughter who’s room is nearest my shed - and that was spotify volume related!
I kinda regret not going mornings earlier to be honest. My consistency is far better, as less chance of dad cab requirements interfering with training, as well as it being mentally easier to just have the workout over and done with. I know the context is having done a workout earlier, but the prospect of trying to motivate myself for a workout this evening, after the working day seems like a lot harder prospect than it did at 6.30am!
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You dont feel tired during the day?
Not if I’ve enough sleep. It’s still my own discipline of going to bed early enough, which isn’t too extreme for the start time. When I was in the office, it wasn’t that much earlier than I needed to be out anyway to avoid traffic (I worked 8-4 on-site). When I went remote, I just stuck to the routine. If anything, it sets the day up.
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No but i do get very hungary in late afternoon making it ore difficult to avoid the cookies. I guess this is due to not eating enough after my workout and at lunchtime.
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Been training early morning for decades. I find it much less intrusive into my family life - up at 5:15, done by 7:00 latest, so joining the rest of the household at the beginning of or during breakfast. The only downside is that I’m always the one pulling to go to bed early in the evening.
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I had to negotiate with my wife about the early morning workouts. While she appreciates that I’m not doing it at lunch or in evenings when it would interfere with family life, it does interrupt her sleep when I get up at 4:30am. So we’ve settled on me only doing that 2 days a week. And thankfully so because I don’t love getting up that early and am glad to have the other mornings to “sleep in.”
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Tired in the afternoon alright if I haven’t gone to bed early enough. And I need to work on that.
The odd night of broken sleep is frustrating as it usually means I skip the workout in favour of sleep.
A previous writer here mentioned the peace experienced in early morning sessions. I can vouch for that. 
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Silent alarm (I have a Garmin Venu now, vibration alarm on my wrist). Get up quietly, don’t trip on anything (that’s a major challenge). Get out of the room, close the door. Done.
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The whole reason I do my workouts in the morning is to avoid any family issues.
Get up quietly don’t wake anyone.
Finished before anyone is up so there is absolutely no impact. 20 mins after I finished my older daughter gets up and I can do all the work with her while my wife and younger sleeps. While evening free for relaxing! It’s so worth the effort.
You need to get up early enough so it’s non impact though. If you are on the trainer while your other half is running about getting the kids breakfast that won’t work!
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The key is to get the work done and be back in the house before the wife and kids are up or just waking up. I aim to be back in the house between 6:50-7 and jump in to the routine. You don’t get any downtime especially if your session was particularly brutal but that’s pretty much the only downside
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Maybe you’ll be ok. In be got 2 (23 months and 3 months) and after maybe 8 weeks after the second I’m consistently training in the am. They’re all different.
I agree with all your points re zero impact on family of getting up early. It’s great.
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Wow - still amazed that all of you are so disciplined in this… ans I consider myself an early bird
So I will give it a try from Monday onwards. Do you keep this rhythm up even on weekends?
Yes, keep the routine for your body. however I give myself an extra hour in bed.
Weekdays I’m up at 05:30, back in house for 07:00. Nothing happens in our house much before 08:30 at weekends so depending on the workout I’m usually up at around 06:30.
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I couldn’t do the 4.30 or 5 starts. To get enough sleep, that would impact on family life nearly as much evenings to be honest.
My circumstances is probably subtly different though - I’ve never been there for the mornings, pre-covid. Wife did the mornings, I did early - early to collect the children from childcare. Now they’re old enough that “getting them ready” is mainly just moaning at them to hurry!
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i wont deny, the 4:20 starts have taken their toll on me. Because of all the reasons you mentioned, im only getting to bed between 10-11PM. And my daughter is a real bad sleeper. TR on 4-5 hours broken sleep a night is brutal, overtrained so hard my FTP dropped from 265 to 232 literally overnight in April. Its back up to 251 but its hard going
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