The 5am Club: What is it And Should You Join?

Did you know there’s a club you can join that could completely transform your life? A club where, if the hype is to be believed, you will achieve your life goals, lead a healthier life, and improve your sleep quality. A club whose members include some of the most successful people who have ever lived. Well, there is. And guess what, it’s open to new members. The only catch? The one you’ve probably already guessed – that ridiculously early start! So, will you be joining the club? Let’s explore…

The 5am club refers to a morning routine in which you dedicate the early hours of your day to personal development and life goals. The ‘club’ refers to a set of simple rules designed to guide your mornings, and it’s often shared as a hashtag across social platforms, connecting like-minded early risers. To be a member, you simply need to get out of bed at 5am and use your mornings to focus on exercise, self-reflection, and developing new skills. This can’t just be a one-off; equally important is the daily repetition.

This new trend became popular in 2018 when the club’s ‘President’, Robin Sharma, released his book titled ‘The 5 am Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life‘. It’s since become an international bestseller and the concept has become a bit of an online sensation too.

Now, members are soaring. Influencers sing the club’s praises. Life coaches share Sharma’s motivational quotes. Social platforms are awash with the #5amclub hashtag. So, given its popularity, it may be time to consider your own 5am club application.

The 5am club has a few simple rules. Every member should wake at 5 o’clock each day and spend the first hour focusing on their personal development using a 20/20/20 model, such as:

• 20 minutes of exercise
• 20 minutes of self-reflection
• 20 minutes of progressing towards your goals

While the above is what Robin Sharma advocates for in his book, the rules aren’t strict. Members can change the duration, focus, and order of these tasks. As long as they relate to your personal development, you can call yourself a member.

For example, you may start with a HIIT workout, followed by 20 minutes of journaling and then finish by learning a few new phrases in Spanish.

Or maybe you prefer a light stretch to relieve the muscles, followed by meditation and then 20 minutes spent working on that book you’ve been waiting to write.

The point is that the routine is entirely up to you and what you want to achieve.

A 5am alarm may sound like some people’s worst nightmare, but waking up at this time has astounding benefits, according to Robin Sharma and the many people who attend daily.

At the top level, the benefits include reducing stress in the morning, improving sleep quality, and feeling happier overall.

In the long term, starting your day before the rest of the world wakes up can set you on a path to living a fulfilling life, help you achieve your goals and promote positivity for yourself and those around you.

Let’s dig into how it can do this…

Studies have shown that our logical reasoning and mental performance are better during the first few hours of waking.

A study on people’s proactivity levels found that those who woke earlier and considered themselves ‘morning people’ are more likely to have a successful career, as their peak cognitive performance occurs closer to dawn.

Another study found that avoidant procrastination occurred less in those who woke up earlier. Both studies show the major advantages of starting your day early, although whether that needs to be as early as 5am or not is up for debate.

An early start can promote positivity and benefit all those around you. By waking up before others in your household, you can relieve morning grogginess and feel more joyous when you rise.

Being happy can also majorly affect your productivity, with a study by Oxford University’s Saïd Business School finding that happy workers are 13% more productive during the day.

Feeling rushed to get the kids ready for school, the morning commute and the general scramble to get out of the front door can cause stress, affecting your mood for the rest of the day. A 5am start gives you more time to enjoy a more slow and tranquil morning, allowing you to prepare and organise for what’s ahead.

By consistently getting up at 5, you create a healthy routine and teach yourself discipline. Battling the inner demons that pull you back into bed is an achievement in itself, particularly when followed by your self-development routine. This focus on self-discipline can also help develop control for other parts of the day, helping you cut out bad habits, whether it’s late-night snacking or spending too much time in front of a screen.

Going to bed earlier gives you plenty of time to rest. A normal amount of sleep for adults is at least 7 hours per night. Any less can cause you to enter fight or flight mode in the morning. By keeping a consistent wake time, your circadian rhythm will realign, and you’ll be more likely to get a solid block of good quality sleep every night.

Curious about how much sleep you really need? Discover the answer in our article: How Many Hours of Sleep Do I Need?

Watching the sunrise is a spectacular moment most people miss in the mornings. Having a 5am wake-up call means you have plenty of time to sit back and enjoy the dazzling display the Earth puts on every dawn. Again, this natural and gradual brightness increase will help reset your circadian rhythm, alerting your body that it’s daytime.

According to John Kaufman, author of ‘The Personal MBA’, it can take 20 hours to learn the critical components of a new skill. If you split that into 20-minute segments, that means you can be competent at something you used never to be able to do in just over three months.

The great thing about the 5am club is that there are no papers to sign and no fees, and it can all be done from your own home. However, joining the 5am club does mean that you will have to adjust your daily routine.

Adopting a new schedule can take time, as it involves forming many new habits. Nir Eyal, author of the bestseller ‘Indistractable’, explains how forming a new routine is uncomfortable and requires lots of effort to ingrain the new habits into your daily life.

So how can you beat these uncomfortable feelings to take your place in the 5am club?

1. Start in increments: If you usually wake up at 7am, try waking up at 6:45 until it becomes normal, then 6:30, 6:15, and so on. Gradually waking up earlier will make jumping to the early morning wake-up much easier.
2. Adjust your sleeping schedule: As you are now waking up earlier, you must start going to bed earlier. On average, adults need at least 7 to 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep to feel energised; therefore, if you want to be a part of the 5am club, being asleep by 10 pm is a must. That may mean slipping under the covers at 9:30 to give yourself time to drift off.
3. Plan your routine: Plan your 5am routine the night before. Have your clothes ready, your running shoes beside your bed, and your journal at your desk. That way, you won’t need as much mental focus to carry out your new morning routine.

While the 5am club can be hard to get into if you’re more of a night owl than a morning person, it can help you feel more accomplished and healthier. By promoting dopamine and allowing you more time in the morning to get through your to-do list, you become more productive as the day goes on.

Giving the 5am club a shot is worth it as it can be great for your physical and mental wellbeing and gives you the space you need for ‘me-time’. However, don’t be afraid to change it to fit your life and your needs. Many adopt the routine but condense it and adjust the time they wake up accordingly.

Discover your ideal bedtime and wake-up time with our personalised sleep calculator.

If you are seeking a new routine to conquer your personal goals, improve sleep, and lead a healthier lifestyle, then the 5am club may be for you. If you’re not an early bird and favour a slower start, consider a low dopamine morning routine where you don’t need to wake up at 5am.