Don't waste the first hours of the day

I have been following my new routine of waking up very early in the morning. This is more-or-less the second week I have following that routine and I have no reached the stage where I am now waking up around 1 AM. Originally I intended to move to around 2 AM gradually, however I purchased a Sleeptracker last week and found that by using it to wake up between 1 and 2 AM I can do so without feeling extremely drowsy. A Google search for Sleeptracker will turn up many results if you are interested in finding out about how it works.

Just waking up at 1 AM is not really enough to really improve my quality of life if I am dead tired all through out the day, so I incorporated some polyphasic sleeping pattern ideas into the routine. Polyphasic sleep basically theorizes that you only need REM sleep to survive and that your body will adjust to any lack of REM sleep by inducing it quicker and longer at every opportunity until you get your daily requirements met. Therefore quick naps are enough to fill up on REM sleep, which is what I do around 3:30 AM, 5 AM, and 5:30 PM.

The naps are a huge energy boost in an otherwise unsustainable sleeping routine. Basically the nap times are chosen based on what I intend to do. At 3:30 AM I nap until 4 AM so that I can be fresh for my work out with kettlebells. Then at 5 AM I semi-nap, as I am not really that tired, to ensure that I am as fresh as possible for my day at work. After coming home from work I take my afternoon nap so that I have energy for my family and friends. The day can then end around 9 or 10 PM depending on my commitments.

Overall I am still getting around 5.5 hours of sleep and I have way more stamina throughout the day than when I was sleeping for 8 to 9 hours. This means that the time I am dedicating to my personal projects in the morning for about 2 hours each work day does not impact my regular routine at all. It also feels great to know that just an hour after the day starts I am awake and making the most of it. When you think about it most people waste over the first five hours of their day being asleep.