Does 'early to bed' help you be more productive?

[PolkadotRosa]

I'm on a quest to improve myself and our home, and am looking at new ways/strategies to help me along.

I could probably do with getting to bed earlier (usually around 11.45pm-12.30am, up at around 6.30/7am) - thinking it may help my productivity levels to get more zzz's - and am curious to find out what time other MNers usually get to bed/how much sleep you usually have each night, and how important you think an early night is in managing your home and being organised. Ta!

I like to be asleep by 11pm and up at 7am. I am not tired and generally have energy.

I'm in the same boat.
Have made all sorts of plans and checklists to improve my home and me, but really need to improve my sleep to have the energy to get going with it.
I want to be asleep for 10 and up at 6 to get a good hour to myself before the DC wake up.
I am thinking about starting off with some herbal sleep aid tablets and establishing some kind of bedtime routine.
Hoping it should help.

We are more morning people than night owls, and with the early mornings we're awake before six (although not out of bed!). This morning we'd hoovered and mopped/washed all of downstairs, done the pots, put a load of laundry on, had showers and cleaned the bathroom and walked the dog and everyone but me had left the house at 8:30.

However, I don't that's causation. I just like to get things done and out of the way early in the day.

Thanks ladies!
Vivacia that's brilliant! Go you. What time do you go to bed?

Terra - I'd like to be in bed by 10pm too. Never seem to achieve it though! Always finishing some job or switching off my mind in front of Big Brother I'm going to set myself a challenge to do it tonight. Or maybe say 11pm and bring it forward a bit each night. Routine idea sounds good, maybe you won't need the herbal do-da's if you wind down enough before?

Yeah I am thinking even if I just use them the first few nights? Then that should adjust my body clock.

Worth a try! Let me know how you get on.

This is my plan...I'm going to (as quickly as I can when baby having his nap) make our room spotless & ironing pile free, sort all clothes etc needed for tomorrow.
Later on, bath bambinos, bath me, get into fresh just-on bedding before 11pm and read a bit of one of the many books I've never had time to open! Rock & Roll.
Wake up on Saturday a new, fantastically efficient, well rested super-mummy and Wonder-wife (yeh right)

A few weeks ago, I started a healthy eating routine. Evenings are my worst time for picking so I was making myself brush my teeth and go to bed earlier so that I wouldn't eat .

I noticed a significant difference to how productive I was during the day. I was getting more jobs done and the house was slightly more organised.

It's slipped, though, after only a few weeks but I really do need to get back into that routine because I could see great things happening if I stuck with it for long enough.

My biggest problem is that I fall asleep watching tv. I wake up after a little while and realise I need to get up and brush my teeth before I can go to bed so I just close my eyes again and on more than one occasion, will spend the whole night on the sofa with the tv on. It's not good .

Light plays a really big part in your sleeping routine. When I got to a stage I couldn't sleep before 2am... I changed all the lighting. Left things on a very low light a couple of hours before bed, stopped using a bright screen for 30 minutes or so (an hour was unfeasible for me.)

In the morning woke up put all the lights on opened all the curtains and stood outside as soon as I could for some natural light (easy in the summer when it is bright early on!)

It made a massive difference and if I ever feel my routine is going out of whack I make sure I pick it up again.

Thanks Polka. I aim to be in bed for 10 but can still be awake by 11. I feel ill the next day if I'm up any later. The other downside is that I can crash about 2 or 3 in the afternoon, especially on quiet days like Sundays can be.

Inspiring! I'm on it as of tonight. Baby due in 3 weeks so hoping this will help with the sleep adjustment if I choose to get up at 6.

Will feedback....