Most of us have set an early alarm at least once with the firm intention of starting the day with purpose, whether through exercise, meditation, or getting a head start on chores. And yet, when that alarm actually goes off in the dark, willpower tends to crumble pretty quickly. That is not the case for Aimee Stanton, a 32-year-old mother of two, plumber, and entrepreneur based in Melbourne, Australia, who has been rising at 2:30 AM five days a week for the past three years. According to Stanton, who shared her story with Newsweek, this unusual habit has completely transformed her life for the better.
While most people would consider 2:30 in the morning the middle of the night, Stanton says the routine leaves her feeling more energized and genuinely happier throughout the day. The biggest reward, she explains, is that by the time her daughters wake up, she has already taken care of herself and her work, allowing her to be fully present with them. She traces the beginning of this habit back to the birth of her first child, when she realized she needed to find a way to carve out personal time without sacrificing family moments. “I hate working while my kids are awake,” she said. “I want to be present, and if that means getting things done before they wake up, then I’ll do it.”
Her morning routine is nothing short of impressive, running for about four and a half hours before her daughters even open their eyes. She starts with 30 minutes at the gym, then hops on her home treadmill for another 30 minutes while attending an online course. After that, she spends 30 minutes meditating in a sauna, follows it up with a five-minute cold shower, and then dedicates two full hours to content creation and creative work for her business. “The time between 2:30 and 7 AM is the only time I have for myself, so I try not to scroll social media or check emails,” she explained.
Stanton acknowledges that dragging herself out of bed that early is not always easy, but she has developed a method that works for her. She goes to sleep around 8:30 PM, and the moment her alarm rings, she forces herself out of bed immediately before her brain has a chance to argue. She says that if she does not get up within three seconds of the alarm going off, it becomes significantly harder to leave the warmth of her bed. Her strategy is rooted in a book she read roughly a decade ago. “After reading ‘The 5 AM Club’ about ten years ago, I knew that mornings were key to how the rest of my day would unfold. I knew that if I could get my morning routine right, I would become unstoppable,” she said.
Interestingly, she did not start at 2:30 AM right away. She eased into it gradually, beginning with a 5 AM wake-up time, then shifting to 4 AM, then 3:30 AM, and eventually landing at 2:30 AM. “I started with a routine at 5 AM, then moved to 4, then 3:30, and finally 2:30,” she said, noting that the gradual adjustment made the transition much easier on her body and mind. On weekends, she allows herself to sleep in until 7 AM, which she jokingly describes as practically midday by her standards. She also makes a point of preparing everything she needs the night before so that her mornings run without a hitch.
After she posted about her routine on social media, the response was enormous, with many followers asking what time she goes to bed. Stanton emphasizes that she understands this schedule is not for everyone, and she is not suggesting that 2:30 AM is some magic number. She herself has always been a morning person, and her advice to others is simply to find a rhythm that is sustainable for them. “Even waking up just 30 minutes earlier than usual to have a little time for yourself can change your life,” she said. “Prepare everything the night before, and then, as soon as the alarm goes off, jump out of bed before you have time to think or make excuses. Everyone has different times of day when they are most focused. Find when you are most focused and use that time.”
From a broader perspective, the science of sleep and circadian rhythms is worth understanding for anyone experimenting with their wake-up times. The human body operates on a roughly 24-hour internal clock regulated by light exposure and temperature, which means that successfully shifting your wake time requires equally shifting your bedtime, something Stanton clearly accounts for with her 8:30 PM lights-out schedule. Sleep experts generally recommend that adults get between seven and nine hours of sleep per night, and Stanton gets close to that window even with her extreme schedule. Cold showers, like the ones she takes each morning, have been linked in various studies to improved alertness, circulation, and mood. Sauna use, meanwhile, has a long history in wellness culture and is increasingly studied for potential benefits related to recovery and cardiovascular health. The concept of protecting early morning hours from digital distractions, as Stanton practices, also aligns closely with productivity research suggesting that focused, uninterrupted time in the morning leads to higher quality output throughout the rest of the day.
If Aimee Stanton’s story has inspired you or made you rethink your own morning habits, share your thoughts in the comments.
