But speedrunning is about sacrificing on other measures to optimize on time, so what did I give up?
The other thing you can do is invest time in figuring out how to do things faster. For instance, what can be done to the same high quality standard, but faster with better form (even if you don’t put your body in speed/stress mode)?
Can you learn to braid your hair faster (but in a way that doesn’t cost you time later*)?
Do you have to rush getting dressed to pull this off:
So, I first went to the kitchen and turned on the kettle for coffee. Normally, I do this after I get dressed, but this way I could do both at once. Time saved: 5 minutes.
*Optimizing for time as something that doesn’t sacrifice time—this shifts focus away from speed and towards time overall, which might undo some of the negative effects of speedrunning. (I’ve already made a trade-off by not learning to do my hair well, but faster. But I think it can be done, and maybe it’s worth it.)
Can you learn to braid your hair faster (but in a way that doesn’t cost you time later*)?
I’m certain I could, but given that this is the first time I’ve ever had to get through my morning starting off with a 30 minute deficit I don’t think it would be worth the investment. It would be pretty simple to just start braiding my hair instead of binding it up the way I do now [1], but I would lose many of the benefits of the current method. In particular, my hair gets tangled much more easily in a braid than if I put it up “correctly”.
I keep the hair long mostly because Partner likes it that way. (And she knows that, which is why she didn’t complain about being awakened so early.) I’d really just as soon cut it off as be bothered to train up a new skill. But as long as Partner is willing to work with me on the extremely rare occasion that I need to do something like this, it needn’t come to that. Braiding is pretty sub-optimal for the reasons that I wear the hair up anyway; it just happened to seem like the fastest way to gain a portion of the usual benefits in that moment.
[^1] My normal style is to make a banded a ponytail like this, then tie it in a figure-eight knot so I don’t have to have all those elastics digging into my back as I drive. Takes 7-10 minutes, but results in close to no tangle and keeps my waist-length hair out of the way.
Do you have to rush getting dressed to pull this off...
If you mean do I normally rush getting dressed, no. My normal routine of “get dressed then start water” is calculated to reduce trips up and down the stairs in the dark [2] , and reduce the amount of casual nudity in the common areas for the comfort of my other housemate in the warmer months. It usually only takes a short time for me to dress, and the kettle works pretty fast, so it’s not normally an issue.
[^2] Yes, I could turn lights on, but that always runs the risk of waking people up. As does running up and down the stairs a lot. Also, tripping over things and making loud crashing noises. There’s a balance to be had there, and I’ve noticed that moving in a deliberate manner seems to take care of it nicely.
Optimizing for time as something that doesn’t sacrifice time...
Absolutely true! And there are lots of things that I normally optimize for efficiency as you describe, with time weighted more heavily than other factors where possible. But in the case of my morning routine, (and despite that I could theoretically be out the door in less than five minutes from the time my feet hit the floor), I’ve generally found it most efficient to give myself about a half hour between my wake-up alarm and the time I need to leave the house, mostly because less time means I’m far less awake. Net benefit of taking my time is an increase in coordination and situational awareness for most of the morning. Worth! (usually)
The other thing you can do is invest time in figuring out how to do things faster. For instance, what can be done to the same high quality standard, but faster with better form (even if you don’t put your body in speed/stress mode)?
Can you learn to braid your hair faster (but in a way that doesn’t cost you time later*)?
Do you have to rush getting dressed to pull this off:
*Optimizing for time as something that doesn’t sacrifice time—this shifts focus away from speed and towards time overall, which might undo some of the negative effects of speedrunning. (I’ve already made a trade-off by not learning to do my hair well, but faster. But I think it can be done, and maybe it’s worth it.)
I’m certain I could, but given that this is the first time I’ve ever had to get through my morning starting off with a 30 minute deficit I don’t think it would be worth the investment. It would be pretty simple to just start braiding my hair instead of binding it up the way I do now [1], but I would lose many of the benefits of the current method. In particular, my hair gets tangled much more easily in a braid than if I put it up “correctly”.
I keep the hair long mostly because Partner likes it that way. (And she knows that, which is why she didn’t complain about being awakened so early.) I’d really just as soon cut it off as be bothered to train up a new skill. But as long as Partner is willing to work with me on the extremely rare occasion that I need to do something like this, it needn’t come to that. Braiding is pretty sub-optimal for the reasons that I wear the hair up anyway; it just happened to seem like the fastest way to gain a portion of the usual benefits in that moment.
[^1] My normal style is to make a banded a ponytail like this, then tie it in a figure-eight knot so I don’t have to have all those elastics digging into my back as I drive. Takes 7-10 minutes, but results in close to no tangle and keeps my waist-length hair out of the way.
If you mean do I normally rush getting dressed, no. My normal routine of “get dressed then start water” is calculated to reduce trips up and down the stairs in the dark [2] , and reduce the amount of casual nudity in the common areas for the comfort of my other housemate in the warmer months. It usually only takes a short time for me to dress, and the kettle works pretty fast, so it’s not normally an issue.
[^2] Yes, I could turn lights on, but that always runs the risk of waking people up. As does running up and down the stairs a lot. Also, tripping over things and making loud crashing noises. There’s a balance to be had there, and I’ve noticed that moving in a deliberate manner seems to take care of it nicely.
Absolutely true! And there are lots of things that I normally optimize for efficiency as you describe, with time weighted more heavily than other factors where possible. But in the case of my morning routine, (and despite that I could theoretically be out the door in less than five minutes from the time my feet hit the floor), I’ve generally found it most efficient to give myself about a half hour between my wake-up alarm and the time I need to leave the house, mostly because less time means I’m far less awake. Net benefit of taking my time is an increase in coordination and situational awareness for most of the morning. Worth! (usually)