She’s the perky face greeting millions of Americans before their coffee even brews, but Fox News star Carley Shimkus just peeled back the curtain on a schedule so savage it’s making fans gasp, cry, and hit the snooze button in solidarity. The 38-year-old co-host of Fox & Friends First (5–6 a.m. ET) and proud mama to 16-month-old Brock has one job title that trumps them all: professional zombie-slayer. Because when your day starts at 1:15 a.m. — yes, you read that right — every second is a battle against gravity, grouchiness, and the gravitational pull of your pillow. Ready to see how she survives the grind that would break mere mortals? Buckle up. This is the realest routine reveal of 2025, and the final twist will wreck you.

The Witching-Hour Wake-Up: When “Good Morning” Feels Like a Prank

Most of us treat 1:15 a.m. like a typo. For Carley, it’s go time. Her iPhone erupts with a custom alarm labeled “RISE & SHINE, MAMA” — no gentle birdsong, just straight-up drill-sergeant vibes. “If I pick anything soft, I’ll be asleep in 30 seconds,” she confessed in a viral Instagram Reel that’s already at 12 million views. Step one: silence the chaos before it wakes Brock. Step two: chug a pre-prepped iced coffee waiting on the nightstand like a loyal sidekick. “It’s cold, it’s black, and it’s my liquid IV drip,” she laughs.

By 1:25, she’s vertical — sort of. A 60-second cold shower blasts the cobwebs, followed by a lightning-fast skincare sprint: cleanser, serum, SPF (because ring lights are ruthless), and a dab of concealer under each eye that could hide a hurricane. Hair? A sleek low bun achieved in under two minutes with a viral claw clip that’s now sold out nationwide. Outfit formula: sheath dress + blazer + heels that click like confidence. “I dress like I’m going to a wedding at 3 a.m.,” she jokes. “Because on live TV, there’s no ‘I woke up like this’ excuse.”

The Commute From Hell (With a Side of Toddler Tears)

1:45 a.m.: keys in hand, AirPods blasting a hype playlist (think Lizzo meets worship music — “weird combo, works every time”). The 45-minute trek from New Jersey to Manhattan is a ghost-town gauntlet: empty highways, the occasional raccoon, and zero traffic — unless you count the emotional kind. Husband Joe is on baby duty, rocking Brock back to sleep if the alarm stirred him. “Some nights I tiptoe out praying he doesn’t notice,” Carley admits. “Other nights I get the full meltdown hug at the door. Mom guilt at 2 a.m. is next-level.”

She parks in the Fox garage by 2:30, flashes her badge like a secret agent, and bee-lines to hair-and-makeup. The glam squad works magic in 25 minutes flat — contour sharp enough to slice bread, lashes that defy gravity. By 3:00, she’s in the control room, script in one hand, second coffee in the other, memorizing bullet points on everything from border policy to the latest TikTok dance craze. “My brain is 40% news, 40% lyrics to ‘Wheels on the Bus,’ 20% caffeine,” she quips.

On-Air Superhero: Smiling Through the Sleep Debt

5:00 a.m. hits, lights blaze, cameras roll. Carley’s opposite Todd Piro, delivering headlines with the wattage of a thousand suns. Between segments: quick sips of water, a protein bar snuck under the desk, and texted baby pics from Joe (“He just said ‘mama’ — kill me now”). Off-air at 6:15, she’s still buzzing — adrenaline is her second wind. A 15-minute power nap in the green room? Non-negotiable. “I set three alarms so I don’t miss pickup,” she says. By 7:30 a.m., she’s home, scooping Brock into a syrupy hug while Joe whips up blueberry pancakes. The cycle flips: mom mode until noon nap, then gym, errands, and prepping tomorrow’s show. Bed by 7 p.m. Rinse, repeat.

The Secret Hack That’s Pure Genius (And Slightly Insane)

Here’s the jaw-dropper everyone’s sharing: Carley pre-records her own lullabies. No, really. Using a portable mic in her closet (because “acoustics are clutch”), she sings Brock to sleep with custom tracks — think “You Are My Sunshine” mashed with Fox jingles. She plays them on a loop via baby monitor when she’s gone. “He hears my voice all night, thinks I’m there, sleeps longer,” she reveals. The result? Brock clocks 10-hour stretches, giving her four precious hours of shut-eye. Fans are obsessed: “This is mom-hack Mount Rushmore,” one comment reads. Another: “I’m a dad and I’m stealing this TOMORROW.”

From College Hustler to 1 A.M. Icon: The Glow-Up Timeline

Carley’s grind didn’t start with Fox. A Jersey girl with broadcast dreams, she interned at Fox Business in 2009, fetching coffee and praying for airtime. By 2012, she was a junior reporter; by 2021, Fox & Friends First was hers. Post-Brock, she turned maternity leave into a cookbook empire — Cooking with Carley drops next spring, packed with 30-minute meals for zombie parents. “If I can make lasagna at 2 a.m., so can you,” she teases.

Social media can’t get enough. #CarleyAt115 has 1.2 million posts: reenactment skits, alarm-clock memes, even a filter that adds her signature winged liner to your bleary-eyed selfies. Critics call the schedule “unsustainable.” Carley claps back: “It’s my unsustainable. And I love it.”

The Emotional Toll (And the Triumph)

Let’s be real — the tears come. “Some mornings I cry in the car,” she shared on a podcast. “Not because I’m sad, but because I’m so tired my eyes leak.” Yet every time Brock waves at the TV yelling “Mama!” or a viewer tweets “You got me through chemo mornings,” she’s recharged. “This gig chose me,” she says. “And I choose it back — even at 1:15 a.m.”

As Halloween dawns (or doesn’t, for Carley), her story is the ultimate treat: proof that passion plus planning equals super-mom alchemy. Will she ever sleep past 6 a.m. again? Maybe when Brock’s in college. Until then, she’s the beacon for every exhausted parent who’s ever wondered, “How does she do it?”