too early to ask for letters of rec?

i'm getting my materials ready for this cycle of PhD / MFA program applications. my earliest deadline is December 1, and i know a lot of applications haven't even officially opened, but i'm really excited about my apps. i was wondering if this week/next week is too early to start asking professors for letters.

my logic is i don't want them to be swamped with other requests & not have time to commit to mine, and i also want to give them ample time to juggle classes/etc and let them know far enough ahead of time. i'm just wondering if it's pointless to ask *this* early in advance?

thank you all in advance :)