The early bird catches the what? If you’re currently scratching your head and struggling to remember, you could still be in the midst of a post-sleep funk. There’s a huge difference between waking up and being awake and no matter how much you kid yourself that you’re a fully functioning person in the morning, you could just be going on autopilot. Naturally early risers might seem to be harboring a well-kept secret but in fact, their routine is down to just a few simple steps. Simply by changing your approach to how you sleep and what you do in the morning, you can go from being a night owl to an early bird.
- TRAIN YOUR BODY
(source: telegraph.co.uk)
Going from late starts to early alarms in one fell swoop is possibly the worst way you could ease your body into waking up. Instead of going to bed hours before your normal bedtime, try gradually changing the time at which you go to sleep, going to bed 15 earlier in order to rise 15 minutes earlier in the morning. Over time, your body will get used to the changes, which will make shifting your sleeping pattern a much less painful process.
- REDESIGN YOUR BEDROOM
(source: wakeuptothesunriselight.com)
One of the biggest culprits against getting up in the morning is the layout of your bedroom. During the night, sources of light like television buttons, phone screens and plugged in devices can interfere with your brain’s ability to switch off, meaning that you might be awake long after you go to bed. For the morning, you can also try investing in a light-based alarm for the morning which will incrementally increase the light flow into your bedroom. The more gradual and gentle the wakeup, the easier that it will be to leave your bed and get going.
- CREATE A NIGHTLY ROUTINE
(source: nicabm.com)
One of the keys to getting up early is how you go about going to sleep the night before and in order to get a better, more restful sleep, it pays to take your time about it. If you like to shower before bed, try incorporating it into your nightly routine, following it up with 20 minutes spent reading a book. On the other hand, you could try writing in a journal, or lighting a few candles. Whatever you do, stick to the same routine to allow your body to associate the actions with sleep.
