It has finally reached that time of year again which is a time most of us dread, going back to school! Summer is made for going on adventures, having movie nights and staying up all night and of course sleeping in until eleven. However, once the school year starts most of us wonder why it is so hard for us to go to bed at a reasonable time and manage to wake up so early and be expected to fully function. Waking up early simply makes you feel more productive because you get more done earlier on in the day. Realistically we are at our best between 5am and 12pm and the more tasks you get done earlier on in the day just means you have the rest of the day to relax and have time to yourself.
Turn Off Electronics:
My first tip would be to turn off all of your electronics before you go to bed the night before. It is proven that having on electronics before you go to bed affects your rem sleep. If you are not getting good sleep you most likely will not wake up earlier. The best thing to do is to turn off all electronics before you go to bed and read a book instead.
Move Your Alarm:
My next tip would be to not put your phone or alarm clock by your bed. Personally I am guilty of doing this all the time, and I found that when I put my phone by my bed I just keep hitting the snooze button and I never wake up. Instead, you should put your phone across the room from you that way you actually have to get up to turn it off.
Set Two / Multiple Alarms:
Another good tip would be to set more than one alarm. Set one alarm for fifteen minutes before your desired wake-up time and another one for the actual time you wish to get up. What this does, for me at least, is once the first alarm goes off I know that I have fifteen more minutes of sleep and I need to start telling my body to slowly wake up and then once my second alarm goes off I am ready to get out of bed at that point. I am also somewhat of a light sleeper so once my alarm starts to go off I immediately hear it and know it is time to rise and shine.
Ease Into It:
Also another thing you can do would be to start working your way back to the time you want to wake up. For example, say you want to wake up at 8 am, start waking up fifteen minutes earlier each morning. If you are having trouble waking up to your regular alarm and you want a little bit of help, you can download an app called “sleep cycle” and it basically just tracks your sleep and really does a good job at waking you up gently.
Morning Routine:
Next thing would be to cultivate a morning routine so you know what you need to do once you wake up and dive into your plans for the day. I have already briefly touched on this idea in a past article of mine but it really does help get you functioning in the morning. For me personally, I really like to start my day off by doing some morning yoga because it fills my mind with positive thoughts for the day and I am able to think straight and conquor the day.
Discipline:
My next tip is one of the most important and that is discipline. It all comes down to really yourself and your own self-discipline. For example, on some mornings when I have an appointment or something important I need to get done, I usually get up right away. But on the days that I had nothing planned for the morning specifically, I would not be as motivated to get up and I would hit the snooze button and think to myself that I can sleep longer because I have nothing to do. The trick is that you really have to force and motivate yourself to get out of bed regardless what you have planned for the day.
Make Your Bed:
Another good idea would be to make your bed right after you get up. This is simply checking off one thing on your to-do list already and signifies that you are ready to start your day and are not going to crawl back in your bed. Having an unmade bed is basically inviting you to come back into it and that is something you do not want to do.
Incentive:
Another thing you could do is give yourself an incentive to wake up, such as coffee or a smoothie from your favorite smoothie shop. I know that when I wake up all I can think about before I have it is coffee and once I have my coffee I am completely ready for the day. Adults and teachers especially would always say they cannot function throughout the day without a cup of coffee and I never realized how true that was until I got to high school, and now I absolutely love coffee.
Plan Your Day:
My last tip would be to plan out your day. Once you have officially woken up and completed your morning routine, you just plan out your day so you know what you need to do and you take everything in your brain and write it all out on paper. That way you have a clear concise list of what you need to get done for that day.
Those are all of my tips on how to become more of a morning person. Waking up early ultimately depends on yourself and how well you motivate yourself to get out of bed and be ready for the day ahead. It is also nice that you can try out as many different mechanisms to find your fit and see which one works the best for you!