Illustration courtesy of Christine Burney.
‘Time to be in bed,’ ‘The wee hours of the morning’ — whatever you choose to call the time before the sun rises, this epoch of day has gotten a pretty bad reputation among night owls. I used to dread waking up to the morning alarm and tried to roll over and catch five more minutes of sleep before starting the day (this was most of high school). But this quarter I have 8 a.m. classes everyday. Unless you commute, 8 a.m. can be a super chill part of the day. As I go along with spring quarter, I’ve learned that there are a few things I can do each morning that help the day not come like a slap in the face.
Get up an hour or 45 minutes before you leave
This helps you ease into the day at your own pace without the feeling of being thrown into the day. Fast Company’s Sarah Peterson, author of “8 Tricks to Make Yourself Wake Up Earlier,” suggests that waking up anywhere between 15-45 minutes earlier than usual can help tremendously with your energy level for the rest of the day.
Don’t turn on big lights right away
Turning on a bedside lamp can help you adjust to the light in increments rather than shocking your system with the silent shout, LET THERE BE LIGHT! This gradual lighting is also more pleasant because it puts you in a easy, light mood. It’s the light that makes you look and feel good because it doesn’t force you to see everything in reality before you are ready.
Give yourself a good reason to wake up early
Don’t get up dreading that long to-do list for the day. Instead, start the day with a creative or meditative exercise that you can turn into an early morning routine. If you love to dance and it gets your heart rate pumping, set aside 15 minutes of energetic grooving to wake you up. If you love the way yoga makes you feel, practice some basic meditation for 30 minutes.
Have a healthy breakfast
Make something for breakfast that will provide you with energy throughout the day. This may take some trial and error. For example, if my breakfast has mostly protein, my energy will be sustained for several hours. Don’t eat too much or you’ll find yourself dozing off in your 8 a.m. class. In her Health.com article “The 20 Best Foods to Eat for Breakfast,” Amanda MacMillan states that the best foods to keep you energerized all day include: oatmeal, Greek yogurt, grapefruit, bananas and eggs along with several others.
Make a ‘wake-up’ playlist
I’ve found that it is super important to have a high-energy playlist to help kick off your day right. To develop the perfect playlist, consider the following: What inspires you? What songs make you feel like everything is great? Which music lifts you when you are down? Most importantly, what can you listen to in the morning that won’t make you want to kick something or scream at someone? Check out this morning playlist I created on YouTube for suggestions on fun tunes that usher in a colorful, light pace for the day. You’ll notice a lot of Coldplay to no one’s surprise.
Break of Dawn Pace Playlist
“Mylo Xyloto” by Coldplay
“Hurts Like Heaven” by Coldplay
“Pink Moon” by Nick Drake
“1901” by Birdy
“May Waltz” by Brooke Fraser
“Afraid of Nothing” by Sharon Van Etten
“Whole Wide World” by Bahamas
“Mushaboom” by Feist
“A Sky Full of Stars” by Coldplay
“Dog Days are Over” (Yeasayer or pumpkin remix) by Florence and the Machine
“Cherry Wine” by Hozier
“Sweet Jane” by Cowboy Junkies
Give these early morning routines a try and don’t let the 8 a.m. classes keep you down. After all, it’s only 10 weeks.