The early bird catches the worm… rise and shine… and all the other wake-up-early clichés that suggest that waking up early is one of the best things we can do. I used to be a natural early riser. However, as time went on, I grew accustomed to the comfort of the night and found it extremely difficult to be productive early in the a.m. Many of us tell ourselves that we do our best work at night, I get it. I’m convinced that’s when my inspiration hits me!
With three 8:30AM classes followed by long days this semester (something I’ve managed to avoid in the past), I’ve found it difficult to establish any sort of sleep schedule. This week, I decided to take on the quest of figuring out how to be a morning person.
Day 1: Multiple Alarms in the Morning
The snooze button is a blessing and a curse. Sometimes five more minutes is all you need, however, for the seasoned night owl, five minutes can easily turn into an hour after multiple taps of the snooze button.
I already have a system of setting multiple alarms in the morning to ensure that I get up; however, I decided to avoid hitting the snooze button. How? Well, thanks to modern technology and the alarm app. I downloaded an app that forces you to take a picture of an item to shut the alarm off. As annoying as it is, it works. While it didn’t make waking up any easier, it actually works since it forces you to get up and literally out of my bed. While this didn’t make getting up easier, it did make it more realistic.
Day 2: Wake Up and Work out
I have a good habit of hitting the gym. Except my sweat seshes normally take place in the evening after a long day. I figured that if I used the a.m. to get my workout in, it would force me to wake up, give me an extra boost of energy, and free up my schedule for later.
I committed to meeting my friend at the gym at 7 a.m., so it would force me to follow through with my plan. Again, as my alarm rang at 6:30, getting up early still wasn’t easy. I was exhausted for the first half hour and regretted leaving my heavenly bed. After a quick shower and then jetting off to my morning class, something hit me. I finally felt a genuine energy boost from the post workout endorphins I normally fought to suppress due to my nightly workouts. I was shocked as the boost of energy was significant and extremely noticeable.
Day 3: Finally Set a Bedtime (and a Wake-up Time)
After two rough mornings, I figured that I needed to set a definite bedtime, and wake up time. It’s extremely easy for me to stay up till the early hours of the morning. What’s the point of getting up at 7:00 a.m? Routine determines your “regular”. if you’re constantly going to bed at 2 or 3 in the morning, that’s what you’ll get used to. Therefore, for the rest of the week, I decided I’d try and be in bed by 12:00 on the days I had morning classes, and then 1:30 for any other days.
Waking up on Wednesday was easy. Despite not having classes on Wednesdays, the earlier bedtime allowed me to rest earlier and to be more productive rather than sleeping in. I managed to be up by 7:30 and in the library by 9 – I would call that a success.
Day 4: The Cold Shower
On Thursday, I decided to try the age-old trick of an ice-cold shower to wake you up in the a.m. What better way to get the blood flowing than a quick chill? I slumped out of my bed, took a picture of my desk that shut my alarm off, and then strolled to the bathroom. After a minute of staring into the already unappealing, residence shower, I finally stepped into the chilly water. It was cold. It was awful. I quickly questioned my intention of doing this. It woke me up, but it also made me dread ever agreeing to use this as motivation again. Furthermore, for this tip to work, you need enough discipline to get up and in the shower to begin with.
Day 5: The Power of the Nap
After many attempts of being a pleasant morning person, I was almost ready to accept defeat. An unforeseen event concluded in a late night, so I didn’t end up getting to bed until a little after 3 a.m. With an 8:30 class the next morning, I accepted the fact that I would be exhausted. To my surprise, I woke up at 7:30, didn’t hit snooze, took a quick shower, and then was off to class. The only thing that kept me going through my classes was the thought of taking a killer nap later.
The key to a good nap is to keep it short. Naps can easily set off your sleep schedule for that night, so set an alarm and be aware. 30 minutes works great, but some prefer an hour. While I felt groggy at first, it didn’t take long to feel refreshed. I had more than enough energy to carry me through the rest of the day.
What I realized on my quest to become a morning person, is that it’s not going to happen overnight. While these tips did help me wake up earlier, I would be lying if I said that I actually enjoyed it. For those of you that do “rise and shine” with no problem, well done. I have developed genuine respect (and maybe even a little envy) for those who can be extremely productive in the morning. Let us know what your best “make me a morning person” tips are!