I have always heard about all the benefits of being a morning person, but the night owl in me never even wanted to attempt it. I was far too used to my late-night study sessions and binging my favorite shows on Netflix until the early morning hours. It wasn’t until I started working the 6:00 am shift at work and days I ran on only three hours of sleep that I decided to make a much-needed change. It took a lot of time, trial and error. I learned a lot and maybe you should give it a shot too. Here’s why:
Waking up early leads to increased productivity, less stress, and better sleep quality!
Why I would wake up at 10:00 am or later, I always felt like my day was half gone. I was doing homework up until the moment I fell asleep every day because I just didn’t have enough time to study during the day. As I kept studying later and later into the night, I would have less concentration because I was so tired. Waking up early gives me the chance to start my day less rushed and I can start tasks that I need to complete when I am at my peak energy for the day. By the time the sun starts to set, I can actually put my homework away and relax. This lets me fall asleep earlier with less stress on my mind causing better quality of sleep!
Waking up early helps your mental health!
When I would sleep in, I would immediately rush to class or work without taking any time to take care of myself. As the task on my to-do list got pushed back later into the day, self-care tasks slowly got erased from the list. Getting up early gives you that chance to make breakfast, put more effort into your appearance, or do some hobbies that you enjoy. Taking care of yourself is your top priority. If waking up 30 minutes earlier can help you do that then you need to do that for yourself!
If you are like me, waking up early sounds great, but figuring out how to do it can be a little intimidating. Don’t worry. I’m here to help!
Pace yourself!
This is my number one rule, and it must not be skipped under any circumstances! You will not be doing yourself any favors if you just jump from waking up at 10:00 am to 6:00 am. You will just be exhausted and give up after a day or two. Slowing set your alarm earlier. I would start by setting your alarm earlier by 15-30 minutes. Stick with that time for a few days until you are used to it and then set it 15-30 minutes earlier than that. Repeat until you start waking up at your desired time. Don’t forget, for every 15-30 minutes you wake up earlier, you have to go to bed 15-30 minutes earlier the night before. This is crucial so you do not get exhausted. I never said becoming a morning person would be quick and easy.
Hold Yourself Accountable.
You need to be consistent, or it will not work out. Even on your day off, wake up when you usually would and get out of bed. Make it a good experience by doing something you enjoy, but sleeping in will only throw you off track and ruin everything you worked up to. Same goes for bedtimes. Be consistent.
Get up and move.
The biggest challenged I faced while trying to get up early was simply getting out of bed. I had a bad habit of getting up at consistent times, but I would scroll through social media on my phone and sometimes fall asleep again, ruining all progress I made. Whether it be moving your phone and/or alarm across the room or just making it a habit to walk into another room like the kitchen or bathroom. Movement will wake you up and keep you awake!
What can you do before bed?
Like I mentioned before, I had a horrible routine of studying and doing homework until the moment I fell asleep. Do not do that! Do something to relax and get your mind off of everyday stressors. Avoiding your phone might help. If you’re like me and can’t seem to do that, I like to use blue light glasses or change my screen settings to make it a warmer tone. Another tip I have that I found life-changing is to make your environment calm and not stressful. I have a huge clutter problem. If I left my room a mess when I went to bed, I would wake up and stress over my environment. Taking 5-10 minutes to clean up before bed will help you wake up in a better mood and ready to take on the day!
I never promised it would be easy, but becoming a morning person is something that I can guarantee will change your life for the better!