If you’re one of those people who find it hard to get up in the morning, we’ve got good news: you can make your mornings a lot more pleasant with a few simple tricks.
Here are our top tips for the morning person.
Get a morning routine
Develop a morning routine that you can look forward to. A morning routine can include anything from making your favourite smoothie to cuddling the doggie on the balcony – anything really that you enjoy.
Don’t snooze
Sure, it’s hard to resist snoozing some mornings but this is not recommended. In fact, your body prepares to wake up about two to three hours before your normal wake-up time and snoozing confuses your biological clock.
Turn on the light
While it’s tempting to avoid bright lights in the morning, a good way to wake up is to make your room as bright as possible. Light causes the body to stop producing melatonin, the hormone that makes us sleepy. So turn on the brightest lights you can to speed up waking up.
Listen to fast-paced music
Research shows that fast-paced music can actually influence the brain into a more active state. It doesn’t matter what genre you’re listening to, as long as the tempo is fast.
Exercise
For many, a workout may be the last thing they feel like doing once they wake up, but there are definitely benefits to exercising in the morning. In fact, research shows that as little as twenty minutes of moderately intense exercise can boost your mood for as long as twelve hours after your workout.
Eat more protein and fewer carbohydrates for breakfast
Protein raises levels of dopamine in the body, which in turn makes us more motivated. And how do we want to feel in the morning? Motivated, of course!
Don’t take that rooster walk
While there are benefits to taking a nap, it’s best to avoid this if you’re trying to get better at getting up early in the morning. You need to be tired enough in the evening to be able to fall asleep early, making it easier for you to get up on time.
Avoid caffeine, nicotine and alcohol
This is especially true before you go to bed. Studies show that it’s best to avoid coffee from six hours before bedtime onwards.
Eat dinner earlier
Eating late at night can disrupt your sleep, which in turn makes it harder to get up in the morning. It can also have a negative effect on your body’s metabolism.
Don’t force yourself to go to bed early
If you normally go to bed late, you probably won’t be able to fall asleep if you suddenly go to bed much earlier than usual. Instead, simply start getting up earlier in the morning. If you don’t cheat and sleep in at the weekend, your body will soon get used to the new daily rhythm.
Clear the clutter
In order to get up early in the morning, you need to ensure that your bedroom is as sleep-friendly as possible. This means that your bedroom should be dark, quiet and cool. Other things that can help are getting curtains that effectively block out light, high quality sheets and cleaning so that your room is a restful environment to be in.
