Don’t Snooze: How to Become a Morning Person

Don’t Snooze: How to Become a Morning Person

Being a morning person may be more beneficial for most people’s work schedules and routines, since the workday typically starts around 9 am and the office is not usually open at midnight. Regardless of the situation, there are ways to reset the body clock and become a better morning person. We have provided some simple steps you can take to become a better morning person.

YOUR PLAN OF ACTION!

1. Get 7-9 hours of sleep! You hear this all the time, but getting those recommended seven to nine hours will make getting up earlier easier.  To go to bed earlier, shut off the laptop, blackberry, and TV earlier. Have trouble falling asleep, try a sound machine!

2. Stay steady. Try to set the alarm clock for the same time every morning – even on the weekends! A constant wake-up call may make it progressively easier to jump out of bed.

3. Start slowly. Pick a new wake-up time and gradually work towards it. Want to wake up at 7 am but stuck at 8 am? Start by setting the clock for 7:45, and move down in 15-minute increments until that new time goal is reached.

4. Skip the snooze button. Disrupting sleep an hour or so before actually getting out of bed may disturb our REM cycle, which helps stimulate brain regions linked to cognition. Don’t want to mess with that! Set one alarm for when it’s time to rise — and maybe another a few minutes later in case you snooze through!

5. Get rid of that awful alarm! Skip the beeps and blares and set an alarm tone to something soothing or fun!

6. Eat breakfast. No, a cup of coffee does not count as breakfast! Having enough time for some bacon and eggs (or maybe just a yogurt parfait) will also provide energy, not to mention it’ll boost your brainpower. Plan ahead the day before and make sure you have some nutritious food in  your fridge!

7. EXERCISE! Those worn-out eyes may go away once a daybreak workout routine is in order. Exercise will definitely boost energy. Try getting to the gym early, trying a sunrise yoga class, or even just going for a morning walk in your neighborhood.

8. Wake up to a Treat. Have a reward waiting in the a.m. to motivate getting out of bed. Dive into some freshly baked banana bread, or take a nice warm bath instead of a shower.

So wake up and get more out of each day!

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