Being a morning person certainly doesn’t come naturally to us all. The alarm smackers, the relentless snoozers, the five-more-minutes—dragging your heavy corpse out of the safe warmth of your resting hole is the hardest part of any day.
With business picking back up again and time very much of the essence, rising early is a great way to kick start the day and catch all those juicy worms. Even if you’re a die-hard night owl, experimenting with the early-rising lifestyle could be an amazing advancement to your daily life.
So, fear not to sleep worshippers, you can become a morning person by committing to a few changes to your daily routine. We all can! With some tips backed by science, 5 am can become your new normal. Here are some top tips on how to be a morning person.
Avoid planning an early night
If you want to convert to an early riser, you’ll likely want to catch an early night to make sure you feel fresh and ready for the morning ahead.
We all know it rarely works out that way and we’re left tossing, turning, huffing, and puffing because we desperately know we have to sleep but simply can’t.
Let bedtime take care of itself and just go to bed at your usual time or when you feel tired. Sure, it may be a struggle in the morning, but natural fatigue will help you get to bed earlier that night or the night after. Your body will adapt over time as long as you don’t constantly slip into your old night-owl ways over the weekends.
Endless yo-yo-ing back and forth results in a continuous cycle of sleep schedule resets.
Kick start with exercise
The idea of exercising when you are melted into a plush pit of bliss is daunting. But, it’s been scientifically proven that a minimum of 20 minutes of moderate exercise boosts your mood for the next 12 hours.
Although you might not want to move your body more than rolling over to the cold side of the pillow at 4 am, it can actually help improve the rest of your day.
Moderate-intensity aerobic exercise boosts your mood immediately and can have a prolonged positive impact on the rest of your day. Keeping you healthy of mind and body, you will feel great and look great from morning right through until bedtime.
Let the light in
Facing your alarm early doors can make it tempting to keep the lights low. No one likes peeking through the break in the curtain and recoiling from the light when you’re super sleepy. But, be brave and get it done.
Open the blinds, turn on some lights first thing. The presence of light tells your body to stop producing serotonin, the chemical that promotes sleep. By letting in the light, you say goodbye to the night, so make it bright.
Eat more protein and fewer carbs for breakfast
A typical breakfast might include toast or cereal, but replacing your carb-heavy brekkie with a meal that packs a punch in protein could leave you feeling more motivated. Protein naturally increases dopamine levels, and while most people link dopamine to pleasure, research shows it also regulates motivation, causing individuals to initiate and persevere.
Kick start your day and get busy
If you want to get things done and see an improvement in your mindset and whatever tasks you’re working on, catching the early hours of the morning can be revolutionary.
When it comes to business, being proactive, alert, and motivated is key in advancing and keeping things moving forward.
Productivity begets productivity. And on a similar note, if your workload feels stagnated it could be blocking your motivation.
Check out jd-PROCYCLE. We work with companies to improve their workflows and optimize their systems and operations so to get that productivity flowing and make teams feel that they’re getting the most out of their day’s work.
Get a free consultation with one of our dedicated professionals to learn more.
