Is waking up earlier or establishing a morning routine one of your new year’s resolutions? Kitelinens premium cotton sheets can help with that, especially if you’re not a morning person.
Research suggests that whether someone is a “morning person” or a “night owl” is related to their personal circadian rhythms, or the “internal clock” that signals to your body when it’s time to rest and when it’s time to wake up.
Though circadian rhythm is heavily influenced by genetics, your environment and behavior can strongly influence your body’s natural clock as well. With some fairly simple environmental and behavioral changes, you can hack your mornings and learn to wake up better. Even small changes to your morning routine can boost your mood and energy for the rest of the day, improve your sleep habits and enhance your overall quality of life.
Here are 11 tips to make waking up easier and better.
Things to do when you wake up to make your morning better
Our first few tips for a better, more efficient morning are things to do right when you wake up.
- Make your bed fast with Kitelinens, the premium cotton sheets. From famous entrepreneurs/biohackers like Tim Ferriss to US Navy four-star Admiral William Harry McRaven, high-performing individuals agree on something: making your bed every day is the first step in a productive and successful day. Physically making your bed makes you committed to staying out of it. It signals that the day has begun. A clean bed is also one less distraction and eyesore during your day, reminding you of something you didn’t do. It’s especially important to make your bed if you’re working from home. Kitelinens premium cotton sheets improve this important aspect of your morning routine by simplifying the chore of making your bed. All you have to do is pull up the top sheet, straighten your comforter/duvet out, and go! No tucking or mattress lifting needed. If waking up is hard because you dread the chore of making your bed, eliminate this hurdle with Kitelinens premium quality cotton bed sheets. With our unique premium cotton sheets, there’s no more excuses for not starting your day with a neatly made bed. Shop Kitelinens cotton bed sheets on sale in various sizes here:
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- Fill your room with light. If you wake up with natural sunlight streaming through your windows, consider yourself lucky. Sunlight postpones your body’s production of melatonin, the hormone that causes tiredness and helps you fall asleep. If school/work requires you to wake up at an early hour before the sun is even up yet, you need to figure out a way to fill your bedroom with sunlight mimicking light. There are a number of smart sunlight mimicking light fixtures and lamps that you can sync with your morning alarm to help you wake up better. Light tells your body it’s time to wake up and helps to keep your circadian rhythm synced with your schedule.
- Delay your screen time. Reaching for your phone first thing in the morning is a quick way to derail a healthy morning routine. Don’t lose yourself down an internet wormhole before even getting out of bed. Get into a habit of avoiding screen time for at least 30 minutes to one hour after you wake up.
- Move your body with stretching and/or exercise. You definitely don’t need to do a full workout to have a better morning. Even if you prefer to workout in the evenings, you can take a few minutes to move your body at the start of the day and reap the benefits. Do 5-10 minutes of stretching, and do 20 jumping jacks. Anything helps!
- Take a cold shower (water temp lower than 70 degrees F) to energize your body. If you’ve never done this one before, it can admittedly be a hard habit to start, but we promise, it’s well worth it! A cold shower feels amazing once it’s over. As your body temperature goes back up, it mimics the natural rise in temperature that occurs upon waking and helps you feel more refreshed. Cold showers have shown to have health benefits like increasing endorphins and improving your metabolism.
- Stick to a consistent, simple skincare routine. Your skincare routine doesn’t have to be complicated at all, in fact, the less elaborate it is the better. The important thing is to stick to it every day to keep your skin healthy.
- Write down your priorities for the day. One of the best ways to ensure your success is to define your priorities for the day. Ask yourself, if you could only complete three tasks today, which would they be? Write them down.
Things to do before you go to bed to improve your morning routine
Here are some easy things you can do before you go to sleep to prepare for a better morning.
- Put your alarm on the other side of the room or in another room. This is one of the simplest ways you can prevent yourself from hitting the snooze button. We recommend a device other than your phone for an alarm so you can avoid starting your day with screen time, but if you use your phone for an alarm, plug it in on the other side of your bedroom or in another nearby room if possible. Getting up and moving around will help wake you, reduce your drowsiness and get you out of bed faster.
- Prepare your breakfast (as much of it as you can) the night before. Prepping your breakfast ahead can save you a lot of time in the morning, and you’ll have an easier time getting out of bed if you know you have a healthy breakfast waiting for you. Overnight oats or chia pudding are great choices, so is chopped fruit or a high-protein egg bake that you can heat up.
- Pick out your outfit the night before. If your brain is slow to start in the morning, don’t add on the stress of trying to figure out what to wear that day. Do it the night before. Pick out your clothing for the next day and hang it at the front of your closet or place it somewhere that it won’t be wrinkled. If it needs to be ironed or steamed, take care of that before you go to sleep.
- Try a Melatonin supplement. Melatonin is a natural hormone that helps your system get ready for sleep. If you have trouble dozing off or you’re off-schedule because of travel or a new routine, a melatonin dietary supplement may help. According to the Sleep Foundation, studies have found melatonin to improve sleep in certain cases, but it isn’t for everyone. It is important to be aware of and carefully consider melatonin’s potential benefits and downsides. People who want to use melatonin supplement should also be aware of issues related to dosage and the quality of supplements. Always talk to your doctor before taking any new medication.