There’s one in every crowd, the “I could never be a morning person” person. I absolutely love this person. I was this person. I remember the first time in college I was told I had to show up for my internship at 5:30am. For a college student this is shocking and impossible information to process. So I know the feeling. Which is why as soon as anyone utters that sentiment of “never being a morning person” I know there’s a part of them that wants to find out.
If this is you I’m going to tell you why you should do it, and then how you’re going to achieve it.
The benefits of getting your day started are endless, but I’ll try and keep it to a top 3:
- The day is literally longer. You don’t have to be a genius to figure this one out. But if you get started earlier, things get accomplished earlier. It is also very common that something called “habit stacking” happens, which is where each win compounds into the next one. For example, if you get up and make your bed you already have your first win of the day. Next you walk the dog, another win. You put together a healthy breakfast, boom, win. You get to the gym for your morning workout, win! All of a sudden you have 4 wins for the day stacked on top of one another before the work day has even begun.
- Your body thanks you. We are meant to wake up with the sunrise, our body naturally wants to produce the hormones that wake us up as we soak in the morning sun. We are also meant to sleep in cycles, which means the more I hit snooze to “sleep” 5 more minutes, the more I am actually just confusing my body. 5 minutes isn’t long enough to fall into deep sleep which means you are constantly teetering on the edge and teasing your body with less restful sleep, which is why you feel drowsy and lethargic when you finally do get up. Once you are up, your body naturally produces hormones that adapt to being up at that hour, over time your body just gets used to it and becomes ready to start the day at that time. Getting up early with the sunrise and refusing to snooze are two huge wins your body will thrive on and thank you for!
- It is a great way to build community. There’s such a sense of comradery around the people I coach in the morning. Sure they aren’t always pumped to be there at first, we are human. But as the day gets going and they get into their workout, I can physically see people coming to life, channeling their energy into something productive, and setting their day up for success. We bond over the fact that what we are doing is hard, the fact that we are making sacrifices to be the best version of ourselves. We pick each other up when we are down and we cheer each other on when we are up. It’s magical and something you will understand if and when you experience it.
Okay, now the how, another top 3:
- Figure out how to build your sleep schedule. Sleeping enough is the key factor to becoming a morning person, it’s simply not sustainable or healthy to run on less than 7 hours of sleep, so you have to work backwards and make a few sacrifices. If I want to get up at 5am, that means I need to be in bed winding down by 9pm, that way I am asleep by 10pm. And by winding down it doesn’t mean binge watching tv or doom scrolling in the dark until my eyes burn. It means winding down with reading, breathing or a calming soundscape. Whatever works for you, you have to create that routine and stick to it!
- Make things easy for yourself. One thing I have learned is that getting as organized as possible saves you time and energy in the morning so you don’t have to think about it. Have your clothes laid out, have your morning food and drinks prepped and in the same place to grab on the way out. Have your routine timed out and do it the same way so you have no variables or obstacles in your way. I can be out of bed and out the door in less than 10 minutes these days, it’s been the same routine for years and I have it down to a science. When you plan to succeed, you will succeed.
- Give yourself grace. I’ll be clear about one thing for certain: this is not easy! You probably won’t be flawless on your first attempts. You are going to oversleep or snooze your alarm or just give up some days. Keep trying! If you want to make a change, you will work to make that change. Keep trying to plan for what you can plan and set yourself up for success, but if it doesn’t go your way one day, don’t quit. You simply try again tomorrow.
Becoming a morning person is for anyone who has the desire and necessity to do so. It’s not for everyone, but I will say once you see the blaze of a sunrise and feel the rush of morning endorphins that our body wants to pump through our veins, it’s hard not to be hooked.
If you need help becoming a morning person or just with your health and wellness in general, reach out below!
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