How often do you wake up feeling tired? Do you get up from your bed immediately after your alarm goes up without hitting the snooze button?
If your answer is a big NO, don’t worry you are not alone. Waking up early is a huge pain in the ass for a lot of people.
Although we try to set alarms to help us wake up, most times we feel tired and sluggish.
When we are sleeping we are recharging and if you want to wake up well charged you need enough sleep.
The average adult should get 7-9 hours of good sleep every night. A lot of people don’t get that amount, however, some people do and still wake feeling tired.
So to help you wake up feeling pumped for the day there are some things you have to keep in mind and do the night before.
These tips are in no particular order just try implementing them and give me feedback.
HOW TO WAKE EARLY TIPS
1. CONTROL YOUR LIGHTING
Sleep is regulated by the hormone called MELATONIN and it is affected by the light that hits your skin.
Our body naturally uses the sun to determine a time to wake up when it rises or go to bed when it sets.
But with the invention of artificial white light, this natural process is slow. There are white lights all around us, in our rooms, screen,s, etc.
We are constantly giving our body white light and this prevents the body from producing melatonin. Thereby making it hard for us to sleep.
So 1 hour before bedtime try switching off the white lights in your house, you can try something like meditating or reading a book.
Avoid activities that involve looking at screens like watching a movie, playing games, or just using your phones because of the light.
Although for your phone you can use a blue light filter. I have a Samsung Galaxy S8 and it has a blue light filter that I customed to sunrise and sunset.
So, when the sunset my screen turns orange. There are also some blue light filter apps you can use like TWILIGHT and F. LUX app.
2. FOOD
You should watch what you eat before bedtime so you can have a good sleep.
The best time to eat dinner is 3 hours before bedtime, this is to allow your stomach to properly digest your food.
Do not eat a large quantity of food, especially snacking on a lot of processed snacks and carbs.
They will increase your blood sugar and prevent good sleep. However, if you feel hungry after dinner you can take some fruits and veggies.
3. DRINK WATER
You should have plenty of water throughout the day to keep your body hydrated throughout the night.
If you wake up dehydrated you may feel sluggish.
On the other hand, don’t drink water right before bed because you may have to wake up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom.
So your last water intake can be 1 hour to 30 mins before bed, then right before you sleep, use the bathroom.
Whether you are pressed or not you may be surprised a bit might come out.
You can also keep a bottle of water by your bedside so once you wake up you can rehydrate your body and mind.
4. TURN OFF PHONE ALERT
There have been countless times when I am sleeping and I hear my phone beep or vibrant and it immediately wakes me up.
Sometimes I even get frightened if I was deeply sleeping, I get so upset when this happens.
You need your good sleep if you want to wake up ready for the next day so turn off your notifications or you can put your phone on silent.
In the morning you can attend to anything with clear headspace.
5. DON’T HIT THE SNOOZE BUTTON
Yes, you heard right STOP HITTING SNOOZE, once that alarm goes up you have to get right up.
Going to bed for a few minutes is as good as nothing and it will probably make you feel tired.
A quick tip: set your alarm far away from you so when it goes up you have to walk to where it is placed, this helps you get up.
6. BE CLEAN
Don’t ever go to bed feeling dirty or sweaty it could affect your sleep.
I always have my bath 2 times a day I can’t sleep if water doesn’t touch my body.
Depending on what you prefer just make sure you feel refreshed going to bed.
Also, make sure you go to sleep in a clean and comfortable bed. If your bed is not comfortable you have to change it so you don’t wake up with body pains cause that’s so annoying.
I recently changed my mattress and I have been sleeping so well. Your sheets should also be clean always, you can clean them weekly.
Always make your bed when you get up, it shows you are ready for the day.
7. EXERCISE
Try doing some exercises in the evening even if it is something small like walking for 30 minutes, this will help your heart and make you feel the need to rest.
Remember that when you are sleeping your body is relaxing, so to wake up and not feel tired once you get up try doing some stretches and exercise.
This will help stimulate your body, keep your heart rate up, raise your energy level and make your body flexible, you can try some easy yoga moves.
8. BE CONSISTENT
Try waking up at the same time each day. Our body loves consistency and it would reward you for that.
If you wake up around the same time every day, you won’t be needing an alarm anymore. Your body will naturally wake up by that time.
This is so true cause I just started making sure I sleep between 11 – 11:30 pm and wake around 7 – 7:30.
I tell you I have been waking up and going to bed around these time frames.
The more you pay attention to your body and notice feelings of alertness and drowsiness, and the more time you spend developing good sleep hygiene habits, the better your slumber will be and the better you’ll feel.
National Sleep Foundation
Activity to do
Everyone has a different amount of sleep they need to feel energized for the day.
To find out how many hours you need to sleep and wake up refreshed, go to bed at the same time every night for a week.
Wake up naturally without an alarm, then write down the number of hours you slept every night.
At the end of the week, you should be able to know the number of hours you need to have a good sleep.
You can use this information to know when to go to bed and wake up.
9. MORNING ROUTINE
Making your morning routine enjoyable and something you look forward to every day can help you feel happy to wake up.
Creating a morning routine you love sets your tune for the day, so try it.
Have a well-detailed morning from waking up to having coffee, exercising, meditating, etc.
Just have fun with your mornings.
Related Post: How To Create The Best Morning Routine That Works For You
10. DRINKING AND SMOKING
Alcohol can help you sleep but it can also come with nightmares, snoring, and multiple trips to the bathroom.
Try avoiding it toward bedtime so you can wake up refreshed.
Smoking ain’t good either because of the nicotine it contains, this increases your heart rate.
If you are super addicted your body might crave at night and wake you up.
So make sure you smoke an hour before bedtime.
11. HAVE A COLD SHOWER
Having a cold shower when you wake helps in increasing your heart rate, blood circulation and waking you up.
Cold showers are normal for people in hot counties but if you are in a cold country you can splash your face with cold water and it would do the trick.
You can also keep a spray bottle by your bedside so you spray your face once you wake up.
I tell you this cold shower thing works real good.
12. HAVE A REASON TO WAKE
Waking up early is a difficult habit, but having a reason to get up will motivate you to get up.
Come up with something to make you wake early, set a goal for yourself.
Whether is work-related, improving your health, or spending time with your family.
Just something you look forward to every morning.
CONCLUSION
Waking up early without feeling tired does not just happen, you have to form the habit of implementing all the tips above to help you.
Just like starting something new, it may not come easily to you but if you continue doing it, you will reap the reward.
Try cultivating these habits for the next 21- 30 days and give me feedback. You can inbox me to let me know.
Hope these tips were helpful to you, so tell me what you are already doing or which of the tips will you be implementing in the comments section.
Emma says
Great tips! I so need to fix this now I’ve gone back to work. Exercise is my next goal…I need to stop making excuses tho!
ogeenyi says
Hi, Emma, I am happy you dropped a comment, I have been waking up with ease these days but like you said exercising have been the hard one for me.
Ambika says
Great post!! I’m one of those people, no matter how much i try i cannot wakeup with the alarm. I have to atleast hit snooze 4 times. These seem like great tips for people like me. Also, I have a fear of darkness, so I cannot switch off all the lights but I can try rest of it. Thanks alot
ogeenyi says
Hi Ambika, I used to be so afraid of the dark too but I am better, and I can’t sleep when the room is bright so what I do is switch off the light in my room then turn on the light in my hallway. I open my room door so that a bit of light can come in.
Ambika says
Great tips!! I’ve been struggling alot with it. Also, another problem I have is that I have a fear of darkness and I start panicking when all the lights are off. But I’ll sure try rest of the tips. Thanks alot for this.
Sayantika Mukherjee-Amspacher says
These are great tips. I write about it on The Feel Good Factor too. We have several posts dedicated to productivity, whatever I am testing on myself with the work from home routine, I share it with my audience. Thank you for this post
ogeenyi says
Hi Sayantika, I am glad you love this post, I will surely check out your website. Thanks for reading.
Jess says
These are all really great tips! Thank you so much!
ogeenyi says
Hello Jess, thanks for reading I am happy you found the tips I gave great.
Apocalypse Daddy says
Awesome list. I have learnt to do most of these. One thing I have found recently is red light therapy. It works great with ditching the phone, using an oldschool alarm clock instead of your phone and prepping your mind and body for sleep in line with the cicardian cycle.
JENY says
Great post. Couldn’t agree more. I do the same when I want to wake up early the next morning. Have a good day!!! 🙂
Jimmy Clare says
Really amazing tips I am going to try them tomorrow
ogeenyi says
Hi Jimmy, I bet you will love the result. Thanks for dropping a comment
Tara says
Hello,
Great post! I especially liked your last tip. Have a reason to wake.
ogeenyi says
Hi, Tara, I am glad you found this post helpful. Thanks for commenting.