HOW TO WAKE UP EARLIER

Candid shot of L.A. on the early morning commute ✨

It's time to address the year-long rivalry between my conscience and my desire: the strength diminishing, sleep depriving, soul reviving struggle of getting up earlier. I often feel groggy if I sleep in till 8am, as if I'm late to the sunrise, which means I'm late to the day. I turn into the dentist with a schedule of delayed appointments, and I watch as the waiting room gets filled with used crosswords and restless Grandmas. I've learnt from my bad days, so I have been rising at 6:30am for the past two weeks (I'm excluding weekends OF COURSE), and I've had more time for bible reading, enjoying caramel lattes, and exercising, which are possibly three of my favourite things. This list below is a very honest arrangement of 'tips' that have fostered this lifestyle change, and will hopefully do the same for you, as they detangle your addiction to the snooze button.

1. Leave the curtains open so the sun will stream in and wake you up naturally
When I discovered this, it shed light quite literally on my problems of sleeping in. It means that you wake up in the company of the sun, who I have discovered is a remarkably gentle companion, that patiently waits as you flutter your lids and stretch your limbs. It'll transition you into the day with unmatchable reliability and ease - I'm addicted to leaving my curtains open (and it's dark so don't stress about having neighbours peep in). 

2. Set a song as your alarm, a song that you like
I experimented with several, and the nicest tune to wake up to is basically anything from Coldplay's album 'Ghost Stories.' Anything too upbeat, too intense, or too vibin' will shock you into an awake state, with that nasty feeling of adrenaline you get when someone scares you. Find a mellow beat that you can jam to, and change it often so you don't tire of it start hitting snooze so you don't have to listen to it AGAIN (unfortunately a few Ed Sheeran songs ended up in this cycle). 

3. Play music as soon as you wake up
Make a happy and cheerful playlist that you like listening to, and put it on as soon as you wake up - you're less likely to go back to bed if you're grooving into your morning routine straight away.  

4. Make your bed as soon as you wake up
I'm almost Monica from friends - my nightmares consist of messy houses, and an unmade bed is one of the most demotivating sights I have seen and will ever see. So I'm just postulating, you might find it easier to get going if your room is tidy and your bed is beautiful and you'll also not be tempted to go back under your duvet (the eternal trap that should always be avoided). 

5. Have a dressing gown and slippers that you can put on straight away
If your duvet equals warmth, then leaving it equals cold. It won't seem as bad, though, if you have a fluffy dressing gown to wrap yourself in, and some slippers to look forward to. You'll be an angel wrapped in the winter goods every morning, and if it's really cold (and you're working from home), maybe the rest of the day. 

6. Go to bed earlier
LAME but this is the most crucial point, because not to sound like my dad, but you can't "burn the candle at both ends." You'll feel too fatigued to get up if you haven't slept enough, which might include headaches or nausea (even coffee doesn't fix this for me). So yeah! Have fun sleeping! And it will be fun, as long as you get enough of it. 

7. Establish a night-time routine that tells your body it's time to sleep
This will make it easier to fall asleep, and debug yourself from whatever happened that day. Turn your lamp/lanterns on, light a candle, read a book, brush your teeth, and eventually these things will start to make you sleepy (*not science). 

8. Exercise
Is it even worth typing that? Well, yeah - it's helped me to fall asleep quicker and have more energy to get up. A work out is never wasted, so don't feel discouraged if you can't keep a regular habit yet, it will happen one day and your body will treasure you even more than it already does. 

To conclude: the awfulness of getting out of bed will be worth all the wonderful things that come after it. What helps you to wake up earlier?

Mads xx