To conquer your day, wake up early
“One key to success is to have lunch at the time of day most people have breakfast.”
When I was growing up, there was one advertisement that would consistently grab your attention. In it, U.S. Army personnel were up super early, engaged in all sorts of high-energy training and action tasks. The tagline was, “we do more by 9 AM than most people do all day.”
While I never joined the Armed Forces, intuitively my little brain knew that they were on to something.
That’s because if you want to get more done, you need to start your day early.
I get it. Early mornings can be a drag. Often, it’s dark and cold outside and all you’ll want to do is pull the covers over your head and head back to sleep.
Still, most early risers find that those hours are their most productive because the time is largely uninterrupted. There are fewer people around to pull you away from what you want to achieve. You also tend to get fewer emails and texts at that hour.
In addition, mornings are when your mind is freshest. After the initial grog, your brain shifts into active mode and gets ready for the day ahead. It summons the full reservoir of energy that your body has been producing during the overnight hours so that you can hit the ground running.
Besides for these productivity advantages, early rising is associated with a range of health benefits. These include:
Increased energy – If you are planned enough to get up early each day, odds are that you’re getting to bed early enough to get the recommended 7-9 hours of sleep that our bodies need. More sleep means more energy. More energy means that you will have increased ability to tackle the many challenges our days throw at us.
Better quality sleep – Early risers experience superior sleep quality than night owls because they are likelier to complete all four stages of the required sleep cycles. They wake up with more energy than night owls, who usually don’t get enough time to complete all sleep stages.
Improved body function – Our bodies use sleep to repair muscles and reboot our immune systems. Growth hormones, which are responsible for tissue repair and regeneration, are released during the deeper stages of sleep.
Likelier to exercise – It can be hard to work out at the end of the day when you’re tired and possibly on a full stomach. Exercising first thing can feel like an extension of your wakeup process and will give you a jolt of energy, not to mention a bunch of endorphins, when you check a good workout off your list early on.
Happier outlook – More sleep also does wonders for our mental wellbeing. When we sleep correctly, we are less stressed and more relaxed, which means that we won’t overact to challenges or people who would otherwise upset us. You get a sense of order in life, making you feel happier.
Healthier diet – Having more time in the morning means that we can devote some of it to healthy breakfasts (smoothies, salads, and fruit bowls only require a few minutes to prepare.) Too often, we feel rushed, which results in grabbing food on the go, hardly a recipe for a healthy, balanced breakfast. Breakfast is an important meal, giving you the energy to start the day. Skipping this meal makes your body crave energy and you end up eating something high in sugar or fat to instantly satiate yourself. Early rising also allows us to prepare healthy snack options, rather than having to choose from a vending machine or workplace pantry.
Start off each morning by planning your day ahead. Block out time for different tasks that you know you’ll need to tackle, while leaving time for the unanticipated. By mentally working out your day before you start, you’ll sharpen your organizing skills which promotes productivity.