How to Wake Up Early

Guide Note

If you're not a morning person, but find yourself in a position that requires you to get up early, you may find yourself struggling. However, there are methods that can help motivate you or even reset your biological clock. All you need to know is how to do it.

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Method 1: Get Enough Sleep
• Method 2: Change Your Pattern
• Method 3: Use Light Therapy
• Method 4: Use Your Alarm Clock
• Method 5: Get Moving
• Method 6: Don't Hit Snooze
• Method 7: Rise with the Dawn
• Method 8: Chronotherapy
• Method 9: Motivate Yourself
• Conclusion
• References

Early Wake Up Tips

1. Practice good sleep hygiene.
2. Our bodies naturally awaken and sleep with the sun.
3. Light and movement will help reset your biological clock to wake earlier.
4. Everything is easier if you find the right motivation.

Disclaimer

The content in this page is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please contact your doctor before using the information presented here.

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Introduction

(Creative Commons photo by awnisALAN)

• Some people are naturally morning people. They spring out of bed in the morning like toast out of a toaster. For the rest of us, we greet the morning by pounding on the much-cursed alarm clock until we've pulverized the snooze button into submission.

• Yet, for centuries, philosophers and scholars have been advising us that we need to wake up early to be productive. Benjamin Franklin wrote an entire book about the subject entitled Early Rising: A Natural, Social and Religious Duty.¹

• However old, the idea of getting up early is still quite popular. This is great if you happen to be a morning person, but what about everyone else? Can a night person become a morning person? Well, that may be pushing it a bit, but there are a number of ways that you can make getting up early a bit easier.

Method 1: Get Enough Sleep

(Creative Commons photo by ohsoabnormal)

• If you do not get enough sleep, your body won't want to wake up. Many people think sleeping is a luxury, but in reality it is essential to both our physical and mental health. Most adults need seven to eight hours a night.² However, some people need less and others need more. So what is your magic number?

• Here is how to determine the amount of sleep you need. However, it will require you to avoid smoking, alcohol and caffeine during the duration of this test.

1. Starting on Sunday, go to sleep at the same time every night.
2. Get seven to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep for the next six nights.
3. On Saturday, allow yourself to wake naturally.³

• If you woke up later than you normally did, you experienced a sleep debt and your body needs more sleep a night.³ If you woke up earlier, then you may need less sleep.

• You also want to make sure that you practice good sleep hygiene. This means that you do things such as keep a regular schedule (even on weekends), avoid caffeine after certain hours and go to bed only when you are tired.⁴ The more routine your sleeping schedule can be, the easier you will find it is to get up in the morning.

• For more information, check out Mahalo's How to Get a Good Night's Sleep.

Method 2: Change Your Sleep Pattern Gradually

• If you go to sleep earlier, naturally you'll get up earlier, right? Well, if only going to sleep was as simple as getting into bed. If you're not tired, however, you may find yourself laying awake until your normal bedtime, which is counterproductive.

• Waking up earlier is not something that should happen overnight, if you'll pardon the pun, if you are used to going to bed later. Instead, it should be done over a period of time as you gradually go to bed earlier and wake up earlier. The best way to do this is to increase your wake up time by 10 to 15 minutes every day while at the same time going to bed 10 to 15 minutes earlier.⁵

Method 3: Use Light Therapy

(Creative Commons photo by bethany)

• Humans are diurnal, meaning we are biologically predisposed to sleep at night and be awake during the day as our bodies follow the 24-hour cycle of the sun.⁶ We can use this to our advantage through the use of light therapy, also known as phototherapy.

• Light therapy involves being exposed to bright light of about 2,500 to 10,000 lux. The lux is how intense the light is. Some examples of the lux of various situations:

1. A living room at night: 100 lux
2. Bright office lighting: 300 to 500 lux
3. Outside on a cloudy day: 1,000 to 5,000 lux
4. Noon on a sunny day: 50,000 lux⁷

• By exposing yourself to natural or artificial bright light greater than 2000 lux in the early morning, you will eventually cause your internal clock to shift.⁸ Here are a few tips for using light therapy:

1. The best time for light therapy is right after you wake up.⁷
2. Start by using it once-a-day for about 30 to 60 minutes.⁷
3. Do not use ultraviolet light, heat lamps or tanning lamps.⁹ Use either natural sunlight or a light box, which simulates natural sunlight.¹⁰
4. If your bedroom has an eastern exposure, try raising the blinds to let the sun shine in.¹¹

Where to Find Light Therapy Products

• Light therapy products come in various forms such as light boxes, desk lamps and light visors. They can be very expensive, running anywhere from $100 up to several hundred dollars.¹²

1. Allergy Buyers Club: Natural Full Spectrum Lighting to Brighten your Mood
2. Apollo Health: Light Therapy Products
3. Bio-Brite: Light Boxes
4. The Sunbox Company: Light Therapy Products
5. Verilux: Light Therapy Lamps

Method 4: Use Your Alarm Clock Differently

(Creative Commons photo by Marcin Wichary)

• A classic method used for getting up early, the alarm clock is an effective tool to help you wake up. Yet for some, the regular buzzing of an alarm clock is not enough to rouse them from sleep, and they need something more. If your alarm clock is not working for you, then you need to reevaluate your situation.

• If you have had the same alarm clock for years, chances are you have programed your brain to ignore the sound. Our brains are more likely to respond to new noises than familiar ones.¹⁰ Try switching alarm clocks and perhaps rotating between two or three different ones or using two at the same time.¹³

• If this doesn't work, perhaps you need a louder alarm clocks. Consider purchasing one of the alarm clocks made by Sonic Alert or Equity Time. These companies offer alarm clocks with adjustable alarm tones that can reach up to 113 decibels. Many of these clocks also come with bed shakers, if the sound just isn't enough.

• You can find these alarm clocks below:

1. Amazon.com: Sonic Alert SB200
2. Amazon.com: Equity Alarm Clock
3. Amazon.com: Sonic Bomb Alarm Clock

Method 5: Get Moving

• The sooner you start moving in the morning, the better off you will be. Activity signals the brain that it is time to get going, which helps reset your internal clock. Try listening to an energizing song or doing a few warm up exercises in the morning to help get your blood moving.

• If you need more motivation, try moving the alarm clock away from your bed, which forces you to get out of bed to turn it off or hit the snooze button.¹³ Once you've gotten out of bed, it's easier to stay up. If you have an attached bathroom, put the alarm clock in there. That way, once you're up, you can start your morning routine and won't be as tempted to go back to bed.¹⁴ You should also check out Method 6 for additional ways your alarm clock can help motivate you to move.

Method 6: Don't Hit the Snooze Button

• It can be so tempting to hit the snooze button and get just a few more minutes of sleep. However, hitting snooze can be counterproductive. Which is why technology has been developed to help prevent you from continually hitting snooze. One such device is known as "clocky." Clocky looks innocent enough sitting beside your bed, at least until you hit the snooze button. Hitting the snooze button causes clocky to roll off the bedside table and look for a suitable hiding place, which means when he sounds again you have to get up and look for him.¹⁵

• Another alarm clock that runs on a similar principle is the Flying Alarm Clock.¹⁶ This alarm clock has a little propeller that sits on its base. When the alarm clock goes off, the propeller flies of the base. If you want to turn it off, you have to get up and find the propeller. There are also puzzle clocks that shoot their puzzle pieces in the air when the alarm goes off. To turn the alarm off you have to find and put the pieces back in their proper places.

• You can find these alarm clocks below:

1. Amazon.com: Clocky Mobile Alarm Clock
2. Amazon.com: Flying Alarm Clock
3. Bim Bam Banana: Puzzle Alarm Clock
4. Perpetual Kid: Puzzle Alarm Clock

• YouTube: Clocky: An Alarm Clock for the Morning-Impaired (Time: 1:16)

Method 7: Rise with the Dawn

(Creative Commons photo by Angela Sevin)

• If you need a more subtle alarm clock because you hate the idea of being jolted awake every morning, then consider purchasing a dawn simulator alarm clock. Dawn simulation involves gradually brightening the lights in the room. While this is often listed as a part of light therapy, they are not the same thing. Light therapy involves using lights of a greater lux than dawn simulation.¹⁷

• You can find dawn simulation clocks below:

1. Allergy Buyers Club: Verilux Rise & Shine Natural Alarm Clock Lamps
2. Apollo Health: Daybreak Duo
3. Bio-Brite: Sunrise Clocks
4. Full Spectrum Solutions: Dawn Simulators
5. The Sunbox Company: Dawn / Dusk Simulator Selection
6. Hammer & Schlemmer: The Peaceful Progression Wake-Up Clock
7. Verilux: Sleeping & Waking Products

Method 8: Chronotherapy

• Chronotherapy is a treatment often used for advanced sleep phase syndrome (ASPS) and delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS), which are circadian rhythm disorders.¹⁸ People with these disorders have biological clocks that tell them to sleep and stay awake at odd times.¹⁹ Chronotherapy is used to reset their biological clocks.²⁰

• During chronotherapy a person progressively delays going to bed for three hours each night until she or he moves her sleep schedule around the clock.²⁰ For example, if a person normally falls asleep at 2 a.m.:

1. 1st night: Goes to sleep at 5 a.m. and awakens at 1 p.m.
2. 2nd night: Goes to sleep at 8 a.m. and awakens at 4 p.m.
3. 3rd night: Goes to sleep at 11 a.m. and awakens at 7 p.m.
4. 4th night: Goes to sleep at 2 p.m. and awakens at 10 p.m.
5. 5th night: Goes to sleep at 5 p.m. and awakens at 1 a.m.
6. 6th night: Goes to sleep at 8 p.m. and awakens at 4 a.m.
7. 7th night: Goes to sleep at 11 p.m. and awakens at 7 a.m.

• Once consistent sleeping and waking habits are established, they can be adjusted slightly.²¹ However, it is essential that the person maintains a regular, scheduled bedtime and wake-up time.¹⁸ Any straying can nullify the effects of chronotherapy.²¹

• 
  
  
• YouTube: Teen Night Owls (Time: 2:33)

Method 9: Motivate Yourself

• Without the right motivation waking up early will only be that much tougher. Since motivation is a personal choice, what works for you might not work for someone else. Here are a few motivational suggestions to get you started:

1. Plan something fun, such as watching a favorite video or listening to a book by your favorite author, on the way to work.¹⁰
2. Prepare a special morning breakfast treat for yourself, such as a special brand of coffee.¹⁴
3. Meet a friend for breakfast or plan a similar morning date.¹⁰
4. Make a list of how you can use all that quiet uninterrupted time you gain by waking up earlier.¹⁴
5. Schedule a morning appointment you can't miss.²²
6. Pair up with a similarly motivated friend.²³

Conclusion

• While there might be some trial and error involved, once you have established a consistent pattern of getting up early, you will find that you are starting the day in a much better mood. No longer will you need to curse your alarm clock and beg your snooze button for just five more minutes. Arriving late to work will become a thing of the past. Eventually, you may even find that you have become someone you never thought you would be: a morning person.

• 
  
  
• YouTube: Singing in the Rain (Time: 3:15)

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References for How to Wake Up Early

1. ↑ USHistory.org: The Quotable Franklin
2. ↑ National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke: Brain Basics: Understanding Sleep
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} WebMD: How Much Sleep Do You Really Need?
4. ↑ Sleep Education.com: Sleep Hygiene
5. ↑ HealthDay: Easing Your Teens Into the Back-to-School Schedule
6. ↑ Cleveland Clinic: Brain Basics: Understanding Sleep
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2} MedicineNet.com: Shutting Off the Night
8. ↑ Center for Environmental Therapeutics: Dawn and Dusk Simulation as a Therapeutic Intervention (1989)  
9. ↑ WebMD: Light Therapy
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3} BNET: Wake up refreshed! (July 2002)
11. ↑ WFTS-TV: Becoming a 'Morning Person'
12. ↑ Sleep Education.com: Bright Light Therapy
13. ↑ ^{13.0 13.1} iamnext: Wake Up Early: Alarm Clock Strategies for Students
14. ↑ ^{14.0 14.1 14.2} Zen Habits: 10 Benefits of Rising Early, and How to Do It
15. ↑ Columbia News Service: For Reluctant Wakers, an Alarm Clock that Runs Away
16. ↑ Firebox.com: Flying Alarm Clock
17. ↑ ScienceDirect: Dawn Simulation and Bright Light in the Treatment of SAD: a Controlled Study
18. ↑ ^{18.0 18.1} WebMD: Behavioral Treatment of Circadian Rhythm Disorder
19. ↑ National Sleep Foundation: Night Owls and Morning Larks
20. ↑ ^{20.0 20.1} Reader's Digest: Tips for Better Sleep
21. ↑ ^{21.0 21.1} SleepChannel: Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome: Treatment
22. ↑ Happiness and Success: Advantages of Waking up Early
23. ↑ Dave Cheong: Waking Up Early - 15 Tips That Work (June 15, 2007)

How to Wake Up Early Videos

• Howcast: How to Wake Up Early When You Absolutely Have to (Time: 2:48)
• YouTube: Sonic Bomb Alarm Clock (Time: 0:21)
• YouTube: Clocky: An Alarm Clock for the Morning-Impaired (Time: 1:16)
• YouTube: Teen Night Owls (Time: 2:33)