For as long as I can remember, I’ve always wondered how to become a morning person. Not necessarily in a “5 a.m. club” sort of way; I simply wished to start my day with enough time to eat a well-rounded breakfast, work out, and do my makeup before heading to work. But for reasons that felt somewhat out of my control, I would find myself hitting snooze for 10 extra minutes of sleep again and again.
One morning, I came into the office groaning about how difficult I was finding it to get up in the morning, when a colleague found that I had, in fact, written a piece in 2019 titled “How To Become A Morning Person When You’re Not.” As we laughed away at the irony of it all, I decided it was high time I took action to turn things around once and for all.
Though I’m admittedly still a night owl at heart, there have been a number of things that have made waking up in the morning significantly easier and, at times, a delight. First, I read this story about changes I could make in my sleep hygiene for some advice.
Here’s everything I’ve done over the past few months that has actually helped me become more of a morning person.
Key Takeaways
- Being a night owl isn’t all bad. But if you want to become more of a morning person, you have to be strategic with light and dark exposure and keep a fixed wake-up time.
- You can reset your body clock by shifting your mindset, transforming your bedroom, sleeping before midnight with a consistent bedtime, moving your body, and staying positive.
Benefits of being a morning person
Being a night person isn’t inherently bad. According to Chris Winter, MD, neurologist and Pluto sleep specialist, there is no significant health benefit to being a morning person, and instead, it’s all about making sure your chronotype (this is your body’s natural inclination, which determines whether you’re an early bird or night owl) matches your sleep schedule. “In other words, if you are a morning person working a night shift, you are in a far more unhealthy situation than a night-oriented person working the same shift. These are simply genetic tendencies, just like eye and hair color.”
Christine Won, MD, medical director of the Yale Centers for Sleep Medicine and director of the Yale Women’s Sleep Health program, agrees and says that our genetics largely determine whether we have morning or evening chronotypes and that any health benefits we get from getting enough sleep has more to do with how much we sync up with our chronotype. “In general…circadian biology is optimized when synchronized with light and dark. So morning larks [morning people] may have the advantage of rising with the sun and sleeping with the dark,” she says.
There are studies that show that those who consider themselves morning people may be less likely to have depression or deal with obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, but she says that sleeping and waking up early doesn’t automatically mean you’ll gain these health benefits. “Studies so far are merely correlation,” she says. “People who are genetically wired to be morning people seem to also be genetically or otherwise less at risk for obesity, metabolic disease, or depression.” As for any psychological benefits, she says that enjoying extra time before starting your day may make you feel more productive.
Can you train yourself to be a morning person?
Though there are some who are more genetically wired to be a morning person than others, experts say that it is still possible to train yourself and adopt those early riser habits. But you’ll have to be diligent with your routine. “For someone who has a very delayed circadian clock or tends to naturally be a very late-night person, it is important to stick strictly to your schedule—especially our wake time,” says Dr. Won. “Just a couple of nights sleeping in may derail your rhythm, forcing you to start over to advance your circadian clock.”
To do this, she says it will involve strategic dark and light exposure in the morning and keeping a fixed wake-up time. There are also a few simple ways to reset your circadian rhythm and change from a night owl to a morning person (should you wish to).
Tips to reset your body clock
Dr. Won says that resetting your circadian clock varies depending on a few different things, but it is mostly dependent on two main things: how much of a late-night person you are and how much you want to change that. “If you are just trying to move your sleep and wake schedule by 30 minutes, this could possibly take two to three weeks. But if you’re trying to advance your clock by two hours, that could take months before that schedule starts feeling comfortable,” she says.
“I think starting the day off with food, light, body movement, warmth (even through exercise), and social interaction is a great blueprint for a smart waking routine,” adds Dr. Winter. With that, here are a few ways to make that shift a little easier:
“You need to have a clear why when making a shift like this,” says life coach Mhairi Todd. “Ask yourself, ‘What am I going to use this extra time for? What am I going to gain from this?’” She also cautions against underestimating how hard a change like this can be to make. “Easy choices, hard life, hard choices, easy life,” is a quote she lives by. “Anything that is going to be beneficial for you long-term will likely be difficult at first–including shifting your wake-up time half an hour earlier.” To help get you started, she recommends setting yourself tiny challenges–think managing to leave the house without looking at your phone in the morning, or counting to 10 under a cold shower–and relishing the sense of accomplishment you feel when you achieve them.
Being able to wake up early is only possible if you’ve slept well. “Create bedroom ‘indoor-phins’ at nighttime by getting the temperature and ambiance right,” says wellness expert and author of Energy Rules, Alla Svirinskaya. “You should also set a digital ‘sundown’ two hours before bed to prime yourself to drift into a quality sleep.” To set a nighttime mood in my room, I’ve lit candles like the autumnal Neom Hibernate Scented Candle and used This Works Sleep Pillow Spray on my pillow to help me drift off. If I have time, I’ll take a relaxing bath as well; Olverum Bath Oil relaxes my muscles like no other.
As a night owl with combined ADHD, quieting my mind and drifting off to sleep can be difficult at the best of times–but getting to bed before the stroke of midnight really is key, as our production of melatonin peaks before midnight. As Margo Marrone, co-founder of The Organic Pharmacy, puts it, “If you go to bed earlier, you wake up earlier, so make this a habit. Sleep is so important for the immune system, performance, and pretty much everything else.” Try incorporating something like Alo s Magnesium Reset Body Spray for Muscle Tension or a sleep supplement to give your routine a boost.
When thinking about the best tips for waking up early, Dr. Won says that this is probably the most important step: setting your alarm clock earlier by 15 to 30 minutes. Do this each week and try to expose yourself to bright light (”Preferably sunlight,” she says. “Or a lightbox of at least 10,000 lux for about 30 minutes upon waking up). “It may be very difficult to wake up initially, but over time, as your circadian clock moves earlier and earlier, it will get easier to wake up at your desired time,” she says.
On the opposite end, in helping you wake up earlier naturally, she recommends starting your bed routine a little earlier in the evening, gradually by 15 to 30 minutes each week until you meet your target bedtime.
If you’re having difficulty getting to sleep earlier, Dr. Winter says melatonin can be helpful with these kinds of adjustments. Dr. Won agrees and says that pairing a nighttime melatonin with strategic light and dark manipulation may help. “A very small dose of melatonin in the range of 0.5 to 1 milligrams (mg) taken about two to three hrs before your natural sleep time will help advance your circadian clock,” she says.
For your morning routine, consider getting active. “The satisfaction of getting in some movement at the beginning of the day is unparalleled,” says Alana Murrin, head of ride at Psycle. “Not only does it kickstart your metabolism, but it also gives you a sense of mental clarity and increases your productivity.” She recommends low-impact, high-intensity workouts in the mornings to help boost “focus and cognition” and foster “a sense of elation and euphoria”.
“Send positive energy to your office, meeting rooms, gym, and to your colleagues before you actually arrive at work, meetings, and fitness classes,” Svirinskaya advises. “Prime all places and engagements you are intending to visit or attend with good energy before your actual arrival. Look at your diary and visualize the best outcome for each meeting, discussion, class, and project.” As esoteric as it may sound, my overall attitude towards starting the day early has changed immensely after incorporating this into my routine.
Meet the Experts
- Chris Winter, MD, neurologist and Pluto sleep specialist.
- Christine Won, MD, medical director of the Yale Centers for Sleep Medicine and director of the Yale Women’s Sleep Health program.
- Mhairi Todd, life coach.
- Alla Svirinskaya, wellness expert and author of Energy Rules.
- Alana Murrin, head of ride at Psycle.
- Margo Marrone, co-founder of The Organic Pharmacy.
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