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cotton robe // mug // nail polish
When it comes to the age old question “are you a morning person or a night person?” the answer for me is always ” neither, I am an afternoon person.” I say this because I love to sleep. I have never been one to pull an all nighter, my bedtime, even in college, is 10pm. If I do not set my alarm I sleep in until 9:30am. I also say this because I go through waves with both night and day. But if I honestly had to choose I would say I am a morning person. I really get upset, especially the older I get, when I sleep in. I feel like I miss out on the day and do not accomplish as much as I could. I also love watching the TODAY Show, so I hate missing a chance to stare at Willie Geist. But all jokes aside, I have become more of a morning person. Some days are still a struggle for me and I have to basically pull myself out. I do not have an internal clock that will wake me up every morning at 7am. I have to make myself become a morning person. Through the years I have picked up some tips and tricks to make myself an early bird. I thought I’d share some with you to help you rise and shine.
1. Play music. Not only does playing music help energize you in the mornings, hello dance parties!, it also puts you in a great mood. I love playing music while I make my breakfast and dance around my room when I am getting ready. It makes getting up seem fun!
2.Get Moving. Like I said, I love to play music in the morning to get my mind and body going. I do this by dancing around the room or doing some sort of exercise move for 5 minutes. Whether it is running in place, dancing around the room, doing yoga moves, lifting weights, or doing crunches, it wakes my body up. You only need 5 minutes of movement to improve your energy and your mood.
3. Leave water by your bedside. I am like a fish, I am constantly, constantly, drinking water. I drink a lot because I am always thirsty, especially at night. Ever since I was little I would leave a full glass of water on my night stand incase I get thirsty. Then when the morning comes the first thing I do is chug whatever is left. It wakes me right up!
4. Drink warm water with lemon. Before my breakfast and after/during whatever morning routine I have, I drink warm water with lemon. This is something I started doing a few months ago. It gets rid of all the toxins in your body. I have found that not only does it start my day off on the right foot, but it is something I want to make sure I have enough time to do because I know it is good for me.
5. Schedule an exercise class. The mornings that I schedule an exercise class, especially ones that will charge me if I cancel late or do not show up, motivates me to get out of bed. I’d rather lose sleep than have to pay another $20 for a class. But besides not wanting to lose money, I actually look forward to getting my workout over with early so I can enjoy the rest of the day. Morning workouts also give me energy throughout the day and I feel as if I have accomplished a lot already.
6. Eat a healthy breakfast. I love to eat, you love to eat, so why are we rushing through the morning and skipping the best meal of the day? Sometimes the only thing that gets me to fall asleep night is knowing that the first thing I get to do when I wake up is eat. And I want to wake up in time to actually enjoy my meal, and also to make myself something healthy. If I do not get out of bed I rush around, then grab something on the go. It starts my day off on an a bad note. If I do not eat a healthy breakfast I feel sluggish all day. So get up and start scrambling those eggs.
7. Go to bed early and unplug. If you are having a hard time getting up because of your lack of sleep, try going to bed earlier. It will give you the right amount of sleep you need and will help you wake up fresh and ready to go. When you go to bed, and this is so difficult for me to do, you need to unplug from your phone. Stop checking Insta and FB, it will give you something to look forward to in the morning–hint hint: wake up early enough to check your social media channels.
8. Talk yourself into it. If I am having trouble getting up in my head I repeat “god damn it Maggie, get up!”. Of course there is a nicer approach to it, maybe say “you can do this, you got this, get up!”. The mind can be easily tricked and is motivated by habits. If you say you are a morning person, if you talk yourself into getting up, sooner or later mornings will become your friend. It is also great to reflect on what the day has in store for you. Pick one thing you are excited about that is happening, and let that motivate you to get up and get going.
9. Set your alarm earlier. Setting your alarm a little earlier in the morning will allow you to wake up slower. If upon hearing the alarm clock puts you in a rush to get out the door, try setting your alarm early so you can take that extra half hour or hour to adjust to waking up. And do not hit snooze. Hitting snooze allows you to continue to sleep until you missed your first meeting at work. Not good.
10. Find something creative to do. Whether it is painting, writing a blog, reading a book, writing in your journal, anything you enjoy doing, do it. By creating something in the morning you have something to look forward to, something you will want to wake up for. For me I write most of my post in the morning because it is when I am most creative and clear headed. Knowing this I want to wake up early enough to finish my post before my day begins. I used to write in a journal in the morning, that always helped me start on a positive note and it was something that I enjoyed doing. Find something you love and do it in the morning.