3269: A Gentle Guide to Help You Wake Up Earlier by Courtney Carver on Morning Productivity

[00:00:00] J'ai une paille par Français And hop! With the new foldable Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Regardless of whether it's a business talk or vacation, you'll be able to stay up to date with Galaxy AI thanks to integrated Dolmetscher.

[00:00:13] Just set the Galaxy Z Flip 6 up in the Flex mode and follow the translation on the main display while you're reading it on the front display. So easy! Galaxy AI is here! Erfare ich jetzt mehr über das neue Galaxy Z Flip 6 auf Samsung.de

[00:00:30] This is Optimal Living Daily Episode 3269 A Gentle Guide to Help You Wake Up Earlier by Courtney Carver of Be More The Last.com and I'm your narrator Justin Malik. I read to you every day of the year from the best articles and blogs I can find

[00:00:46] to help both you and me have a bit more pep in our step today and this is all with permission from the authors, of course. So without let's get right to it as we optimize your life.

[00:01:02] A Gentle Guide to Help You Wake Up Earlier by Courtney Carver of BeMoreTheLast.com Quote I've always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning. Joseph Priestly

[00:01:23] I haven't always been a morning person but now I look forward to getting up early. Waking up early used to be a way to squeeze in more work, more productivity and more waking hours to attack my to-do list. Now a pre-dawn wakeup is usually for my morning routine.

[00:01:41] It's for meditating, reading, writing and working out. My morning routine has grown from five minutes a day to hours of quieting my mind, fueling creativity and strengthening my body. Because I've been so impressed with the benefits of carving out this time,

[00:01:59] I've encouraged others to start a meaningful morning routine. I teach people how to create a morning routine but forgot to help with one important step, waking up early. If you consider yourself a night owl or you're a slave to your snooze button, waking up early can be painful.

[00:02:18] I'm not naturally an early riser. I used to love to sleep in and felt grouchy when I had to wake up early. Now I feel cheated when I don't wake up early.

[00:02:29] If you want time for yourself before the kids go to school or before work or before the day takes over, use this gentle guide to help you wake up early. Number one, create a reason to wake up early. Why do you want to wake up early?

[00:02:46] There's one activity like finishing a good book with coffee or tea or taking a walk before the neighborhood wakes up. Maybe it's an activity like painting or writing that you haven't made time for in a long, long time. Identify a specific reason.

[00:03:04] When you have something to look forward to, waking earlier is easier. Number two, identify how much sleep you really need. Sleep requires sleep to function, but how much varies from person to person.

[00:03:20] I used to think I needed eight or more hours a night, but after experimenting, I learned that I feel most rested and awake after seven hours. Even if you feel sluggish when you wake up after eight hours of sleep, try seven hours.

[00:03:34] It might be the extra sleep that is making you tired. If you wish you could sleep for seven or eight hours and feel like you are running on empty, cut a few activities so you can go to sleep earlier.

[00:03:47] Number three, eliminate the things that get in the way of sleeping through the night. What disrupts your sleep on a regular basis? Food, drink, medication, stress, television and digital devices are just a few of the things that can contribute to tossing and turning. What else keeps you up?

[00:04:08] The temperature, light, noise? Work to create an optimal sleeping environment by eliminating the things that are getting in the way. If children or pets are keeping you up at night, remember that it's a temporary occurrence.

[00:04:24] Sleep well on the nights you can so you can be better equipped to handle a midnight wake-up that is out of your control. Number four, move your body. Encourage a good night of sleep by taking a walk or going for a hike during the day.

[00:04:39] Number five, get in bed earlier. If you're used to staying up late and think you could never fall asleep earlier, don't force it. Instead of worrying about falling asleep, just get in bed early.

[00:04:52] Read a book or write down anything that is on your mind so you don't chew on it overnight. You might miss your favorite TV show, ironing, or other late-night chores, but you'll remind your body that it's time to settle down and get ready for sleep.

[00:05:08] In addition to creating time for my morning routine, waking up earlier has allowed me to see so many things that would have gone unnoticed. You can see some pictures of the early morning magic I've experienced recently in this post. 21-day plan to waking up earlier.

[00:05:26] While you could change your wake-up time in five-minute increments over the next few months, with this approach, you can wake up an hour earlier in 21 days or less. Days one through three, become aware of your sleep patterns.

[00:05:42] Wake up and go to sleep at your regular time, but write down everything about how you sleep. Keep track of what time you wake up, what time you fall asleep, what you do when

[00:05:53] you wake up, what you do before you fall asleep, how you sleep, how long you sleep, what woke you up in the night, what you ate or drank before you fell asleep, and what you're worried about. Days four through ten, sleepy time rules.

[00:06:11] Keep up the journaling while you incorporate some new sleepy time rules. Experiment and see what works for you, but I recommend starting with no alcohol, caffeine, sugar or vigorous exercise three to five hours before bedtime. Try limiting your screen time too. Days 11 through 21, wake up an hour earlier.

[00:06:33] Stick with the journaling and sleepy time rules and wake up an hour earlier. Pay attention to how you feel when you first wake up and throughout the day and decide if you need more or less sleep. Need more? Go to bed earlier. Need less? Wake up earlier.

[00:06:51] Stick with your new routine for ten days and then make adjustments as needed. If you sleep with someone else, ask them to join you so you can try the 21 day plan together. Now I've tried a more gradual method by waking up a few minutes earlier over the

[00:07:05] course of a few months, but just recently decided to jump right in to waking up an hour earlier. I did feel a little sleepier in the first few afternoons, but only a few weeks later I'm waking up most mornings without an alarm clock around 5 a.m.

[00:07:21] and sometimes earlier and not experiencing an afternoon crash. If you want more clarity, creativity and energy, trade your late nights for early mornings with this 21 day plan for waking up early. You just listened to the post titled A Gentle Guide to Help You Wake Up Earlier by

[00:07:45] Courtney Carver of Be More With The Last.com and I'll be right back with my commentary. Thank you to Courtney. Good timing for me with this article because fairly recently I've been getting up much earlier than normal.

[00:07:59] It started because I did a week long personal growth retreat and our days started at around 7 30 in the morning. So I had to wake up early to be ready in time and that's definitely not my typical awake time.

[00:08:12] In college and when starting this podcast even it was pretty common for me to be going to bed as the sun was coming up. I've always considered myself a night owl and felt like I worked best at night when it was really quiet.

[00:08:27] But being forced to wake up early more recently I found the days to feel more productive when I'm up earlier. So a similar story to Courtney's. But one additional tip I'd add is getting some sun right when you wake up if you can.

[00:08:42] It's a good way to set your bio clock and for me I feel like I get tired at the right time when I do that in the morning. Plus it just feels nice. And really if I can get up earlier anyone can trust me.

[00:08:55] I was as night owl as they come and for a very long time. But let me know what works for you. Thank you for being here listening every day. Have a great rest of your day and I'll see you tomorrow. Where your optimal life awaits.