Ahhhh, summer vacation. A much needed break from the stresses of schoolwork and school friends. A time to relax, sit by the pool (or on the beach), and catch up on the new novel you have been wanting to read or the new Netflix show you have been dying to watch. Oh, and if you are like me--work.
Most people dread the summer job, unless it’s a super cool internship. Not me, however. Even though my summer arrangements are less than ideal, it gives me a way to make money while getting out of the house. I know that, without it, I would be losing my mind. One thing I am dreading, however, is waking up five days a week to get to said job before 7:30 a.m. Now, this wouldn’t be too bad had I not decided that I am going to bike to work everyday. What was once a quick five-minute drive down the road will now take at least 15.
I have failed to mention that I am not a morning person. At all. The last time I got out of bed before 8 a.m. on a regular basis was when I was in high school. I am most definitely a night owl and have found that even when I manage to go to bed well before midnight, I still cannot get myself out of bed in the morning. Since I start my new job this week, I have decided to take to the internet and research the best ways to become a morning person. Some sites recommend things like giving yourself a pep talk in the morning or rewarding yourself for not hitting the snooze button. I’ve decided to pick four things to help me become more of a morning person:
Prep before bed.
Packing your lunch the night before, preparing the coffee maker, and picking out your outfit the night before allows you more time in the morning to sleep longer, do other things, or maybe even workout. Plus, you don’t have to worry about scrambling for an outfit or forgetting to pack lunch.
Have an established bedtime routine and stick to it.
Start winding down at least an hour before you want to go to bed. Make sure to not use any devices in bed (TV, phone, tablet). Try to go to bed at the same time each night. I know for me personally, this will be something to work on because I tend to spend a lot of time in my bed doing nothing but scrolling through various social media sites.
Wake up to natural light.
Sleep with the blinds open, so in the morning, natural light streams through. It’s hard to get out of bed when your room is as dark as a cave. Natural light can help to brighten your day.
Work out in the morning.
Working out in the morning helps increase blood flow and wake your body up. Since my job can get pretty stressful, I plan to start each morning with yoga.
This week, I am going to stick to these four tasks to see if they will help me on my journey to becoming a morning person. If you are interested more ways to become a morning person, Daily Burn and Huffington Post have great articles on this topic.
