Without a doubt, I have never been one to go to sleep before midnight or wake up before noon unless absolutely necessary. That being said, I accidentally woke up early one morning and couldn't fall back to sleep. It was awful. That was until I realized that I had four hours to do whatever I wanted before another day of online school. I decided to do some reading, scroll through TikTok, and spend some time being as "unproductive" as I wanted without feeling guilty and by the time class rolled around I felt much more awake.

It wasn't all smooth sailing right from the start. Just knowing that I enjoy that free time in the morning was still not enough to completely rearrange the last two decade's worth of damage I had done to my sleep schedule. So if you're looking for a fun way to shake up your routine while you're stuck inside day after day, here are some habits that will get you on your way to becoming the morning person you're meant to be!

Make Your Bed

white bed linen with white pillowsPhoto by Adam Winger on Unsplash

People always say that making your bed is an important step towards waking up because it prevents you from getting back in it. I definitely agree but I also love it because it makes me feel way more put together so I'm ready to have a productive day. I know it can be a hassle sometimes but it really makes a huge difference in how you feel about your space and your mindset for the day.

Take A Cold Shower

silver-colored shower headPhoto by ONNE Beauty on Unsplash

No matter how tired I am, if I get up and take a shower, there's no way I'm going to go back to bed. If you really want to kickstart your morning and feel really awake, rinse yourself with really cold water at the end of your shower for a couple of minutes (or as long as you can). As an added bonus, cold showers are also supposed to be really good for your hair and skin!

Plan A Breakfast To Look Forward To

round white ceramic plate filled with wafflePhoto by Rachel Park on Unsplash

When I was a kid, I used to be so excited to wake up whenever I had a new type of cereal I couldn't wait to try. Use that logic and come up with an exciting breakfast to look forward to that will give you the energy to get out of bed and keep you going for the rest of the day. If breakfast isn't really your thing, just find anything that will motivate you to want to start your day earlier.

Avoid Naps

woman in pink jacket lying on gray couchPhoto by Adrian Swancar on Unsplash

I'm a big fan of naps but they can be really destructive to your sleep schedule while you're transitioning from night person to morning person. I found that when I took naps during the day I wouldn't be able to go to sleep until really late which prevented me from getting enough sleep at night and made it so much harder to wake up. Try to hold off on taking naps during the day at least until you've gotten the hang of your new schedule.

Go To Bed At The Right Time

white and brown alarm clock at 10 00Photo by Jeff W on Unsplash

This one might sound obvious, but it's not as simple as it seems. Make sure you are going to bed at the right time, not necessarily the earliest time. Use an online calculator or a sleep cycle alarm clock to figure out when is the right time to go to sleep based on when you want to wake up and the patterns of your sleep cycle. Going to bed 15 minutes later or earlier could be a real game-changer and leave you feeling a lot more refreshed.