Waking up early is good for your health and the Japanese know that very well. During my nine years spent in Japan, most people I met would wake up at 5 am. I don’t believe it is a coincidence they also live the longest.
Waking up at 5 am is early, but there are actually great health benefits from waking up early.
Maybe by remembering the “why”, it will become easier for you to put theory into practice and wake up early.
Benefits of Waking Up Early
You might know this quote about waking up early: “The world belongs to those who wake up early.”
Jules Renard got it right — there are several benefits to waking up early.
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More time for yourself
When you wake up early, you have more time for yourself. During this alone time, you can do anything you want.
You can have more time to eat breakfast, sip your coffee slowly, read the news, or exercise lightly.
You can even set your intentions for the day or implement a gratitude practice.
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Exercise more
In order to be productive, you have to move your body first. This is called “being in flow state.”
When you wake up early, you have more time to do your morning stretching, go for a run, or head to the gym.
The increase of dopamine and other feel-good hormones will give you a boost for your day.
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More things done
You might be complaining that there is not enough time in a day to do everything you need to do. Let me quote early risers such as Richard Whately: “Lose an hour in the morning, and you will be all day hunting for it.”
When you wake up an hour earlier, you won’t go searching for this hour all day long. You’ll have it! You can do whatever you want, so wake up an hour or two earlier — while making sure that you get enough sleep.
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Better sleep
When you wake up early, it encourages you to go to bed early too.
Implement a sleep routine to set your body up for success and great health. A sleep routine helps you have a better quality of sleep and wake up early.
3 Tips to Wake Up Early
Waking up before sunrise, while most people are asleep, is an incredible feeling. So, how do you do it?
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Turn off all digital devices an hour before bed
This means turning off your phone, computer, and TV.
You want to stay away from these devices because the blue light of the screen slows the production of melatonin, a hormone that helps you sleep.
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Have some light stretching
You can practice yogasan in bed. As you stretch your body, you also work on your breathing and get your body ready for the day.
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Sleep with your curtains open
If you are like me, you might be sensitive to light and prefer to completely close your curtains at night.
However, I have found it is just as efficient to sleep with a sleep mask while leaving the curtains open.
This way, as your alarm goes off in the morning, you just have to take off your blindfold to take in some natural sunlight. This makes it easier to wake up.
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Set an intention to wake up early for the next 21 days, which is the amount of time it takes to form a new habit. Then, you will enjoy the benefits of waking up early.
