Tips for waking up at 5am everyday and getting a good night sleep

[HiCrunchy]

I really want to start waking up early for personal reasons and to get a little alone time for me in a home where I am constantly surrounded by people. Maybe even get time in the kitchen and bathroom without having to rush. Maybe even start working out.

 

I want to wake up at 5 am every single day but I have trouble falling asleep a night and even when I get to bed at 9 to wake up at 5 I just can't seem to fall asleep.

 

Does anyone have to tips to wake up at 5 am feeling refreshed and ready to take it take on the world?

 

I currently wake up at 7 am everyday and have trouble with it so this is going to be a journey.

[LivingWaterPlease]

You probably know not eat right before you go to bed as your body will be more rested in the morning if you sleep on an empty stomach? Have at least three hours between food an bedtime!

[Lorenza]

It takes time to rewire your brain. Stop using your phone and other devices at least an hour before bedtime and create a routine you'll follow every night to teach your brain that doing certain tasks means shutting down is gonna be required soon.

 

Brush your teeth/do your regular hygiene tasks at around 20, then lay down and read a book or do something boring (but don't surf on Facebook or chat), maybe use ear plugs if you can still hear sounds of other people's activities at that time. Also, there are various supplements that help produce melatonin which aids faster falling asleep (or lemon balm tea works pretty well for me, but there's a risk you might wake up needing to pee).

[Soak]

It's honestly a body clock issue.

 

What i'd suggest: limit your sugar intake, less screen time at night. Telly seems fine. Ideally, you want your body clock to operate between 9.30pm (maybe 10pm) til 5am, in sleep mode.

 

I find i wake up naturally at about 5 every dsy, but am bushed and ready for bed around 9.30-10pm every night, but that has come with time over extremely early starting hours!

[preraph]

Waking up before dawn is unnatural. Waking up with the sun is more natural. I suggest you stop drinking all caffeine because it makes you loggy in the morning until you drink more of it like any other drug. Try that for 2 months and see if you're sleeping better.

[RecentChange]

I wake up at 5:30 week day mornings, and I am usually in bed between 11:00 and 11:30 pm.

 

And I tend to have tons of energy.

 

My tips?

 

Eat well, limit sugars

 

EXERCISE- I run or at least walk every day. This is critical to allowing me to unwind and sleep, and to boost my afternoon energy. Plus I hike or horse back ride in the evening.

 

Caffeine - I have a cup of coffee (I LOVE the taste) around 9-10 each morning. Not earlier (I don't need it to wake up) never later, and not more than a cup.

 

Limit screens before bed - try to unwind an hour before. Read a book, listen to relaxing music etc.

 

For me, nothing allows me to fall asleep better than an orgasm. So that is part of my route as well.

[whichwayisup]

I really want to start waking up early for personal reasons and to get a little alone time for me in a home where I am constantly surrounded by people. Maybe even get time in the kitchen and bathroom without having to rush. Maybe even start working out.

 

I want to wake up at 5 am every single day but I have trouble falling asleep a night and even when I get to bed at 9 to wake up at 5 I just can't seem to fall asleep.

 

Does anyone have to tips to wake up at 5 am feeling refreshed and ready to take it take on the world?

 

I currently wake up at 7 am everyday and have trouble with it so this is going to be a journey.

 

Take a hot bath with epsom salts before bed. Cut out any sugars and caffeine early in the day.

 

Work out daily, brisk walks in the evening and do yoga daily. This will help you feel a bit more energy waking up.

[Els]

IMO, waking up early is overrated. There isn't really anything you can do at 5am that you can't do at 9pm. Why force yourself to do something that feels unnatural to you?

 

That being said, when I needed to reset my sleep cycle (after traveling to a different time zone, etc), I've found that melatonin helps. Of course, also follow basic sleep hygiene (have a pre-bed routine like taking a warm bath, no caffeine 6 hrs prior, make sure your bed is comfy, your room dark and slightly cool, etc) - but you should be doing that anyway.

[No_Go]

It is actually very easy. I don't believe the whole morning/night type of people, it is just a matter of motivation and/or needs to be one or the other.

 

Easiest way to reset your clock: have an all nighter. Say your typical need is 7 hours of sleep. Just don't go to bed at all the night and the day after: go to sleep exactly 7 hours before the expected wake up time (10 pm ofr 5 am in your case). Then be very strict in repeating the 10 pm bedtime the next few days. You'd be shoked how easy your body will adapt: you'd be up at 5 am without an alarm clock before you know it. This method always worked flawlessly for me.

 

I really want to start waking up early for personal reasons and to get a little alone time for me in a home where I am constantly surrounded by people. Maybe even get time in the kitchen and bathroom without having to rush. Maybe even start working out.

 

I want to wake up at 5 am every single day but I have trouble falling asleep a night and even when I get to bed at 9 to wake up at 5 I just can't seem to fall asleep.

 

Does anyone have to tips to wake up at 5 am feeling refreshed and ready to take it take on the world?

 

I currently wake up at 7 am everyday and have trouble with it so this is going to be a journey.

[No_Go]

There isn't really anything you can do at 5am that you can't do at 9pm - I wish... Unfortunately many errands (admin stuff, d-r visits etc) can be run only at daytime (in most locations), so any time after 6 pm is useless in that sense...

 

For working out time of the day matters a lot.

 

For being in your own company (what OP wants) - early mornings are priceless.

 

IMO, waking up early is overrated. There isn't really anything you can do at 5am that you can't do at 9pm. Why force yourself to do something that feels unnatural to you?

 

That being said, when I needed to reset my sleep cycle (after traveling to a different time zone, etc), I've found that melatonin helps. Of course, also follow basic sleep hygiene (have a pre-bed routine like taking a warm bath, no caffeine 6 hrs prior, make sure your bed is comfy, your room dark and slightly cool, etc) - but you should be doing that anyway.

[GunslingerRoland]

We have natural body cycles. You can reset them to some degree, but studies show it's better for us if we live closer to the way they are supposed to be.

 

Thing is you need to consistently get to bed early enough to wake up at that time. If it isn't realistic to get to bed by 9 or 10 almost every night, it probably won't be successful for you.

[Cookiesandough]

Go to sleep around eight. It gets easier if you are consistent

[Cersei]

I agree about going to bed around 8 or 9 consistently. However to start that new bedtime you need to be super tired.

 

This is what you could try:

 

One night stay awake really, really late. Like 2 am or something. Get up at 5am regardless of how tired you are. It will suck but the "suck" will be short lived. Don't drive your car because you could be dangerous. Take the bus or something instead.

 

That night you will be so tired that you can go to bed at 8. Then get up at 5am and BAM the new routine begins.

[Eternal Sunshine]

I would find it beyond depressing to have to go to bed at 9pm. I also see no appeal of getting up at 5am.

 

My work is flexible. I generally wake up at 9, I am work by 10 and got to bed at midnight-1am

 

On the weekends, I am rarely up before noon.

[Els]

There isn't really anything you can do at 5am that you can't do at 9pm - I wish... Unfortunately many errands (admin stuff, d-r visits etc) can be run only at daytime (in most locations), so any time after 6 pm is useless in that sense...

 

For working out time of the day matters a lot.

 

But the OP wants to wake up at 5am. I don't know about where you live, but here the earliest you can do any admin stuff or Dr visits is 8am (sometimes 9am), not 5am!

 

I don't see how working out at 5am is better than 9pm? It's equally dark and cold.

 

For being in your own company (what OP wants) - early mornings are priceless.

 

I find 2am best for that.

[HiCrunchy]

 

I find 2am best for that.

 

I actually know so many night owls that I can't really be alone at 2am haha.

But I don't anyone personally that wakes up at 5am.

[newmoon]

i've been waking up at 4:15 for the past 14 years for work and it still isn't any easier. what helps a bit is a firm bedtime, between 8:45-9:15, and i put all my house lights on timers for 9:15pm so if i'm not in bed by then i'm reminded that it's time. i don't do computer/ipad/tech stuff about 30 minutes before bed. i aim to 'finish' the day by 8, so that i'm relaxing before bed. eating pretty soon after you wake up at 4/5 helps a lot - it gets the metabolism going right away so i generally eat pretty soon after waking. it's tough. i start work at 6 and i'm probably not even productive until 10. you can definitely train yourself to get up early - i don't even need the alarm anymore, but waking up in complete darkness and cold in the winter, not fun. my co-workers basically do the same as me to get to the office on time and i hear many of them get up at 4 and go to bed at midnight. but it shows, they look awful. just make sure if you're getting up at 5 you get that rest in, even if you just relax in the bed until you fall asleep. good luck.

[No_Go]

Same, but say I want to be at the bank or at the doctor at 8 am, then I need to be out the door at 7 am. I need another hour before then to shower, dress up, feed my cat etc. This brings it to 6 am. So 5 am is not unrealistic if OP wants to have an extra hour for whatever in the morning.

 

For working out: if I work out at 9 pm I just can't go to bed afterwards... And after dinner the motivation is very low.

 

But yeah, if you're ok with staying super late, 2 am is also good for me time:) I've done that in the past and enjoyed it very much.

 

But the OP wants to wake up at 5am. I don't know about where you live, but here the earliest you can do any admin stuff or Dr visits is 8am (sometimes 9am), not 5am!

 

I don't see how working out at 5am is better than 9pm? It's equally dark and cold.

 

 

 

I find 2am best for that.

[No_Go]

I actually know so many night owls that I can't really be alone at 2am haha.

But I don't anyone personally that wakes up at 5am.

 

I know both. One of my coworkers used to shift her hours instead of 8-9am to 5-6 pm, to 5-6 am to 2-3 pm. That way she used to have the whole afternoon for herself.

[BrokenHeartedMan89]

Morning OP.

 

Bit of advice from a brit that gets up at 5.30 every day...

 

Exercise 1st thing... I go to the gym before work as it is very quiet and the sessions can be more focused. This then leads on to a free evening for your other activities and ... if you've had a good workout early am... you'll be tired and ready to sleep by 10 pm.

 

I started doing it as I was struggling to sleep for months after a break-up. Started the routine and it helped a lot, now I just stick with it for my own physical and mental health.

 

Plus it makes lie-ins at the weekend so much more enjoyable and rewarding if you've been disciplined all week.

 

Without gym to go to ... to facilitate free time on evenings I'd probably still be struggling.

 

Set an alarm, put it somewhere where you can't reach it from the bed, so you actually have to get out of bed to turn it off helped at the start. Then stick it out religiously for a month and BAM.. you're mind and muscles will have adopted it as routine.

 

Hope that helps you.

[meeji]

I've found that shaving an hour off of your bedtime helps to gradually adjust your sleep schedule.

 

Each night go to bed one hour earlier than the night before and eventually you will hit your target bed time. I also wake at 5am to do a morning workout. Sometimes I have to take sleeping pills to make sure that I can go to bed early enough to get up.

 

I take the sleeping bills around 7pm. By 9pm I'm ready to sleep. I have a fitness tracker that monitors my sleep. It has an alarm thing on there that vibrates my wrist. This is good if you are partnered and don't want to wake them up at the crack of dawn.

 

Also, try not to eat or workout 3 hours before you go to bed. I will lay down, turn everything off and put on a audio book or something until I pass out.