We talked at length about the benefits of sunlight in helping us get better sleep in Chapter 2. To take it a step further, it’s not the sunlight alone, but waking up in the early part of the day that sets the template for a great night’s sleep.

 

According to Dr. Tracey Marks, “Going to sleep early and waking early syncs the body clock with the earth’s natural circadian rhythms, which is more restorative than trying to sleep while the sun’s up.”

 

It may seem totally ironic that getting up early can help you sleep better at night, but this goes back to the fact that humans have certain patterns of sleep and wakefulness that we’ve only, within the last hundred years, found a way to override. There was a time, not that long ago in our history, that humans were prey, and in tremendous danger if they were rummaging around at night.

 

It’s often forgotten that humans are not nocturnal creatures, so let me give you a little proof to remind you:

 

Our eyesight sucks in the darkness. Wild predators like lions have many more rods in their eyes that enable them to see better at night. You can’t see them, but they can see you = You’re invited to dinner.

 

We don’t have a very strong sense of smell either. Sure, you can smell the lady walking past you at the gym wearing far too much perfume (what is she trying to cover up anyway?) but nocturnal animals like the opossum can smell trouble from a mile out.

 

We can’t hear well enough to navigate the darkness either. A small noise from hundreds of feet away can perk up the ears of a grey fox. They can’t see as well as other nocturnal animals, but their keen sense of hearing allows them to hunt and avoid danger at night.

 

Humans have amazing senses that are really accentuated during the day. This allows us to see vivid colors and beautifully blend together our other senses to understand our environment like no other creature can.

 

The invention of the light bulb helped to brighten our world and enabled us to innovate, grow, and create better communities. Yet, the use of artificial light has morphed into an addiction that has seen our sleeping hours and health plummet to all-time lows. Truly, what good is innovation if we don’t have our health to enjoy it?

 

You might think, “Well, we’re not out in the wild anymore anyway. Time for a Netflix all-night marathon. Woohoo!” It’s true that we’re not out in the wild anymore, and our modern amenities do make life nice and comfy. Yet, it’s also true that your genetics haven’t changed much from your ancestors who lived closer to nature. Genetic adaptions can take thousands of years. And, unless you’re a character from the Twilight series, you just don’t have that kind of time.

 

Humans, as well as other organisms, have evolved to adjust to predictable patterns of light and darkness. These patterns establish our internal clocks and hormonal cycles every day of our lives. Once artificial light stepped into the picture, it effectively varied the length of our days. As a result, the average person’s sleep has decreased from around nine consistent hours to just around seven, varying from one night to the next.

 

The lack of consistency may be one of the biggest issues of all. The irregular sleeping hours prevents your brain from settling into a pattern, creating a state of perpetual “jet lag.” It’s not just how you sleep, but when you sleep, that helps to create the best version of you. It’s critical to create a smart sleep schedule in our world today, and it starts with getting our buns up in the morning.

 

Being Part of the Early Riser Club Has Benefits

 

In 2008 a study from the University of North Texas found that students who identified themselves as morning people earned significantly higher grades. In fact, the early risers had a full grade point higher than the “night owls” in the study at a 3.5 to 2.5 GPA respectively. Waking up earlier obviously isn’t the only factor with getting good grades, but it’s definitely a correlation to take notice of. A better GPA could mean better career opportunities, and bigger levels of success overall.

 

Speaking of career opportunities, research published in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology, showed that early birds are more proactive than evening people, and so they tend to do well in business. The study went on to state that morning people also anticipate problems better and minimize them more effectively. This is a huge leverage point in business today as everything is changing so fast.

 

It’s not that people who identify themselves as early risers are better people, or better at everything for that matter. Other studies suggest that night-lovers tend to be smarter and more creative than morning types, have a better sense of humor and can be more outgoing in some instances. The big issue is, according to the Harvard Business Review, is that night owls are out of sync with the typical corporate schedule, and miss out on critical opportunities more often because their timing is off.

 

So, whether you identify yourself as a morning person or night owl, you can do amazing things with your life. I just want to ensure that you have the greatest advantage possible, and that you’re health is up to par to create the life you really want. This leads to the reality that you’re health is radically improved when you’re honoring your body’s natural hormonal clock. Humans are designed to be up during the day and sleeping at night. Being a “night owl” is a new idea, and you’re not really an owl anyway.

 

Not a Morning Person?

 

Some people just love getting up early in the morning to take advantage of the day. It’s a very empowering feeling to have accomplished so much long before other people have even gotten out of bed. Various studies show that morning people tend to exhibit character traits like optimism, satisfaction, and conscientiousness. Getting started on your work goals by 8 a.m. gives you an extra sense of optimism in and of itself, whereas by 4 p.m. you’ve had seven minor problems that have tried to throw you off your course.

 

Being a “night owl” is a new idea that’s only been possible in recent human history. This is a trained behavior that, like it or leave it, is influencing your health and results in your life.

 

Still, if you firmly believe you are a night owl and want to make the switch to get your circadian rhythms, hormones, and priorities in order, then here are the simple steps to do it.

 

Leo Babauta from the wildly popular website Zen Habits recommends using The Gradual Method when changing your sleep schedule. Rather than making the decision to suddenly get up at 6 a.m. when you normally get up at 8 a.m., take gradual 15 minute increments off you’re wake up time until you get to your desired destination.

 

This is a much more graceful way to do it. Often times when people decide to get up early, they throw their sleep cycle into such a shocked state that they’re more tired and irritated, plus creating a neuro-association to more pain in waking up early. This causes you to burn through your will power within days and revert back to your old habits before you know it.

 

So if you’re goal is to wake up at 6 a.m. and you are currently getting up at 8 a.m., set your alarm for 7:45 a.m. instead. Do that for a few days, then move to 7:30 a.m., then move to 7:15 a.m. and so on. This will allow your body to adapt to the new schedule in a much healthier and sustainable way.

 

So how do you resist the urge to just hit the snooze alarm and forfeit you’re commitment to getting up?

 

Leo Babauta offered these three suggestions, and I have to say they’re pretty brilliant:

 

1. Get excited. The night before, think of one thing you’d like to do in the morning that excites you. It could be something you want to write, or a new yoga routine, or meditation, or something you’d like to read, or a work project that’s got you fired up. In the morning, when you wake up, remember that exciting thing, and that will help motivate you to get up.

 

2. Jump out of bed. Yes, jump out of bed. With enthusiasm. Jump up and spread your arms wide as if to say, “Yes! I am alive! Ready to tackle the day with open arms and the gusto of a driven maniac.” Seriously, it works.

 

3. Put your alarm across the room. If it’s right next to you, you’ll hit the snooze button. So put it on the other side of the room, so you’ll have to get up (or jump up) to turn it off. Then, get into the habit of going straight to the bathroom to pee once you’ve turned it off. Once you’re done peeing, you’re much less likely to go back to bed. At this point, remember your exciting thing. If you didn’t jump out of bed, at least stretch your arms wide and greet the day.

 

Putting your alarm across the room is also ideal to reduce the amount of EMF exposure that we covered in Chapter 12. The EMFs from electronic devices disrupt the communication between the cells in your body, and are obviously stronger if they’re plugged in right next to you. It’s not a smart move to sleep with any electronic devices near your body, so don’t do it.

 

Here’s one more bonus suggestion to beat the urge to go back to bed, and instead energize your body to be ready to take on the day: Wake up your senses.

 

When you get out of bed get your senses stimulated with something good. A common thing to do is to get that coffee or tea brewing and drink it. The smell, taste, and touch are all enlivening for you senses.

 

I’m a huge advocator of drinking a big glass or two of water first thing in the morning. I call this an “inner bath.” This will replenish your hydration levels that went down while sleeping, help your body to clear out metabolic waste products, and give you a sensory stimulation to help wake up your body. You can also take a regular bath or shower too to get you going. Or use more of your senses by turning on some good music and opening the curtains to let in the natural light. There are so many things that will automatically get your mind and body stimulated when you’re exposed to them. Try these things out and start your day with real momentum.

 

By waking up early, you start helping your endocrine system link up with the diurnal patterns of the earth. Get up when the sun rises. It might be challenging at first, but after less than a couple of weeks, your body will adapt to that pattern and you’ll feel much more rested and refreshed when you wake up. You can break the old pattern of being up at night “tired and wired” by being early to rise and having a natural release of cortisol, then going to bed earlier and taking advantage of the natural release of melatonin. A quote from one of my son’s favorite books, the epic masterpiece, Winnie the Pooh: “For early to bed, and early to rise will make a bear happy, and healthy, besides.”

 

 

 

 

 

Early to Rise Power Tip

 

Go to bed within 30 minutes of the same time each night and wake up at the same time each day. Many people in our modern world try to “catch up” on sleep and sleep-in on the days that they don’t have to get up for work. By throwing off your sleep schedule like this, you’ll usually find that you’re more tired than you want to be on your off days, and really dreading getting out of bed once Monday rolls around. Remember, a consistent sleep schedule is important for your health.

 

Try to avoid staying up much later just because you’re off the next day. Actually go to bed and get up so that you can use that day to do the things you want. I promise you, Netflix does still work during the daytime, and you can get a mini-marathon in without the same side effects you’ll experience if you’d stayed up all night.

 

To stay within your body’s desired sleep pattern, you don’t have go to bed at exactly 10:02 p.m. each night, but do your best to make it within 30 minutes of what your ideal sleep time is.