How to Wake up Before 5 AM

The alarm goes off at precisely 4:30 AM. I hear the familiar melody screaming at me from the hallway. Groaning, I force my bleary eyes open, one after the other. My hand reaches out for the light switch, scrambling in the dark. Bright light invades my bed and pulls my legs over the edge. All the while, the alarm continues to beat itself into my skull. I quickly stumble toward the hallway to relieve myself of this assault on my tranquility. By 4:31, I have successfully beaten both the alarm and my own propensity to stay snuggled up in a warm bed. I head to the kitchen to begin my day...

Waking up early is difficult. If you're wondering why you should even do it, scroll up, click on my profile link, and find part one of the Early Mornings series. Once I've convinced you, make your way back here to learn about three ways you can ensure you do, indeed, wake up at the crack of dawn.

Get enough sleep.

Sleep is vital for our health and sanity. In fact, lack of sleep has been associated with several chronic illnesses such as obesity and heart disease. And I know is that when I short myself on sleep, I amble through the next day like a cranky zombie. Although my previous article outlined the benefits of getting up early, this should not be at the expense of a good night's sleep. In fact, when it comes down to it, if you are going to bed late and must choose sleep or an early morning, I say: choose sleep. Because sleep is so crucial, if you want to wake up early, it is imperative to get to bed early the night before. My body requires about nine hours of sleep and I typically fall asleep in about 15 minutes, so if I want to wake up at 4:30 AM, I will head to bed around 7:15 PM. If your jaw just dropped, remember that this is my routine. You don't have to hit the hay quite as early as me, but it all depends on how much sleep your body truly needs, how long it takes you to fall asleep, and when you want to wake up. Just remember that waking up early should not come before your body's sleep needs.

(To find out how much sleep you should be getting, check out the National Sleep Foundation's website.)

Set up your alarm strategically.

This is the most helpful tip for waking up early that I have ever encountered. Even when I get my nine hours, I love staying in a warm bed in the mornings and can easily fall back asleep. When my alarm goes off, I tend to snooze for an hour or more. This is obviously not ideal—for productivity or for quality sleep. Maybe you can relate. Fortunately, there is a solution! Just plug your phone/alarm into a wall outside of your bedroom. I put mine in the hallway. When the alarm goes off, I am forced to get up out of bed to turn it off. Once I am already halfway to the kitchen, I might as well continue my morning routine. You may be thinking you'll set up your alarm across the room. In my experience, this is still too close to my warm, cozy bed. I am tempted to crawl back into it. The hallway is a better choice because it forces me out of my room entirely. If you're worried about waking up other members of your household (I live alone), perhaps set up two alarms. Your phone could be beside you and for outside your room, buy a cheap alarm clock. Set your phone alarm for the time you want to get up and set the other alarm for just two minutes later. This way you know that you have to get up to turn it off or else you will risk angering your housemates.

Establish a morning ritual.

Finally, if you want to start waking up early, it is helpful to have a morning ritual in place that you can look forward to. Waking up is much more pleasant if you can remind yourself of something you are excited about. As I mentioned in my previous article, my morning coffee is a daily ritual I look forward to. Waking up is easier knowing that I will soon be cozy in my armchair sipping on a hot beverage. But this isn't the only ritual you could implement. Whatever it is that you choose to do, simply make the first moments of your day enjoyable. Maybe you love music and could pop in some headphones and listen to your favorite upbeat tunes as you make breakfast. Maybe you enjoy reading and want to spend the first fifteen minutes of every day delving into a good book. Perhaps you really look forward to that steamy shower. Make it the first thing you do. Whatever it is, a pleasant morning ritual will make waking up early that much easier.