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Original poster

Tips for getting up early

102 replies

CandleLight11 · 21/09/2023 00:36

AIBU to ask for tips for getting up early? Please share any bits of wonderful advice or habits or techniques you might have. I just can't seem to consistently do it even though I really really want to.
IABU - just do it
IANBU - it's really difficult

OP posts:
shieldmaiden7 · 21/09/2023 23:26

WereYouListeningToTheDudesStory · 21/09/2023 00:48

Set your alarm. When it goes off, take a couple of Pro Plus. Then snooze it for ten minutes so you're caffeinated the next time it goes off.

Edited

Genius.

Original poster
CandleLight11 · 21/09/2023 23:29

GoryBory · 21/09/2023 07:49

Go to bed earlier.

Set your alarm but put it the other side of the room so you have to get up and turn it off - then don’t get back into bed!

I have 2 alarms.
1 is my phone which I set to go off earlier so I can snooze (I’m trying to get out of this habit though).
Then I have my plug in alarm which is the other side of the room.

Going outside wakes you up quickly.
If you can’t go outside then just opening the window and looking outside helps.

Getting all of your stuff ready the night before really helps too.

As @margotrose said, the longer you lie in bed the worse it is.
I’ve overslept before and when I realised I sprung up and got ready in 10 mins and was wide awake, whereas usually I’m snoozing my alarm and moping around in my dressing gown for ages.

This could work. An alarm clock stored on the landing to go off 15 minutes after my phone. Once I've thrown on my dressing gown and I'm stood on the landing... I'm up so mission accomplished and I might as well go down and make a coffee. Thanks.

OP posts:
Original poster
CandleLight11 · 21/09/2023 23:32

Zanatdy · 21/09/2023 07:52

Just set your alarm and don’t snooze it. I naturally wake up around 5-5.30am now, even on weekends. I enjoy waking early now, can’t imagine lying in until 10 etc

You enjoy it? Wow. Credit to you. I enjoy the results of it... being up and ready for the day. But the getting up part... 😖.

OP posts:
Catsmere · 21/09/2023 23:42

I got up really early this morning - about 7.15 (just over an hour ago). I use a communal laundry, so if I want to be sure of getting in there I have to be early. Reluctant though I am to get up that early most mornings, I always feel better when I do - it means that job's out of the way for a few days, and it gives me twice as long to relax over breakfast (and MN!) before I have to get my mother out of bed. It's also a lot easier than the days when a minimum 90 minute commute meant I had to get up at 5.30!

Ilikeyourdecor · 22/09/2023 00:00

I used to think I couldn't get up in the mornings. Turns out I CAN, but it requires me to go to bed earlier, consistently, and I wasn't prepared to do that.

I need 9hrs. My preference is for 11pm-8am but if I need to get up at 5am I need to be in bed by 8pm to feel good the next day. Not going to happen frequently.

Seddon · 22/09/2023 00:08

I don't recommend snooze buttons or setting 2 alarms unless you're going to do something useful with the time in between (I do it when my partner stays over so we can snuggle!).

You're just cutting into your big, uninterrupted sleep otherwise.

TorqueWrench · 22/09/2023 00:48

Interestingly, most healthcare experts say somewhere between 7-9 hours is optimal but research shows people that get six live the longest.

hylian · 22/09/2023 05:54

CandleLight11 · 21/09/2023 23:24

I think ultimately, everyone saying 'just do it' is right. And think of the coffee ☕️.

Show quote history

Well yes, but you will only be able to 'just do it' without having horrible tiredness/ side effects if you practice good sleep hygiene and get enough sleep.

It's not quite as simple as 'just do it'. You also need to go to bed earlier and make sure you have a relaxing evening routine.

hylian · 22/09/2023 05:58

TorqueWrench · 22/09/2023 00:48

Interestingly, most healthcare experts say somewhere between 7-9 hours is optimal but research shows people that get six live the longest.

Which research shows this please?

Research I have seen shows that 7 is optimal.

"Based on multiple meta-analyses of large cohort studies, the optimal sleep duration for healthy adults is 7-9 hours per night. Sleeping fewer than seven hours and greater than nine hours per night was associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality in several studies"

https://blog.insidetracker.com/sleep-duration-longevity

The Relationship Between Sleep Duration and Longevity

Both too much and too little sleep can impact your life-expectancy. Here's what the ideal amount of sleep per night is for longevity.

https://blog.insidetracker.com/sleep-duration-longevity

Seddon · 22/09/2023 06:23

hylian · 22/09/2023 05:54

Well yes, but you will only be able to 'just do it' without having horrible tiredness/ side effects if you practice good sleep hygiene and get enough sleep.

It's not quite as simple as 'just do it'. You also need to go to bed earlier and make sure you have a relaxing evening routine.

Show quote history

I would say many, if not most, working adults get up earlier than they'd like to most days, regardless of how early they went to bed and how well they slept. That's what coffee's for!

Push through for a few days and the problem will correct itself - firstly needing to go to bed earlier, and secondly sleeping like a log.

Original poster
CandleLight11 · 22/09/2023 16:08

MasterOfOne · 21/09/2023 08:23

I am a natural early bird - usually up aroubd half 5/6am and I relish a very quiet and peaceful morning before getting ready from 7ish onwards.

What makes it very difficult to get up that early if is sleep late/badly (I am in bed by 9/10pm most nights) and when I get up in the morning, I have to get up. No snoozing alarm. Get up and sit upright. Usually feed cats then shower. Put on a podcast while I get ready.

It sounds simple, but I reiterate I am an early bird, and it just suits me to be up that early.

This sounds lovely. What do you do for the time before 7am before you start getting ready?

OP posts:
Original poster
CandleLight11 · 22/09/2023 16:10

CharlotteStreetW1 · 21/09/2023 08:56

  1. Put a £50 note in the oven znd set the timer.
  1. Have the vacuum cleaner switched on with a timer plug.

Excellent!

OP posts:
Original poster
CandleLight11 · 22/09/2023 16:11

itsgettingweird · 21/09/2023 20:03

I get up at 4am.

I have to set my alarm and just get out of bed. I have a bedside light as I find I need light to properly rouse me.

But I also go to bed at 9pm!

Wow. Do you get up at this time by choice or for work?

OP posts:
pepsimax00 · 22/09/2023 16:15

I get up @ 4-4.30am for work. I can only get up at that time because I know I have to. Walk 10 miles each day in a physical job and I'm in bed by 8pm and usually asleep by 9pm. On a day off I usually sleep in til about 5.45am.

The trick is having to be up for me. I can't get up at 4am if I don't have to, I just can't do it.

cuddlebear · 22/09/2023 16:22

What time do you go to bed?

I work it all out backwards, so if I know I have to be up at 6am for work, which is quite normal for me, I go to get ready for bed 8.5 hours earlier, so 9.30.

By the time I have ponced around and fallen asleep, it’s 10pm, so I get eight hours sleep and wake before my alarm goes off some days.

ACertainKindOfLight · 22/09/2023 16:22

I get up at 4.50 am every morning for work and most weeks l work at least 6 shifts.
I just force myself up, drink plenty of coffee and know that my bills won't get paid if l dont. Also knowing l finish my shift early, compared to my previous jobs helps.

Original poster
CandleLight11 · 22/09/2023 16:26

FusionChefGeoff · 21/09/2023 23:23

I have a Teasmaid I find it much easier now to wake up early as my tea is waiting for me!

Ooh that's a new one, I like it. Might try taking a flask of coffee to bed and sit up and drink it in the morning.

OP posts:
zingally · 22/09/2023 16:44

Go to bed earlier, and then get up as soon as the alarm goes off.

I've never been an alarm-snoozer. I set it for the time I need to get up, and when it goes off, I get up.

I'm up and walking out the house to my car within 50 minutes every weekday. And that feels quite leisurely. I can easily do it in 30 if I had to, and 20 if I really hurried.

PostItInABook · 22/09/2023 16:51

You can’t just do it straight away if you’re not used to it.
Like any other habit you need to work it gradually into a routine by setting your alarm 15 mins earlier each week and lights off to go to sleep 15 mins earlier as well.
You also need to work out how many hours sleep is optimal for you personally. For me it’s between 6-8 hours so I make sure I’m in bed ready for lights out 8 hrs before I want to get up.
Never use snooze buttons. One alarm and get straight up.
It would be easier to build this habit in the summer months when it’s lighter earlier tbh.

Or simply get a cat and leave your bedroom door open all night. That works too. 🤣

Mercurial123 · 22/09/2023 16:54

I'm a night owl. Ancestry Traits confirmed this. Unfortunately, I have to wake up at 5.15 am for work. I usually sleep around 11pm.

The Lumie alarm clock has been a game changer and a hungry cat demanding to be fed.

TorqueWrench · 22/09/2023 21:21

I'm a night owl. Ancestry Traits confirmed this.

How do they confirm this? Sounds interesting.

I also get up at 5am and still struggle to get to bed.

aSpanielintheworks · 22/09/2023 22:24

Get a Spaniel!

SurferRona · 22/09/2023 22:35

CandleLight11 · 21/09/2023 00:36

AIBU to ask for tips for getting up early? Please share any bits of wonderful advice or habits or techniques you might have. I just can't seem to consistently do it even though I really really want to.
IABU - just do it
IANBU - it's really difficult

Get an early rising husky. The awoos to get you up are mostly amusing, but avoiding waking the neighbours is a brilliant motivator, I find 😁

spookehtooth · 22/09/2023 23:25

@aSpanielintheworks I get up for work at 9am, I'm lucky if the springer spaniel here shows his face downstairs before 11am. Have I been unlucky and got a faulty one? Kidding of course, I adore him!

Mercurial123 · 23/09/2023 04:26

TorqueWrench · 22/09/2023 21:21

I'm a night owl. Ancestry Traits confirmed this.

How do they confirm this? Sounds interesting.

I also get up at 5am and still struggle to get to bed.

Some information here. I was surprised how accurate it was for me.

Tips for getting up early