Being startled out of bed by an alarm clock is one of the worst ways to wake up. Still, many people believe that it is the only way to get out of bed on time. Most people, however, can train their bodies to wake up at the right time without an alarm clock, but it takes some planning.
Getting your body into a daily rhythm is important, as is using your senses to wake your body and setting the mental alarm clock in your head. Everybody is different, so there is no single technique that works for everyone, so we’re giving you three tips for how to wake yourself up and they don’t involve you having to open your own coffee franchise or locating a cup of Kopi Luwak, the RAREST coffee in the world!
How to Wake Yourself Up Tip #1: Use Your Senses
Waking up in the middle of the night due to noise, light or temperature is not uncommon. The good news is that you can use the same cues that wake you during the night to wake you when it’s time to get up, eliminating the need for an alarm clock. For example, leaving the blinds or curtains open in your bedroom will allow natural light to come in as soon as the sun comes up. You can adjust the placement of your bed throughout the year so that the sun hits your face at the right time each morning. If you are unable to use sunlight to wake your body, you may be able to set your bedroom lights on a timer so that they will come on and awaken you when it’s time to get out of bed.
Most alarm clocks use noise to arouse your body from sleep, but you can use the noise around you to wake up more gently. There may be a train that comes by at a certain time each day or birds chirping soon after sunrise. Leaving the windows in your bedroom slightly open will allow you to capture more of the natural sounds in the morning. You can also use your sense of smell to wake you, especially if you are a coffee drinker. Setting your coffee pot on a timer in your room allows you to wake up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee. Having your morning coffee ready as soon as you get out of bed is a nice bonus. Setting the thermostat in your home to change about an hour before you wake up will also help you wake without an alarm clock. Your body is very sensitive to temperature while you are sleeping, so a temperature change of about five degrees is likely to awaken you.
How to Wake Yourself Up Tip #2: Set Your Sleep Cycle
Our bodies run on a circadian rhythm, governed by the 24-hour clock set by the sun. Determining the time you need to wake up will give you an idea of the time you need to go to bed. It is very important to go to bed at the same time each night so that your body will be more likely to wake at the same time each morning. Going to bed at a set time each night is essential, even on weekends. Using your alarm clock to wake you up at the same time each morning will help you set your internal clock. Another piece of information you need is the amount of sleep your body actually needs. Some people need nine hours of sleep each night to be productive, while others are fine with seven hours. Avoiding spicy foods, caffeine and other substances that make it difficult to fall asleep will help you set your sleep cycle faster. Some people find that exercising late in the day also makes it more difficult to fall asleep.
How to Wake Yourself Up Tip #3: Set the Alarm Clock in Your Head
Scientists haven’t proven that people have any influence over the time they wake up, but many people swear that they do. One good thing about this method is that it doesn’t require you to go to bed at a certain time every night, just write down the time you went to bed for future reference. Next, figure out how many hours are between the time you go to bed and the time you need to get up. When you are lying in bed, focus on the time you need to get up. Some people find it helpful to visualize the time on a clock, while others find repeating the time out loud to be more beneficial. Even though scientists are unsure why it works, experiments have shown that setting your mental alarm clock helps you to wake up at the right time. It may also be more difficult to wake up at the precise time you are hoping for if you are out of your comfort zone, such as staying in a hotel, tent, air mattress, or in a bed that’s not similar to what you are used to.
It is best to experiment with waking up without an alarm clock on your days off so that you don’t accidentally oversleep and end up being late for work. You can also try setting your alarm clock for 10 or 15 minutes after the time you envision yourself waking up so that the alarm will wake you up if you fail to wake on your own. It will probably take a week or two of experimenting with different methods before you are reliably waking without an alarm clock, but the effort you are putting in is worth it when you are finally able to wake up gradually at almost any time you desire.
Well, there you have it! Three simple tips for how to wake yourself up. We hope you find this useful and if you’ve found another tip, please share it with us!
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