Get up better in the morning: Making it easier to get out of bed

Good news first: In many cases, you really can’t help it if you can barely open your eyes in the morning and become a real morning grouch after getting up. This is because our natural rising times, known as our biorhythm, are closely linked to our genes. The lark sleep type finds it much easier to get up fit and in a good mood in the morning, while the owl sleep type is happy to sleep until 10 am.

Most people know that 7 to 9 hours of sleep is ideal for adults. According to the scientifically proven sleep type theory, when you are fit in the morning depends not only on how long you sleep, but also on when you sleep.  

In addition to larks and owls, there are also so-called heavy and light sleepers. The latter are known as dolphins, while the bear sleep type is almost always tired and could also lie down constantly during the day. If you are a bear, you should go to bed early enough in the evening to get 9 rather than 7 hours of sleep. A regular sleep-wake rhythm that is customised to your needs creates routines and makes getting up in the morning much easier.

Have you ever heard of sleep hygiene? It is not, or not only, about freshening up before going to bed. Rather, sleep hygiene has to do with routines that support your natural biorhythm and help you get enough restful sleep at night. This makes it easier to get up in the morning.

An important rule for better sleep hygiene is the aforementioned regular sleep-wake rhythm. Avoiding alcohol, nicotine, caffeine and heavy meals in the late evening also contributes to sleep hygiene. You should also avoid bright lights, especially screens, a few hours before going to bed so that the body slowly starts to produce the sleep hormone melatonin.

To improve sleep hygiene, an uncluttered and low-irritation environment and a bedroom temperature of 16 to 18 °C are also beneficial. With a blanket that suits the season and cosy nightwear made from natural materials, you can ensure the ideal temperature balance while you sleep. This also contributes to restful nights and a better mood in the morning.

Even though getting enough sleep and good sleep hygiene are key factors in getting up better in the morning, you can also make getting up more pleasant. This will help you waking up more quickly without the risk of getting into a bad mood in the morning. Although our 7 tips can’t turn owls into a larks – after all, this is genetic –, they will certainly ensure that you flutter off to work, nursery or wherever else in a better mood.

It has to be dark for our body to produce the sleep hormone melatonin. Especially in winter or when the shutters are down in the bedroom, a lot of melatonin is still present in the morning. This ensures that we could easily turn around in bed again. If it’s still dark when you get up, simply raising the shutters won’t help much.

In this case, daylight alarm clocks can be real game changers. They simulate sunrise by illuminating your bedroom as bright as day until the desired wake-up time. In fact, above 10,000 lux upwards, your brain is played a real stroke of genius, as it reacts to this brightness just as it does to real daylight. Whether a daylight alarm clock alone is enough to wake you up or whether you need additional acoustic stimuli varies from person to person. Just give it a try!

The snooze button is the best friend of all late risers and morning grouches. “Only 5 minutes”, is the message and – bang – the snooze button has been pressed for the sixth time. However, this half hour of half-sleep is anything but restful for us humans. Rather, it encourages negative thoughts and makes everything even more difficult. In addition, pressing the snooze button several times in the morning means you have less time for quiet routines that actually help you start the day.

We therefore recommend not using the snooze button and getting up straight away. To ensure that this works reliably, you can position your mobile phone or alarm clock at the other end of the room. This will get you up on your feet straight away and you can continue with our third tip.

By the way: It’s much harder to get up if you are still in deep sleep when the alarm goes off, the so-called REM phase. As our sleep cycles last around 90 minutes, it can therefore make sense to time your sleep duration so that you wake up after either 6, 7 ½ or 9 hours. There are also mobile phone apps that track your sleep and wake you up during a light sleep phase.

After getting up, you should air out your bedroom immediately to reduce the humidity that has built up during the night. Take these 5 to 10 minutes and breathe deeply by the open window. The morning air is particularly fresh and awakens the senses. With your eyes closed, you can make plans for the day or simply think about nothing at all. Complete this ritual with a smile. Do you notice how your mindset for the day is already completely different? Your favourite music in the morning can also help to stimulate the happiness hormone serotonin and make it easier to get up.

Many people don’t have time for long yoga sessions or work-out programmes in the morning before work. Nevertheless, a little exercise is very helpful to activate the circulation and stimulate blood flow. Even a hearty stretch, stretching all your limbs, will give you a real energy boost. You can also take 5 minutes to activate your body. You can even do light exercises such as cycling, a few sit-ups or a shoulder stand right in bed. So: No excuses, it will be worth it!

If you can look forward to something with the first blink of an eye, getting up is much easier. So, try to activate your reward system first thing in the morning and recognise getting up early with a nice routine that is also good for your health. For many people, it’s the first coffee they drink in peace on the sofa – not to mention the energising properties of caffeine.

To provide your body with important nutrients and vitamins, you can also reward yourself with a delicious breakfast. The possibilities are endless. Whether it’s a hearty omelette and peppers, a wholemeal crusty bread with salmon and your favourite cream cheese, or a rich muesli with fruit and various nuts and seeds: It’s important that you love your breakfast and that it prepares you optimally for the day with various components of valuable fats, carbohydrates and fibre.

During the night, we are unable to hydrate our bodies for several hours. The stores are therefore quite empty in the morning and should be urgently topped up with plenty of water or unsweetened tea. The liquid boosts your circulation and metabolism, helping you to get a better start of the day. So, it’s best to keep a bottle of water right next to your bed so that you can take a few sips straight away in the morning.

While cold water with a dash of lemon makes you particularly alert, lukewarm water can be better metabolised by the body. It’s up to you which variant you choose or whether it should be your favourite tea that also activates your reward system. Just remember: Hydration is key!

Our last tip is for the particularly hard-boiled among us who really need a real energy kick in the morning. We’re talking about contrast showers, where you alternate between washing your body with cold water for a few seconds and then with warm water. This technique really gets your circulation going and ensures that even the last brain cell is woken up with a bang. We recommend that you approach the contrast showers slowly and increase the temperature differences with each day.

If you’re not a fan of contrast showers, you can also opt for the more toned-down version: Simply wash your face and wrists with ice-cold water. This also revitalises the senses and ensures that you can get up better in the morning and leave the house full of energy.

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