If there’s one thing I’ve been really intentional about since the new year, it’s been allowing myself to make myself a priority when I need to. When I’m not pushing myself to the limit, I know that I can be a better blogger, dog momma, friend, daughter and sister to the people in my life and you guys! In order to get the rest my body needs, I’ve put some healthy practices in place that have helped me wake up feeling much more rested and ready to tackle the day. I thought I’d share 5 of these tips with you to help you feel the same!
No electronics in bed – My phone used to be the last thing that I looked at before I went to sleep and the first thing I looked at when I woke up. I’m not talking about the ‘oh, let me set my alarm and then put my phone down’ kind of interaction … I’m talking ‘let me set my alarm & then check Instagram, Snapchat, get back to these text messages, and check my email one more time, and then start all over again’ type of interaction. (And then, of course, I would forget to even set my alarm and would have to pick my phone up again to do what I initially set out to do!) One night, I decided to put my phone down, away from me, one night to watch a movie and it was the first time that I felt like I was actually allowing my brain to just ‘turn off’ and ‘rest’. When we are fully focused on our phones before bed, we’re not letting ourselves unwind and we are taking precious sleep time away from ourselves that we need. And, when we start our days by checking our email first thing in the morning before we even pull the sheets away from our bodies, we are taking time away from making healthy moves. Think about it, and be honest: How many times have you stayed on your phone for as long it would take you to make yourself breakfast? So, I decided to create a boundary. At night, no electronics in bed. My phone is plugged in across the room by my window at night, and I have to actually get up to turn off the alarm in the morning. Before getting in to bed at night, I plug my phone in and allow myself to just get lost in a show or read. It’s been amazing to see what time I go to bed now that I’ve implemented these new rules and boundaries, and how I feel when I have wake up in the morning!
Get up when your alarm goes off the FIRST time – Mornings are hard. Believe me, I know. I’ve never been a morning person but I’ve decided to stop using that as an excuse to press the snooze button & sleep in! Even though I can start work whenever I want, I have found that setting my alarm for when I actually need to get up [for me, typically 6:00] and getting up right when it goes off, gives me the motivation to take on the day. I’ve actually read that hitting the snooze button a few times is really bad for you, as well, and you’re actually not getting that quality sleep in between snoozes so it makes you more tired when you actually do get up! You may not believe me, but if you allow yourself to go to bed at a decent hour, you will be tired when the alarm goes off but the sleepiness wears away pretty quickly once you’ve gotten up & started on your morning routine. Getting up and going right when my alarm goes off has allowed me to get so much more done during the day & leaves the late afternoons and evenings for me to grab dinner with a friend or take Fish for a long beach walk without feeling like I’m ‘not done’ with work. [I think if you work from home and for yourself, you may understand that feeling sometimes when you are still trying to figure out how to do it all & what works best, etc. I used to stay up really late working and then sleep in, which would make me feel behind or like I was always working when everyone else was free to catch up or do something.] This is probably the tip I have the hardest time with – hi, I’m not perfect! – BUT, I will say, when I am good about it, I really see a difference in how I feel!
Have something exciting to get up for – It’s always easier to wake up on Christmas morning or a morning where you get to see that someone special after a week apart or when you’re heading off on a long-awaited vacation! So, bring that excitement to everyday life by allowing yourself to look at your calendar, specifically at the day and week ahead, before getting in to bed at night! Then, allow yourself to reflect on what you’ve got going on and get excited about it! It could be something as small as bringing a fun new pair of shoes with you in your work bag to wear to Happy Hour with your girlfriends after work. Or, even getting together with your best girlfriends tonight to watch The Bachelor. Who doesn’t look forward to that? So, pump the brakes on ‘dreading’ the week ahead and allow yourself to be excited about what your week has in store! I promise it will make getting up so much easier!
Set an alarm for when you need to start winding down at night – When I got my Fitbit earlier this month, I set an alarm for when I want to remind myself to start the winding down process. That process has two parts. The first 30-minutes includes taking my makeup off, getting into pajamas, washing my face, taking Fish out one last time before bed, making sure the doors are locked, candles are blown out, and setting my alarm for the next morning. Then, the second 30-minutes is when I am actually in bed. I either watch a little bit of a show I missed, read, or just go ahead and get snuggled up with Fish and head to bed. So, this alarm essentially goes off an hour before I want to go to bed but, I could get to bed earlier than that if I choose. This has really helped me hold myself accountable for getting the rest I know I should be getting, and has prevented me from waking up feeling slow and groggy.
Get moving early & plan ahead – This kind of piggy-backs off of number 3! When I have an early morning appointment, whether it’s a workout with Troy or a coffee date with a friend, I am always more apt to get myself up and at ’em a little quicker. That plan to MEET SOMEONE is the accountability that I need because I know if I don’t show up, it affects someone else and I don’t want to disrespect that person. So, if mornings are hard for you, plan something that holds you accountable for getting up and moving! When you pair this with all the other tips I’ve given you, I promise you’ll wake up feeling ready to take on the day!
I know this all may seem ‘ideal’. And, I’m not naive enough to believe that you’re not sitting there like ‘yeah right, this is not what you do’ but, I promise, it is! I got so tired of the lifestyle I think so many of us get caught up in – trying to do it all and killing ourselves in the process. It’s not how we’re intended to live and I think it’s up to us to put those boundaries and healthy practices into place. So, these are the things that I have been doing that have helped me and I can promise you, that even though I get up at 6:00 or 6:30 every day – depending on what I have going on – I always wake up feeling fully rested!
Also, it’s important to mention – there’s a difference between being sleepy when you wake up and being tired when you get up. I’m always sleepy when I wake up, because hello …. I’m waking up from being fully asleep. These tips are to help you feel RESTED once you get up. The sleepiness wears off but the tired doesn’t, so putting these tips into practice will help you diminish that tiredness that you may feel day after day.
I hope this post was helpful! Thanks so much for stopping by! Appreciate you! xo.
