One Secret to Never Miss a Morning Workout

Ok  it is not the biggest secret………  It’s Sleep!

Sleeping is the single activity that people spend the most time preforming, and its time we brought a little more attention to it.

Sleeping should always be restorative. You should wake up feeling better than when you fell asleep.

Here are a few suggestions for maximizing those precious hours and feeling ready for that morning workout:

1)   Regular bedtime

2)   Sleep Optimization- Building a schedule  

3)   Quality accessories

1.  The most childish of the suggestions- I would recommend implementing a bedtime for yourself.

Whenever I feel that I am starting to lose control over my own life, I find the most important thing to ask yourself is did I get enough sleep?

It can be the answer to a lot of questions. Why do I need coffee everyday? Why am I sick? Why am I struggling with simple problems?

Although it seems obvious, it took someone telling me to implement a bedtime before I actually made a change. I am not suggesting that every weekend you get to bed by 10pm, but before every work night get the sleep you need.

Everyone’s sleep patterns are different. Some people need 4-5 hours and others need 9-10 hours. Sleeping for the appropriate amount of time will allow you to function at your highest capacity.

2. Trying to time the amount of sleep you want with how many sleep cycles you want to go through.

The reason this is so beneficial is because waking up from a deep REM sleep is much more difficult than waking up at the end of a cycle.

On the weekend, you’ve likely experienced waking up with no alarm clock and feeling ready to go. I guarantee you were woken up at the end of a cycle. 

The first REM sleep cycle happens about 90 minutes after you fall asleep. An average sleep cycle is between 90-110 minutes. It can be very beneficial to time your sleep in hour and a half increments. I give myself 8 hours of time in bed, assuming it will take me around 30 minutes to get to sleep, and I can hopefully get through 5 full sleep cycles. I find that I can still function on 4 but I prefer 5 and I find getting through 5 sleep cycles greatly improves the chances that I wake up and go to the gym.  

3. Another thing that I like to bring peoples attention to is their pillow, yep, look at your pillow! Is it serving its primary function?

Your pillow is meant to support your head and neck throughout the night.  If you are not getting the support you need from your current pillow and are not waking up fresh, it is time to try a new pillow. A lot of people find it beneficial to use a cervical pillow or a material that contours to your head.   The same applies to your mattress. There are things you can afford to be cheap on like an electric toothbrush or a laundry basket, but your sleeping accessories are not something you can afford to skimp on.

Try these tips and waking up for morning workouts will be easy as pie :)

If you liked this article,  check out www.doitatyourdesk.com/blog for all the latest content from Jake Dermer.