Alarm Clock

So we all struggle to get out of bed some mornings!  And for many different reasons... my reason most recently is that I have been staying up late reading my favourite blogs and updating my blog!  This makes it much harder to get out of bed in the morning - especially if you have to go to work..

So, aside from the obvious strategy of going to bed earlier (which I highly recommend), I thought I might share a few ideas that help me to get up and moving in the mornings....

I use my iPhone alarm.  I choose an alarm tune that is a little uplifting.  I have tried the blaring BEEP BEEP tactic, and all I do is get cranky that I have been woken up with such a startle!  I have also tried a nice relaxing melody, which usually sends me back to sleep!  So, I have settled with a nice tune that has a bit of beat to it, to get my spirits up, but is not so harsh for first thing in the morning.

I write myself a nice label for the alarm.  Currently, my weekday alarm says 'Its a beautiful day!'.  The first thing that I see in the morning is this lovely message, which gets me in the right frame of mind for the day ahead.  And my weekend alarm says 'Yay!  Its the weekend!'.  (Yes, I set my alarm on the weekends - I hate sleeping in!  I love to get up and get moving so that I can make the most of the day.  When I had my six weeks holiday recently, I still got up every single day at 5.30 - I just feel like I have wasted my day if I sleep in.)


And my number one tip for the morning alarm is... to put the alarm out of your reach.  Yes, that's right - move it to the other side of the room, so that you actually have to get out of bed to turn it off.  It is so easy to lean over and press snooze, but when you have to physically get out bed to find the phone and press the button, you are so much more likely to stay up, rather than go back for 10 more minutes (well usually ;)

Then when I get up, I know that I turn on my washing machine, which is loaded with clothes and detergent and ready to go (see my daily washing post here) and flick on the coffee machine, which is also ready and waiting to brew my morning coffee (see my evening routine post here).  I am in such a routine of doing these things, that I don't even have to think when I get up, it is just automatic.

I really love mornings.  And when I can wake up feeling fresh and bubbly, then I know it going to be a great start to the day :)  The best thing you can do in order to make mornings a breeze is to go to bed at a reasonable hour.  But, if you happen to stay up late for whatever reason, hopefully these tips help you to get going the next morning.