Having a positive morning is crucial for getting your day off to a good start. We’ll explain seven of the most common mistakes in the morning that you might be making.
Not everyone is a morning person. Many people struggle to get up in the mornings and find the motivation to be active and productive. However, mornings are an important part of our day, as they often determine how the rest of our day will go. You may feel sluggish and tired in the mornings, and unmotivated to start your day positively. How we feel in the mornings is often linked to our sleep hygiene.
Having good sleep hygiene is vital for our overall physical and mental health, and there are certain habits that you can implement into your mornings to get your day off to a better start. Keep reading to find out seven common mistakes in the morning that you might be making, and how you can change these habits to have a more energized and positive start to your day.
1. Hitting Snooze
When your alarm goes off in the morning you may feel tempted to hit the snooze button and go back to sleep, but doing this can make you feel more groggy and tired. When you hit snooze, your body gets fragmented sleep that does not benefit you. Regularly relying on hitting the snooze button to allow yourself ten more minutes of sleep is not a good way to go. Even though getting up as soon as your alarm goes off will feel unpleasant at first, after a few minutes of being up, your body will start to feel more alert and ready for the day.
If you often feel tired in the mornings and tempted to sleep in, going to bed earlier is a better solution to getting more sleep. Experts advise that most healthy adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep per night. Establishing a good morning routine, including exercising and having a healthy breakfast, is a way that you can improve how you feel in the mornings.
2. Checking Your Phone
Reaching for your phone as soon as you wake up is another mistake in the morning that you should avoid. Many people begin to check their notifications soon after they wake up, with a study by the International Data Corporation finding that 88 percent of smartphone users check their phones within 15 minutes of waking up in the morning. This is an unhealthy way to wake up as you are not allowing your body to wake up naturally.
Scrolling through your phone in the morning, including looking on social media or reading your emails, puts your brain in a stressful situation and can trigger stress and anxiety. It also sets a tone of distraction for the rest of your day. A more calming way to start your day is by practicing something mindful such as going for a walk or doing some yoga.
Tip: Use an alarm clock instead of the alarm on your phone to avoid this common mistake in the morning.
3. Getting Up Too Late
Waking up late every once in a while is not going to have negative effects, but if you are consistently oversleeping and getting up too late, this can have negative impacts on your brain and overall health.
A 2018 study monitored the sleeping patterns of adults in the UK. It was reported that adults who tend to stay up later and wake up later had a 10 percent increased likelihood of dying compared to those who went to bed earlier and woke up earlier. The study also found that diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and even mental health conditions are seen at greater rates among people who stay up later and wake up later. If you get up too late because you struggle to get to sleep at night, doing regular exercise is one way that you can help to improve your quality of sleep.
4. Leaving Your Blinds Closed
Leaving your blinds closed is another common mistake in the morning. While you may keep your blinds closed to stop people from seeing in, opening your blinds in the morning to let in the sunshine has many health benefits. A 2018 study from the University of Oregon found that light exposure helps to kill bacteria that live in the dust in your room. They found that bacteria were 12 percent more likely to be alive and reproduce in dark rooms compared to rooms that allow in natural light and that these bacteria in dark rooms are more closely related to respiratory diseases. In addition, research shows that exposure to natural light in the morning can improve mental health conditions such as depression.
5. Immediately Drinking Coffee
Coffee may be the first thing on your mind when you wake up, but it’s a good idea to wait before having your first cup of the day. Drinking coffee as soon as you wake up may interfere with your body’s cortisol production. Our bodies’ cortisol levels peak 30 to 45 minutes after we wake up.
As coffee contains caffeine, which is a stimulant, drinking coffee as soon as you wake up can cause a further rise in your cortisol levels. Therefore, it is best to have your first cup of coffee at least an hour after you wake up to reap the benefits from the caffeine. Instead of having a cup of coffee when you wake up, try ginger water or ginger and garlic tea to flush out toxins and rehydrate your body.
6. Consuming Too Much Sugar
Consuming too much sugar can lead to health issues such as weight gain, metabolic disease, and obesity. Consuming it in the morning can set your day off to a bad start, and you may not be aware that sugar can also have a big impact on your sleep. A 2016 study found that people with diets higher in sugar tended to have more disrupted sleep, due to their blood sugar levels spiking. Similar to caffeine, sugar can also cause your cortisol levels to increase, which can cause you to feel jittery and anxious in the mornings. If you tend to eat sugary breakfasts, try something with natural sugars such as overnight oats or protein oats to keep your blood sugar levels and cortisol levels more balanced in the mornings.
7. Only Brushing Your Teeth After Breakfast
Most regular teeth brushing habits involve brushing the teeth twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. This is the recommended guidance by the American Dental Association, which recommend people brush their teeth for two minutes, twice a day.
Many people brush their teeth after breakfast to avoid the taste of toothpaste in their mouth when they are eating, but experts suggest it could be more beneficial to brush your teeth as soon as you wake up. Brushing your teeth with fluoride toothpaste as soon as you wake up gets rid of the plaque-causing bacteria in your mouth, and coats your enamel with a protective barrier against acidic food. By brushing your teeth after you eat, you are coating your teeth with the remnants of acidic food, which can weaken your enamel. It is okay to brush your teeth after you eat as well, but wait at least an hour after eating before you brush.
Read on:
- Morning Affirmations: 10 Positive Ways To Start Your Day
- Rise and Shine: 3 Major Benefits of a Morning Workout
- How to Beat Exhaustion: 6 Tips for People Who Are Always Tired
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