How to Train Yourself to Wake Up Earlier

My kids and I have gotten into the questionable habit (its kind of awesome, but kind of awful) of sleeping in this summer.  Most days nobody wakes up until 9:00 am (I swear we are permanently on Utah time from our visit last month).  It's all fun and games until next week, when school starts again.  I'm seriously worried about how we will fare waking up two hours earlier than normal!  I'm on a quest to train myself (and my kids) to wake up earlier naturally, and I want to share five ways you can do it too!  

1. Create a Relaxing Bedtime Routine
Focus on getting better sleep, and then you might not need quite as much of it (read: 8 hours instead of 10!).  Take thirty minutes or so before you want to be asleep and do something relaxing to help wind your body and mind down.  Take a bubble bath, read a book (the paper kind) in dim lamp light, do some quiet meditations, etc.  Put your smart phone down and turn off the tv.  Avoiding screens for the hour leading up to bed is one of the best ways to signal to your body that it's time to sleep. 

2. Go to Bed Earlier
This one is a no-brainer, but it can be really hard to do!  Start small.  Go to bed 15 minutes earlier than normal for a week, and then go to bed 15 minutes earlier than that the next week.  If you make gradual changes little by little, it won't be so hard on your body, and before you know it you'll be going to bed an hour earlier than you used to and it will feel normal.  

3. Put Your Alarm Clock on the Other side of the Room
It's way too easy to hit the snooze button or turn your alarm clock off altogether if it's sitting on the nightstand next to you.  A warm bed will always win!  Make it harder for yourself and your changes of staying out of bed are much higher!

4. Give Yourself a Good Reason to Wake Up Early
Waking up early because it's a noble thing to do will typically not be a strong enough reason to get you out of bed when you'd rather keep sleeping.  If you have a buddy you are meeting at the gym, an early morning walk planned, or a quiet breakfast on the patio by yourself before the rest of your household wakes up?  Now those are things worth making the sacrifice for.

5. Adopt a Morning Person Mantra
Did you know that so much of who we are is created by the thoughts we have?  Stop thinking "I'm not a morning person" or "I'll always be a night owl" to "I'm becoming a morning person", or "I'm so productive that I can wake up in the morning".  Simply changing your mindset can do a lot in the way of helping you create your future!

For all of you early risers out there, what are some of your tried and true tricks??  Please share!  And, if you don't have an awesome mattress, RC Willey can help you fix that!  A new mattress can do wonders for the body!