“Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise” – Benjamin Franklin

The wee hours of the night, when it is quiet and dark, is are my favorite time of day. Maybe because I was born in those early morning hours is why I feel my creative energy soaring.

Yet, being a night owl when I need to maintain a morning schedule is challenging. It has been a cycle I have struggled with for most of my life.

Many attempts were made to be a bright-eyed morning person. During the transitions, my goal was focused on what time I needed to go to bed. I strived to be asleep by 10, 11, midnight, ok, 1 AM for sure. However, it was a struggle to stay on track.

Even though I eventually became accustomed to my rise and shine, I would stay up late if given my druthers. Ultimately, it won out; sleep deprivation was not enough motivation to hit the sack early. It was going to be just a part of who I am.

Until it changed.

Even though I am a self-proclaimed and lifelong night owl, I have become a wake-up at the crack of dawn, before the alarm rings morning person.

Once again, my horses have guided me into this personal shift. Due to the extreme heat, we are experiencing, the optimum time to ride is early morning. The first few weeks of adaptation were brutal. Up early, and still up late, by mid-day, it was challenging to keep my eyes open and my brain focused.

And then, with an adjustment of my mindset, it became easier.

Once I learned to honor the natural cycle of day and night, my orientation to becoming an early riser changed. I no longer thought of the time I needed to be fast asleep; instead, I planned what time I wanted to be awake; my inner clock began to adjust. Removing the pressure to fall asleep eased the ability to fall asleep.

The stories of successful people who are up before the sun and what they can accomplish in a day are bountiful. Although night owls may argue that they too are productive (I would have argued that point), there is a science to support the benefits of being a morning person.

The Benefits of Waking Early

It all starts with rest.

The quality of our sleep increases when we go to sleep early. Because our circadian rhythms regulate our body – the internal clock that spontaneously synchronizes with light-dark cycles is controlled by small nuclei in the middle of the brain. Light plays the most significant role in setting our inner clocks. For example, when the sun sets, our bodies produce the hormone melatonin, which is associated with promoting sleep.

Without melatonin production, we are more alert, rested, and moving with the earth’s vitality in the morning.

Deep and regular sleep is also crucial for our overall health. During a whole night’s sleep, our breathing slows, our blood pressure lowers, our muscles relax and repair, and our temperature drops. It is at the same time, our immune system reboots. 

We make over healthier choices. We frequently eat more when we are tired, reaching for a sugary snack to boost our energy. Conversely, being well-rested often leads to healthier eating habits and lifestyle choices. For instance, exercising in the morning or mid-day when our energy levels are high may be more productive than at the end of the day when having a big dinner and a glass of wine might win out over the gym.

Our cognitive skills improve. Not to say all morning people are organized, or those night owls are not, yet early risers tend to have better focus, concentration, and organizational skills than those who sleep their mornings away.

Well into my routine of rising early, I am enthusiastic about how I feel. I am more energized and getting more accomplished during the day (and I got a lot accomplished before), though the best part is my ability to sleep soundly and deeply throughout the night. It did take a while to convert my internal time clock, but once I adjusted, the sun began to set, and I could sense a physiological shift.

I am still able to experience what I love about the late nights. Listening to the coyotes howling and the rustling of the night critters beginning their forage for food rock me to sleep.  But I also hear the birds and their songs bringing in the new day. So often, I am up before the birds, so I  encounter the stillness and the mystery of the dark, but instead of it growing darker the longer I am awake, I face the dawning of the day.

Morning people and night owls, I can relate to both.

The awakening of the day is not dissimilar to the wee hours of the night. The day’s breaking brings hopeful energy of newness, while the wee hours carry with them the magic of the unknown, yet both hold a power of solitude and creativity.

And while I cannot discount either for the merits I see in both, right now, I am happily in the club of early risers. Which are you?