BECOME A SUNRISE RIDER
1. STOP SLEEPING IN ON WEEKENDS
It confuses your system, says Frank Scheer, PhD, a neuroscientist at Harvard Medical School in Boston. Scheer says shifting your wake- up time from 6am to 9am on Saturday has the same effect as flying to a country three time zones away, then trying to wake up at your usual time at home again on Monday.
2. EASE INTO IT
The part of your brain that controls your internal clock is evolutionarily wired to shift your wakeup time gradually with the changing seasons. Scheer recommends going to bed 30 to 60 minutes earlier and setting your alarm back by the same amount each day until you reach your goal time. Then give it at least a week before you expect to feel normal.
3. ELIMINATE DECISIONS
Humans are prone to ‘decision fatigue’ – we have a finite amount of willpower, and deciding to get up early flexes that willpower muscle hard. Eliminate as many subsequent decisions as possible, says Stephen Graef, PhD, a sports psychologist at the Ohio University Sports Medicine Centre. Prep your bike, clothes, breakfast, and workout plan the night before.
4. MAKE A DATE
A study published in Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice found that exercisers who felt they were part of a group were more likely to show up on a regular basis, regardless of the hour. It’s easier to bail on yourself than on a friend.
5. SLEEP IN CYCLES
Your body cycles between light to deep sleep and back in about 90 minutes, says Shawn Stevenson, author of Sleep Smarter: 21 Essential Strategies to Sleep Your Way to a Better Body, Better Health, and Bigger Success. Being roused mid- cycle leads to that groggy feeling. Instead, Stevenson says, try to get five or six full cycles (seven and a half or nine hours of sleep) before your alarm goes off.
6. GET A LIGHTEMITTING ALARM CLOCK
A 2014 study in the European Journal of Applied Physiology found that when people were gradually exposed to light 30 minutes before they woke up, they performed better in a 4- kay cycling time trial, and also had quicker reaction times – a good thing, if your dawn patrol includes technical trails or pack riding.