Make your mornings brighter Wake up the right way

Embrace the day by making sure you start each one in just the right way

How you feel when you open your eyes in the morning can set the tone for the day ahead. If you’re grumpy and groggy, you can carry these feelings with you, but if you rise feeling positive and energised, you’ll be better able to tackle the tasks ahead. Follow our expert tips to ensure you wake up feeling refreshed.

1 WRITE A GRATITUDE LIST THE NIGHT BEFORE

If we go to sleep feeling negative, chances are we won’t sleep as well, which will make it harder to wake up. ‘Each night, spend a few minutes writing down what you’re grateful for before you turn off your bedside light,’ suggests physiologist and sleep expert Dr Nerina Ramlakhan. ‘This is a powerful way of creating inner safety and will help you let go of the day peacefully.’ In fact, research from the Heartmath Institute shows that alongside helping you sleep more restoratively, gratitude bolsters the immune system and helps you recover faster from illness. Now, that is something to be grateful for!

2 KEEP A COOL BEDROOM

A toasty room temperature might make it easier to nod off, but you’ll wake up feeling groggier. Lowering your thermostat just before you go to bed will maintain the warmth you need to fall asleep and will cool the room overnight, allowing you to rise and shine. Experts say the ideal room temperature is between around 15°C to 21°C.

3 SURROUND YOURSELF WITH COLOUR

‘Seeing a bright, vibrant hue when you open your eyes gets your adrenaline going – and that sudden surge of energy helps you clear the cobwebs and kicks you into gear,’ says Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. Put a red, orange, yellow or fuchsia throw, pillow, blanket or piece of art in the area you first see in the morning, or slip into a robe in one of these shades. You can even make breakfast visually stimulating (and get a nutritional boost) by pouring yourself a glass of antioxidant-rich pomegranate or cranberry juice with a sweet slice of orange.

4 PICTURE GOOD THINGS AHEAD

When you wake up, start by visualising the good that you plan to experience throughout the day, in order to cultivate happiness. ‘Keeping your eyes closed, bring a smile to your face,’ recommends Nerina. ‘Activating the smile muscles stimulates the neural messaging in your brain and boosts the levels of feelgood neuropeptides such as dopamine and serotonin.’ You might just notice that you continue smiling throughout the day, too.

5 DON’T HIT SNOOZE

It’s true what they say: ‘when you snooze, you lose’! When you hit the snooze button, your brain knows it’s going to wake up again, so you won’t get back into that highly-covetable deep sleep. This means you’ll actually wake up feeling worse than before. ‘Hitting snooze can make you feel groggy and lethargic throughout the day,’ says Nerina. She recommends that, instead, you use those minutes you’d normally be snoozing to reconnect with your inner self. ‘When you become aware that you’re awake, breathe in and out, and ask yourself how you’re feeling,’ she suggests.

6 DRINK A BIG GLASS OF WATER

Even a 2% drop in water stores can tire you physically and mentally, so this is a good way to replenish the fluid your body loses overnight, providing you with instant energy. Starting to sip early also gives you a head start on drinking the 1.2 litres (about six to eight glasses) that the NHS recommends drinking every day to stay hydrated and healthy.

7 PUT FLOWERS BY YOUR BED

If you’re looking for an excuse to treat yourself to your favourite flowers, it’s good to know that their positive effect can last all day long. In one study, women who saw a bouquet of blooms when they first woke up experienced a mood lift and energy boost that lasted. They felt happier and less anxious at home, as well as more energetic at work.

8 LET THE LIGHT IN

A splash of sunlight makes you feel more awake, so open those curtains as quickly as possible! ‘Sunlight provides vitamin D and helps us follow the natural circadian rhythm that tells our bodies the time of day and whether we should be gearing up for activity, or rest,’ says Nerina. Daylight also increases the brain’s level of serotonin, which boosts mood. If it’s still dark when you get up, consider buying a dawn-simulating alarm clock (try the Lumie Bodyclock, £79), which gradually brightens the light source. Set it to create a dawn that breaks half an hour before your usual wake-up time, and grows to maximum brightness when your alarm goes off. Even when your eyes are closed, the light that passes through your lids signals your internal clock to trigger waking neurons in your brain.

‘Breathe in and out, and ask yourself how you’re feeling’