1/28/2017 BeingProductiveIsAboutUsingTheMorningWell.Here'sTheTrickYouShouldStartToday.

Being Productive Is About Using The Morning Well. Heres The Trick You Should
Start Today.
721 SHARES

Being productive can

(/) be hard. Perhaps youve fallen into a routine of getting up at a certain time, getting into work and
LOGIN(/user/login)

slumping down at your desk or place of work with no energy, motivation or direction. We live in a society where procrastination
is literally at our ngertips with social media and access to smart phones causing endless distractions and taking away our
focus.

However, there is a way to achieve this a way to achieve optimal performance and productivity that can change your whole
outlook on the traditional work life and transforming each day into a happier, more productive and exible option.

Its All About The Mornings

If youre not a morning person then it may be time to change your mindset research(https://hbr.org/ideacast/2015/03/your
brainsidealschedule.html) has found there is an ideal structure to your day that creates optimum results and also the exibility
we crave when were stuck in our 9-5 framework. The problem with our current 9-5 tradition of working is that it forces us to
work at times when our brain isnt motivated. We have the mindset that we have a long day to get our work done which causes
our brain to go into relaxation mode and it becomes harder to focus.

Like exercise, our bodies gain better results when we do short, intense periods rather than long, drawn out methods. Its then in
the recovery process where growth occurs like muscles recovering after an intense workout.

So what does this mean? Well, the best way to achieve optimum work productivity is to focus intensely for the rst 3 hours of
your day.This is the optimum time that our brains work straight after sleep whenwillpowerandselfcontrol
(http://psr.sagepub.com/content/11/4/303.short)is at its maximum.

How The First 3 Hours Can Save Your Day

It may not feel like it when you rst wake up but your energy levels are at their optimum following sleep and these energy levels
are gradually depleted as the day progresses meaning its harder for you to focus and make decisions.

How often have you dragged yourself to work and headed straight for the coffee machine because you cant possibly function
until youre at least on your third cup of caffeine? This is where youre potentially going wrong the rst 3 hours of your day
will ultimately make you or break you.

Its during this period that you can power through and make the most of your day. Creating a routine where the rst 3 hours are
intense periods of work, with pure focus and no distractions will actually cause you to complete the majority of your work at a
more optimum level leaving the rest of the day for your brain to relax and deal with less taxing projects.

In fact, if you liken it to exercise, doing a 3-hour intense work period will cause you to reap the bene ts later on in the day
because the rest of the day will become a recovery period.After exercise, this is when your muscles start to recover and get
stronger, and similarly after working your brain intensely for 3 hours, the recovery period afterwards causes the mind to loosely

http://www.lifehack.org/465012/beingproductiveisaboutusingthemorningwellheresthetrickyoushouldstarttoday 1/7
1/28/2017 BeingProductiveIsAboutUsingTheMorningWell.Here'sTheTrickYouShouldStartToday.

wander andcreative ideas and inspirations start to enter.

How To Implement The 3-Hour Morning

Your morning is the key to a successful day so its best to start getting into a morning mindset. That means getting to bed at a
reasonable time managing to get a full nights sleep so you wake refreshed and ready for the day.

1. Wake as early as possible:Try and start a routine of getting up early because the more hours you have in the morning,
the more time you have to be productive for the rest of the day. Its not actually as hard as you think, after a couple of
weeks your body and mind will start to get used to early rises and it will begin to become second nature (especially when
you realise the true bene ts).
(/) LOGIN(/user/login)

2. Eat a good protein-rich breakfast:Its essential that you start the day with a good eating routine and that means the
right kind of fuel for your brain and the rest of your body so you can work at your optimum level rst thing. A protein-rich
breakfast will help regulate blood-sugar levels and stop hunger pangs later on in the morning.

3. Avoid stimulants:Getting up early, youll be tempted to grab that cup of coffee but avoid anything that will wake you up
unnaturally. A good way to wake up is to switch your water to cold in the last minute of showering to give you a boost.

4. Meditate:Meditation is an amazing way to focus and clear the mind and doing this rst thing will help calm your whole
body and set your mindset up for the morning. It helps give clarity for any goals you have or even bring inspiration to a
problem you might be having. You can do this before you leave the house, on your commute to work if you have one, or
once you arrive at work.

5. Put away all distractions:The beauty of getting up early is that there are less people to distract you or cause you stress.
Make sure you put away your phone and make a conscious effort not to check social media or emails for the next 3 hours.
Listening to a song on repeat or music such as sounds of nature are a good way to help focus the brain and stop outside
noises from interrupting your concentration.

6. Once done, take a mental break and notice the calming difference and sense of achievement:This may seem like an
unconventional way to use your mornings and possibly take time to get used to, but its all worth it for the sense of
achievement and ef ciency youll feel. The chances are this act of focusing for 3 hours will have caused you to get much
more work done than a whole typical day put together. After the 3 hours, go for a walk and take a break your mind will
feel relaxed which will then be the optimum time for creativity to occur allowing the best ideas to come to you.

So remember toprotect your mornings.Some of us will nd this hard especially if, say, you have kids to run around after or
have a particularly long commute but adopting the mindset of making your mornings precious and distraction-free can help
structure a much more productive and happy day.

Featured photo credit: unsplash.comviapexels.com(https://www.pexels.com/photo/appleiphonebooksdesk232)

(http://www.lifehack.org/408167/science-
(http://www.lifehack.org/514508/if-
(http://www.lifehack.org/462789/10-
says-within-a-week-youll-be-more-
you-have-these-6-struggles-youre-
psychological-tricks-that-can-make-
productive-if-you-try-this?ref=swipe-
highly-intelligent?ref=swipe-
your-life-much-easier?ref=swipe-
section-in-content-bottom)
section-in-content-bottom)
section-in-content-bottom)
Science
If 10
Says
YouPsychological
Within
Have
Tricks
A These
That
Week
6 Can
Youll
Struggles,
Make
http://www.lifehack.org/465012/beingproductiveisaboutusingthemorningwellheresthetrickyoushouldstarttoday 2/7
1/28/2017 BeingProductiveIsAboutUsingTheMorningWell.Here'sTheTrickYouShouldStartToday.

BeYou're
Your
More
Highly
Life
Productive
Intelligent
Much
If (http://www.lifehack.org/514508/if-
Easier
You
you-
(http://www.lifehack.org/462789/10-
Tryhave-
psychological-
This
these-
tricks-
(http://www.lifehack.org/408167/science-
6- that-
says-
struggles-
can-
within-
youre-
make-
a- highly-
your-
week-
intelligent?
life- (/) LOGIN(/user/login)
youll-
ref=swipe-
much-
be-section-
easier?
more-
in-ref=swipe-
productive-
content-
section-
if- bottom)
in-
you- content-
try- bottom)
this?
ref=swipe-
section-
in-
content-
bottom)

Science Says Within A Week Youll Be More Productive If You Try This
981 SHARES

When someone starts taking about productivity, and how to be more productive our mind often driftsoff. We may think that to
become more productive we need to undertake some dif cult model of behavior or to adopt habits that we feel will be hard to
stick to. However, recent scienti c ndings have indicated a week of camping can effectivelychange our sleeping patterns,
which in turn can lead to greater alertness and productivity, because earlyrisersarefoundtobemoreproductivethannight
owls(https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wiredsuccess/201208/earlyrisersarehappierhealthierandmoreproductive
nightowls).

The study
Astudy(http://www.cell.com/currentbiology/abstract/S09609822(13)007641?
_returnURL=http%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS0960982213007641%3Fshowall%3Dtrue&cc=y=
)published on Thursday in the journalCurrent Biology sought to discover the effect that sitting under arti cial light bulbs all
day in the of ce has on our sleeping patterns. The research team was led byKenneth Wright, the director of the Sleep and

http://www.lifehack.org/465012/beingproductiveisaboutusingthemorningwellheresthetrickyoushouldstarttoday 3/7
1/28/2017 BeingProductiveIsAboutUsingTheMorningWell.Here'sTheTrickYouShouldStartToday.

Chronobiology Laboratory at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Wright stated: We already knew that electrical lighting,
especially at night, can push the time of your clock later, and that leads tolaterbedtimes,(http://www.npr.org/sections/health
shots/2013/07/31/207319883/wanttobeamorningpersontakeafewtipsfromcampers)but what they did not know is how
ordinary light exposure during the day could affect our sleep. To nd the answer Wright and his team recruited eight
volunteers. Each of the volunteers were given wristbands that measured their light exposure and sleeping times.

The rst week of the experiment required the volunteers to undergo their usual activities; such as going to work or school.
Then we took them all on a camping trip, Wright says. They slept in tents, and they received only naturalsunlightand
campfires.(http://www.npr.org/sections/healthshots/2013/07/31/207319883/wanttobeamorningpersontakeafewtipsfrom
campers) The participants were forbidden from bringing any electronics that produced arti cial light; even ashlights.
(/) LOGIN(/user/login)

The results of the study

Wright and his team found that the sleeping patterns of the participants changed after their week of camping. Even people who
were going to bed very late and were having dif culty being alert in the morning saw a change in their sleeping schedule; they
were going to bed earlier and waking up like the early rises.

If you consider people who are very late night owls, they stay up late and have a greater dif culty of being alert in the
morning, says write After camping, we found that their clocks were shifted and they looked more similar to the earlyrisers.
(http://www.npr.org/sections/healthshots/2013/07/31/207319883/wanttobeamorningpersontakeafewtipsfromcampers)

The participants continued to get the same hours of sleep in the wilderness as back home; their internal clocks simply moved
two hours (on average). So they were going to bed and waking up two hours earlier. Individuals who had the latest bedtimes
back at home had the larger shift in their internal clocks aftercamping,(http://www.npr.org/sections/health
shots/2013/07/31/207319883/wanttobeamorningpersontakeafewtipsfromcampers)Wright says.By the end of the week
all participants had become morning people.

Interpretation of the results

Two factors are believed to be the cause of the change in the participants sleeping habits. Firstly, the lack of arti cial light in
the wilderness setting allowed the melatonin(which aids in sleep) levels of the participants to naturally decrease at the right
times. Suchdecrease in melatonin canpromote sleep. Secondly the exposure to natural light that was achieved by living in the
outdoors helped to set their circadian clocks, which decreased melatonin levelsbeforewaking.
(http://www.smithsonianmag.com/sciencenature/aweekofcampingcanturnyouintoamorningperson)

This decrease in melatonin levels helped to prevent the groggy feeling or tiredness people can experience when they rst rise in
the morning.

The theory
Human beings evolved to work according to a 24-hour cycle, which was based on the daily rising and setting of the sun. Our
bodies knew to secrete the hormone melatonine(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melatonin)(which aids in sleep) just before the sun
went down. It also had the ability to reduce the production of melatonine before the sun rose in the morning. This worked
together with other biological patterns (our internal circadian rhythm). The circadianclock
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm)is a exible system; it can slow down or speed up depending on how much light
is around.Both these systems helped us sleep well and ensured that we woke up fresh and rested.

http://www.lifehack.org/465012/beingproductiveisaboutusingthemorningwellheresthetrickyoushouldstarttoday 4/7
1/28/2017 BeingProductiveIsAboutUsingTheMorningWell.Here'sTheTrickYouShouldStartToday.

This system worked well until the invention of electricity and other electrical devices that allow us to have light at all hours of
the day; including the night hours. As we spend most of our days inside, at school, work, shopping malls and the like, we miss
out on a lot of sunlight exposure. Sunline is needed to set our circadian clocks. Thus, our modern way of life has in a sense put
off balance our internal mechanisms that are supposed to tell us when to sleep and when to wake. This is why so many of us
now a days have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep and waking up in the mornings.

What you can do apart from camping

How can you use the nding to improve your own sleep habits?

We can achieve earlier bedtimes by having people be outside more, especially in the morning, Wright says. You could start
(/) LOGIN(/user/login)
your day with a morning walk. Raise the shades in the house. Or if you read the newspaper, do it outside.

On the ip side, he says, reduce exposure to light at night by dimming the lights or computers. This is especially important
within the hour prior beforebedtime.(http://www.npr.org/sections/healthshots/2013/07/31/207319883/wanttobeamorning
persontakeafewtipsfromcampers)

Summation
If you decide to make a big change to your lifestyle and improve your sleeping habits a week camping vacation is the way to go.
Why not take time out of your daily routine and reconnect with the outdoors? Not only will you nd that you will be able to
sleep and wake earlier you may also nd that you become more alert and productive during the day.

http://www.lifehack.org/465012/beingproductiveisaboutusingthemorningwellheresthetrickyoushouldstarttoday 5/7
1/28/2017 BeingProductiveIsAboutUsingTheMorningWell.Here'sTheTrickYouShouldStartToday.

http://www.lifehack.org/465012/beingproductiveisaboutusingthemorningwellheresthetrickyoushouldstarttoday 6/7
1/28/2017 BeingProductiveIsAboutUsingTheMorningWell.Here'sTheTrickYouShouldStartToday.

http://www.lifehack.org/465012/beingproductiveisaboutusingthemorningwellheresthetrickyoushouldstarttoday 7/7