As soon as you wake up after a night of sleep, you should get out of bed, according to Matthew Walker, author of 'Why We Sleep', and Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. If you lie awake in bed, your brain links being awake to being in bed.
5 AM is a great hour to dedicate to yourself without any distractions. Getting up at 5 AM isn't just a way to get more work done; it's a way to give more time to yourself. During this time, it's a great idea to work out, plan your day, meditate, or do self-care.
The best time to have breakfast is within two hours of getting up. "The sooner you eat breakfast after you wake up, the better it is for your metabolism," says Larson. If you hit the gym in the AM, it's best to have a light meal like a banana or an avocado toast 20-30 minutes before workout.
The more abruptly you are awakened, the more severe the sleep inertia. While we may feel that we wake up quickly enough, transitioning easily between sleep mode and awake mode, the process is in reality far more gradual.
"The overall best is if you can wake up naturally because you're done sleeping," he said. On the other hand, if you're waking up early on just a few hours of sleep, you should probably try and squeeze in some more shuteye.
Sleep: what to expect at 5-11 years
At 5-11 years, children need 9-11 hours sleep a night. For example, if your child wakes for school at 7 am and needs approximately 10 hours sleep per night, your child should be in bed before 9 pm. Some children fall deeply asleep very quickly when they go to bed.
Drinking water first thing in the morning flushes out the stomach and therefore balances the lymphatic system. A stable lymphatic system will help build a strong immune system, which will prevent us from getting sick as often.
Drinking water first thing in the morning immediately helps rehydrate the body. Your six to eight hours of sleep is a long period to go without any water consumption. Drinking two or three glasses of water right when you wake up is a good way to rehydrate your body quickly.
"Most people hit their deepest sleep between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m.," says WebMD sleep expert Michael Breus, PhD, D, ABSM, "so it's very hard to wake up during that time."
In addition to that, some studies recommend that early bedtimes are preferable for a healthy body clock and some argue that 8 am is the best time to wake up.
Due to it taking time to dissipate, melatonin is still present in our bodies when we wake up. This is the reason why we get that comfortable feeling upon waking, and why we end up staying in bed.
Most people are brought up thinking that dinner should be the biggest meal of the day, meaning they opt for a light breakfast and lunch. However, research has found that a smaller dinner and larger lunch could be the key to helping you shift those weight.
The Theory: Nutrition experts tend to recommend eating 3 balanced meals (350 to 600 calories each) and 1 to 3 snacks per day (between 150 and 200 calories each). The calories for each meal and snack depend on a variety of factors including, height, weight, age, gender and activity level.
The benefits of drinking water on an empty stomach include positive effects for flushing toxins from the body, increasing energy and immunity, reducing weight and increasing metabolism, and preventing headaches and kidney stones.
5 am to 7 am is the time of the Large Intestine making it a perfect time to have a bowel movement and remove toxins from the day before. It is also the ideal time to wash your body and comb your hair.
You can figure out the best bedtime for your schedule based on when you have to wake up in the morning and counting backward by 7 hours (the recommended minimum per night for adults). For example, if you need to be up by 6 a.m., you should consider winding down before 11 p.m.