5 Habits You Should Avoid First Thing In The Morning huffpost.com
A good morning routine is a foundational part of self-care, affecting everything from your energy levels and productivity to the state of your skin. But it is easy to fall into less-than-ideal habits without even realizing it ― particularly during a global pandemic when we are collectively coping with much bigger issues and routines have long gone out the window.
Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to get back on track. We asked experts for some of the most common morning routine mistakes and easy fixes to try instead. Mistake #1:
Hitting The Snooze Button More than half of Americans say they hit the snooze button daily, so know that if you do too, you’re in good company.
Also, it’s really not your fault. Growing research suggests that workdays and school days start too early, causing millions of kids and adults to lose out on the hours of sleep their brains and bodies need.
So trying to sneak in a few last-minute ZZZs might seem like your only recourse. But alas, it doesn’t work.
“It’s so tempting to keep hitting snooze,” said Niket Sonpal, a New York City-based internist and faculty member with the Touro College of Medicine. “But it’s not beneficial.”
That’s because the extra minutes you eke out at that point aren’t actually restorative, even if they feel good at the time.
Plus, you could be disrupting the longer periods of REM sleep that tend to happen early in the morning.
And frequent interruptions to the natural sleep cycle have been linked to range of both mental effects (like cognitive issues and depression) as well as physical ones (like metabolic problems).
“If you want some extra time in the morning, a better idea would be to set your clock ahead 15 minutes and wake up the minute it goes off,” Sonpal said. “If you have to set a really annoying alarm tone, then do so.” Mistake #2:
Letting Your Mind Be ‘Directed’ By Your Phone
Another big morning mistake people make is reaching for their phones while they’re still under the covers, said Naomi Parrella, a primary care physician with Rush University Medical Group.
If the very first thing you do in the morning is check email, look at social media or scan the...
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