Have you ever woken up feeling really groggy, grumpy or even more tired than before you went to bed? Then you could be suffering from a lack of good quality sleep or even stress. In the 21^st century way of life, we’re exposed to a lot of things that can have adverse effects on our sleep and our bodies ability to recharge and refuel during the night. We’re talking stimulants like caffeine and electronics – yes instagram can be a great motivational tool, but maybe your hourly scrolling be doing more harm than good. Also think about the stresses in your daily life – maybe you feel like you’re running around like a headless chicken and over exerting yourself at work. If that’s the case then you need to stop, take a deep breath and rethink a better strategy, because it’s not making your mornings hip, healthy or happy!

With Hip & Healthy, you can be sure that help is never far away. Below are some handy tips to feeling awesome in the morning!

Exercise

Would you look at that! We’ve found yet another excuse to show you how beneficial exercise can be! If you’re always hitting the snooze button in the morning, then moving your body and increasing your heart rate will, without doubt, make a big difference as you’ll be physically more tired and therefore more likely to fall into a deeper sleep while your body repairs itself. For the more vigorous type of exercise, we recommend getting a morning slot at the gym as strenuous exercise in the evening can disrupt your sleeping patterns as it increases your adrenalin and raises your body’s temperature. But don’t worry if you haven’t had time to fit in a morning workout – a brisk walk, a light jog or some gentle pre-bed yoga will do just the trick!

Electronic Curfew

An important tip that could drastically improve your sleep, is setting an electronic curfew. Stimulating your brain right up until you switch the light off will not only make falling asleep a challenge, but it will also affect the quality of your sleep each night and hence, affect how you feel the next day. An hour or two before bed, we suggest to turn the TV off and put any iPads, laptops and phones away so you can allow your body and brain to recognise that bed time is fast approaching.

Create A Wind Down Routine

Once all your electronics get switched off, you’ll probably be thinking, “Now what?” Well it’s the perfect time to start your evening wind down routine to help relax your body and get it prepared for sleep. Run a bath with some essential oils and give yourself a little pamper. Or why not whip out your yoga mat any release any unwanted tension or stress by doing a few stretches? Whatever relaxing method you choose, we‘re certain you’ll feel fresh, awake and ready to go the next morning!

Find Your Perfect Temperature

Not an obvious thing to consider but it can make or break your sleeping patterns and your willingness to merrily hop out of bed the next morning. Finding your perfect temperature is a very personal thing so get experimenting! If you tend to wake up feeling hot and flustered in the night then try setting your bedroom’s temperature lower so you feel slightly cooler. Or if you’re the kind to wake up with ice cold feet and a case of the shivers then you might need to grab an extra blanket and turn up the heating a little.

Natural Wakeup Call

Are alarm clocks successful at waking us up? Yes. Are they a pleasant thing to wake up to? No! H&H believe that waking up as naturally as possible will make a huge difference to your mornings for the better. So if you’re prone to feeling groggy and grumpy in the mornings then why not swap noise for light? Christopher Peck, personal trainer at The Workshop Gym in the Bulgari Hotel in Knightsbridge, says “I love the Lumie BodyClock! It naturally wakes me up due to the gentle light exposure, and I never feel groggy in the morning. It’s especially good during winter and it makes my 5:30am starts way easier!” Designed to gradually get lighter, it replicates what it would be like to wake up under the sun. Who wouldn’t love that? Shop the Lumie BodyClock range here!

words by Molly Jennings