Dr. Matthew Walker teaches us that, “Waking up at the same time of day, every day, no matter if it is the week or weekend is a good recommendation for maintaining a stable sleep schedule if you are having difficulty with sleep.”
He goes on to share, “Your body’s internal clock likes to keep a specific schedule. Going to bed late one night and early the next throws your circadian rhythm off balance. Playing catchup on sleep over the weekend doesn’t work as well as you might think. It’ll take a bit of planning, but aim to dive under the sheets around the same time every night."
We’re going to set two daily recurring alarms. One for when you should go to sleep, and one for when you should wake up.
For your sleep time alarm, you can set it for 30 minutes before bedtime (or for as much time as you’ll need to get ready once the alarm goes off).
For your morning alarm, set it for the time you’d like to wake up daily, giving you around 8 hours of total sleep.
Set a recurring alarm for the time you want to go to bed, and the time you want to wake up. Pick times that you can follow every day, including weekends.
On Snooze Buttons:
Try not to use the snooze button on your alarm, but instead wake up on the first alarm.
Dr. Walker warns, “The snooze feature means that you will repeatedly impose that cardiovascular spike again and again within a short span of time. Step and repeat this at least five days a week, and you begin to understand the possible consequences to your heart and nervous system across a life span.”