The moment you start to wake up early in the morning, you practically begin to realise that a systematic early wake-up not only increases effectiveness of your daily routine but also carries innumerable benefits for your overall well-being.

If you are a confirmed 'up-to-late-hours' sleeper, you must have noticed how late you actually start your day, and even though you get more than enough sleep, you somehow still feel heavy-eyed and sluggish. Also, because you have breakfast at lunch time and eat at odd hours, you don't feel the healthiest, which only complicates your routine further.

When you begin to give these things a serious thought, no matter how big a sleepomaniac you are, you will seek to change your way of life and became an early bird, and this is how you can achieve your goal.

Welcome the new day

Invent a special ritual to greet each new day. Pull the curtains from your windows or come out to the balcony to watch the city waking. The point is to greet the new day, to feel the joy of it's beginning and to breathe in some fresh morning air. Those who get up late also miss one of the most magnificent images of nature — the sunrise. When darkness of the night is gradually being replaced by dawn, the edge of the sky pours shades of scarlet, painting the sky in rich, bright colours — a magical sight which you can observe only early in the morning.

'The early bird catches the best worm'

Observations show that the sooner you begin your day, the more efficiently your day's work can be completed. When you get up late, you end up rushing through the remaining of it to meet deadlines. If you have school or work, or if you're a parent and have school-going children, the habit of getting up late can leave you in a bit of a fix. Try and wake up early and there will be ample time for unhurried breakfast, cleaning, organising and grooming — you can even catch the morning news.

Enjoying the tranquillity

The best thing about an early morning is that there is silence and peace. There is no loud television, no honking cars, no shouting street vendors, only serenity, which you rarely enjoy at any other time of the day. Because there are no disturbances, you can give yourself some good quality time and read a book or two, meditate or simply savour the tranquil morning. You can also organise your personal things, prepare yourself an herbal mask, or do your morning exercise, that too on a regular basis because you are not rushing to finish other things on your to-do list.

Breakfast is a must

The goodness of an early morning breakfast, instead of a hasty one at noon when you wake up late, covers about 35 per cent of our daily nutritional ratio. If that is not convincing enough, ask yourself whether you can equalise a cup of freshly-made coffee or tea and a properly cooked meal with a hurriedly attacked sandwich with a few gulps of instant coffee. Besides, missed breakfasts often become a smart excuse to stuff ourselves with harmful foods for the rest of the day, because of which we not only put on a lot of flab but also spoil our health.

Movement is life

Rush hour is a time when you have to face frequent 'unpleasant surprises' in the form of traffic jams. But there is a simple formula to avoid that go to work a bit early. Even if you can push your morning routine back 15 minutes, you will be shocked at how empty the roads will be. Because you're reaching work a little early, try and fix your appointments within the first half of the day and you will realise that starting early and on time will not only make a good impression on your business counterparts but will also allow you to prepare thoroughly for your meetings and presentations.

Making the best of it

The morning is the most productive time of the day. It is a good time to write an article, to complete your diary, to organise your budget, to draw up a list of weekly shopping and so on. You will be surprised at how many things you will get out of your way by the time evening approaches, if you have had an early start. This way you can also save the evening hours for your family and friends, who are always complaining of your absence.

Taking the first step

Before everything else, you need to remember that drastic changes can adversely affect us, both physically and psychologically, which is why it is better to start slowly and gradually. In order to rise early, it is very important to go to bed early, which will take serious effort initially. If you start with 10 to 15-minute shifts and take it up from there, the process will be a tad easier. Waking up early can be quite a challenge, because of which you need to set an award for yourself in the morning. Knowing that you have something exciting awaiting you early in the morning the next day, will make you look forward to rising early. So do not waste those precious morning hours, rise and shine.