Something by Susie

Are you more of a night or morning person?

There was a time as a teenager I swear I could sleep all day.  My early working career involved night shifts, so that was a valid excuse to sleep all day.

Then I moved to the middle East, the UAE to be exact and the heat of the day and night forces you out into the early morning for the cooler air, I say cool 40°C is cooler than 50°C, that’s a lot cooler, and just before sunrise and the blazing heat bearing down on you.  So you tend to start your day earlier here. If you want to exercise outside you go running before sun up, play football, several hours after sun down. 

Most people here have a vitamin D deficiency

Anything to avoid those rays, side fact, surprisingly, most people here have a vitamin D deficiency, and a very healthy fear of skin cancer! It’s not surprising then that the night time here is a vibrant culture of families sitting in parks, and on beaches at night, enjoying a picnic, take-out or bbq in the cooler evening air.  Cooler is still 40°C remember. 😂 😰

I guess as a younger adult, my logic was trying to squeeze more into the last moments of the day, which invariably was late night TV, or late night drinking. It took age and maturity to realise starting the day earlier meant I could put more of the right stuff into my day, start it out right. Be able to appreciate nature and the beauty of a sunrise. I still find birds waking up annoying though, why do they have to be so vocal, you’re awake, I got it!

My recent post, My Miracle Morning – it’s a game changer explains how I fill all those fabulous earlier hours of the day. Getting up earlier means I had to train myself to go to bed earlier, to learn I wasn’t actually missing anything, anywhere, that the TV wasn’t that important, but my getting 8hrs sleep was.  After a while I started to feel better, less tired, my quality of sleep was improving as well.  I had more energy, less aches and pains, better skin,  healthier eating habits, well more like no late night boredom snacks!

I love the early morning vibes, a fantastic start to the day. My newest addition to the morning routine, is to not leave before I’ve had my 5 mins of dancing like no one is watching.  Stick on a favourite track on Alexa and bounce around all over the place.  A better version of me always leaves the apartment after that.  Harper, my dog, is still trying to work out what this part of my routine is all about, and why it doesn’t involve her getting treats!