Seize the morning: Sleep smarter, live better
If you’re in your early- or mid-50s or early 60s, near retirement or in retirement, is it possible to be so sleep deprived that you can’t incorporate healthy eating habits and exercise? Do you want to kick that “I’m not a morning person” out of bed for good and get your sleep back so you can start living the life you want?
This week’s article is about sleep, healthy eating habits and exercise in our prime, and why it’s important to have a consistent morning routine. We invited Wellness Coach Angie Mercier, a happily retired District School Board Superintendent of Education, lifelong fitness leader and advocate for healthy living, to give us advice and tell us a little bit about her story.
How Angie “I’m not a morning person” Mercier changed the story she was telling herself.
They say if you tell yourself something often enough – good or bad, you start to believe it. It’s true. I’ve always told myself that I’m NOT a morning person, and I’ve always believed it completely.
Before retirement, I would look at others with envy when they would get up before the sun, before their kids, and get their journaling AND workout done before the stomping of barefeet in the house broke the silence, and all before work.
Not me.
I savored every last second of sleep. I hit the snooze button not once, not twice, sometimes three times or more, before peeling my exhausted body out of bed and into the shower. Sound familiar?!
So when I retired, I was extremely sleep deprived, and all I wanted to do was sleep in, wake up without an alarm, go to bed whenever I wanted, just let my natural rhythms take over.
Isn’t that what all retirees do?
I was a little confused when a close friend continued to get up and exercise at 6:00 a.m. even as a retiree. “Why the heck would she do that, when she doesn’t HAVE to anymore??” I’d ask myself. Why, no really, why put your body through that?
But after a while of staying up late and sleeping in until I woke up, I noticed I wasn’t feeling so great mentally or physically, without a routine. I felt I was wasting my time away. And so I switched things up.
Changing your nighttime and morning routines when you’re retired
What made a difference for me was joining a virtual community of others my age to focus on my fitness and nutrition. I started a fitness program, customized to my level of fitness, and with daily consistency (30-45 minutes per day), after an 8-week program, I started to feel better and even look better! My clothes felt more comfortable, my skin tone improved, my mood was positive. I also began a nutrition program with the goal of building muscle, something that is challenging to do after age 50. I have learned that nutrition is not about rules and deprivation, but more about fuelling my body to have energy for life!
Now I have added coaching others in their health and wellness, because I am so passionate about it, and I not only feel productive, but also connected and fulfilled. Journaling about my goals and my gratitude are also part of my daily personal development practice.
Here's what I started feeling and what I’ve learned about mornings. Some might surprise you!
Here’s the last thing that has become crystal clear to me, life is tooooo short to spend more than eight hours in bed. I want to make the most of my awake time during the days I have left in this incredible life!
Many people who have started working with me as their coach have also started our first conversation together with “I’m not a morning person,” but I can honestly say that most of them have changed their schedules to make physical movement happen in the morning. They get it done, they feel great for the rest of the day, and they build a consistent habit. And with that, comes all the physical benefits you are looking for, such as building muscle, losing weight, healthier heart and digestive system.
So are you a morning person? Could you be? Yes you could! If I can do it (I was the self proclaimed night owl 🦉), so can you! Reflect on the story you tell yourself and if it’s helping you to live your life to the fullest and healthiest version of you.
If you want more info about how you can join Angie to build solid lifelong habits in fitness and nutrition, and maybe even develop a morning routine! She’s there for you! You can email her at angiemerciercoach[at]gmail.com and follow her on Facebook ThrivewithAngieM or Instagram @angiemercier_
Other articles or resources that may be of interest
Free Life Assessment Quiz (no need to submit an email address)
Worry Warts Beware if retirement is near. Take the free quiz to see if you’re prepared.
I am retired and still a night owl. I get what you’re saying about sleep. Very important to get good quality sleep and increasingly harder to do so with some of the side effects of ageing imposing themselves. You are quite right to emphasise how important good sleep is especially as we age.
But what I didn’t get was the ‘not having a morning routine’ bit if you’re not a morning person. When you sleep the right amount – say 12.30am to 8.30am or 1am to 9am, you still can have a perfectly nice morning routine. I enjoy mine a lot. It’s just jogged a bit further up the day than yours and has a different content. Plus, it varies a bit from day to day – we often do yoga sometimes at 8.30 and sometimes at 10 am depending on the class. It is possible to get up earlier, but it is really enjoyable to stay in bed reading, drinking tea or snoozing a bit longer. Makes up for all those morning when I had to get into the office early. And that makes me feel good every day.
I guess a change is as good as a rest.