Win the morning, win the day

Plus January raffle winners announced!

I’m Brandon Wilson. I am constantly working toward improving my mind, body, and spirit using various ancient techniques and cutting-edge biohacking tools and devices. I want to be healthy, but not at the expense of being happy. This simple idea is what it means to be wellthy.

First time reading? Let’s get you in the club.

---

Is this you??

How did you wake up this morning? Leaping out of bed, grateful for another day to share your light with the world? Or crowbarring yourself from your cosey sheets and dreading what feels like too much responsibility? Maybe somewhere in between.

The most successful people all have one thing in common—they maintain a consistent and effective morning routine. What’s so special about mornings, you ask? Let’s talk about why mornings are so important.

Why mornings matter (more than you think)

• You’ll be more proactive. In the July 2010 issue of Harvard Business Review, an article published by Christoph Randler, a professor of biology at the University of Education in Heidelberg, Germany, noted the following: “People whose performance peaks in the morning are better positioned for career success because they’re more proactive than people who are their best in the evening.”¹

• You’ll anticipate and minimize or avoid problems. In the same study, Randler noted that morning people are “better able to anticipate and minimize problems, are proactive, have greater professional success, and ultimately make higher wages.”

• You’ll plan like a pro. Think of how you feel when you sleep through your alarm and wake up late. Morning people have the time to organize, anticipate, and plan for their day.

• You’ll have more energy. If you want more energy, get more oxygen. There’s no better way to do that than exercise. Some quick physical activity helps increase blood to the brain to help you think clearly and focus on what’s important. Fresh oxygen will reach every cell, increasing your energy all day.

• You’ll gain early bird attitude advantages. A 2014 study at the University of Barcelona in Spain found differences in personality traits between early birds and night owls.² Among the differences, the researchers found that morning people tend to be more persistent and resistant to fatigue, frustration, and difficulties. They tend to have lower levels of anxiety and depression, less likelihood of substance abuse, and higher life satisfaction.

• You’ll avoid night owl disadvantages. According to the same study, evening people tend to be more extravagant, temperamental, impulsive, and novelty-seeking. They are more likely to suffer from insomnia and ADHD. They also appear more likely to develop addictive behaviors, mental disorders, and antisocial tendencies.

You might agree with all these benefits, yet you still say to yourself, “I’m not a morning person.” I get it. I was the King of Snooze for many years, primarily due to bad habits. The only limitations are in your mind. You have the power to change your life.

The key is to focus on waking up better. The hardest part about getting up an hour earlier is the first five minutes. If you can master those five minutes, you are well on your way to becoming a morning person and reaping all the benefits. Let’s talk about this 5-minute plan in more detail.

The Five-Minute Snooze-Proof Wake-up Strategy

Minute One: Set your intentions before bed.

Your first thought in the morning is usually your last thought when you went to bed.

“The day doesn’t start when you wake up in the morning. The day starts when you go to bed the night before.” —Satchin Panda, PhD

Consciously decide every night to actively and mindfully create a positive expectation for the next morning. I compiled a list of my best tips for a good night’s sleep in a previous newsletter.

Minute Two: Walk across the room to turn off the alarm.

Keep your alarm (probably your phone) on the other side of the room. Force yourself to get out of bed and engage your body in movement. Motion creates energy, helping to wake you up naturally. If you wake up when it’s still dark, consider a sunrise alarm clock that will provide a gradual light signal to encourage wakefulness. If nothing else, turn the bedroom light on to give another signal to the body that it’s time to wake up.

Minute Three: Brush your teeth.

While you’re at it, splash some water on your face. Do whatever else you need to do in the bathroom.

Minute Four: Drink a full glass of water.

After six to eight hours without water, you will be mildly dehydrated, which causes fatigue. Often, when people feel tired, they need to drink more water. I recommend filtered/purified water with electrolytes. I use RO-filtered water and add BEAM Minerals and a pinch of sea salt. If you want to try products from BEAM Minerals, use my code BRANDON51920 to save 20%. Prepare a glass jar of water with a lid the night before so it’s ready to go.

Here is a note for coffee drinkers. In his book, The Power of When, Michael Breus, PhD, says that drinking coffee first thing in the morning does not wake you up, make you alert, or give you an energy boost. According to science, all it does is raise your tolerance for caffeine so that you need to drink more and more to feel any effects. The recommendation is to wait at least 90 minutes after waking up for your morning brew.

Minute Five: Get dressed or jump in the shower.

Get dressed in the exercise clothes you set out the night before, or maybe sleep in your workout clothes. Alternatively, you can hop in the shower.

By the time you execute these five simple steps, you will have built momentum, so you’ll be ready to go instead of feeling groggy and shuffling around aimlessly and zombified.

If you want more tips and strategies for a successful morning, I suggest the book The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life (Before 8 AM) by Hal Elrod.

Paperback Kindle Audiobook

Note: Some links above are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

---

The Daily Habit is where I share my habits related to the fundamentals: sleep, diet, physical activity, mindfulness, and stress management.

Morning is an excellent time for meditation. If you only have five or ten minutes, that’s still enough to get the benefits. The key is to find a method that works for you. Here are some free meditation tracks that you might find helpful.

• The 6 Phase Meditation with Vishen Lakhiani

• Sound 21-minute meditation that addresses all 7 Chakras.

• Tony Robbins priming exercise

Several phone apps offer thousands of meditations on a variety of topics.

Insight Timer - Free, $60 annual premium membership

Healthy Minds - Free

Expand from the Monroe Institute - Limited meditations for free, $70 annual membership, $12 monthly membership

Calm - 7-day free trial, $70 annual membership

Headspace - 14-day free trial, $70 annual membership, $13 monthly membership

Breethe - 14-day free trial, $13 monthly membership

Ten Percent Happier - 7-day free trial, $100 annual membership

Waking Up - 14-day free trial, $120 annual membership, $20 monthly membership

---

Refer Subscribers, Earn Perks!

With the new referral program, you can earn perks like a complimentary Club Membership and other goodies by unlocking three tiers:

• Get a 1-month complimentary membership to the Be Wellthy Club for 3 referrals.

• Get a 3-month complimentary membership to the Be Wellthy Club and receive a book from my personal library for 6 referrals.

• Get a 6-month complimentary membership to the Be Wellthy Club and a goodie bag prize for 15 referrals.

By the way, if you’re already a Club Member, the free months will be added to the end of your subscription. You'll get credit for new subscribers (free or paid) when you use the “Share” button on any post. Send the link in a text or email, or share it on social media with friends.

While signed into your Substack account, you can visit the leaderboard that shows you how many referrals you have.

To learn more about the referral program, check out Substack’s FAQ.

Thank you for helping get the word out about Be Wellthy!

---

Congratulations to the January raffle winners 🎉 🎁

Sample Club Member raffle prize. Prizes vary each month.

Renata B.

Scott L.

Last week’s answer

Be Wellthy Club entrants: Veronica C., Scott S., Renata B.

Raffle prizes are for Be Wellthy Club Members only. Club members can email bewellthy@substack.com with the correct answer to each week’s brain training and be entered into a monthly raffle to win one of two prize packages every month. I do respond to every email.

This week:

In this grid, there are five hidden 5-letter words in a continuous closed path that does not cross itself. Go from letter to letter horizontally, vertically, or diagonally to find the five words.

See the answer.

---

I offered additional tips one year ago to help you have a power morning.

Keep your loved ones informed with the most up-to-date information about wellness by sharing this newsletter.

1. https://hbr.org/2010/07/defend-your-research-the-early-bird-really-does-get-the-worm

2. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/night-owls-and-early-birds-have-different-personality-traits/#:~:text=By%20Agata%20Blaszczak%2DBoxe,and%20even%20to%20attempt%20suicide.