Studies find that morning people are actually happier than night owls, and they also reported feeling healthier. Here are some tips to becoming a morning person, without changing much in your life:

1. End Your Day Earlier

If you want to wake up earlier, it follows that we end our nights earlier and get to bed.  We often overestimate how much available time we have for extra work projects, meet ups and hang outs after the work day is over.  You should assume you have one less hour in the evening, so that time can be used to decompress and get ready for bed.

2. Eat a real meal for breakfast

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so if you are trying to give yourself an extra boost of energy to get through the morning you shouldn’t skip it. After sleeping all night, our metabolism and blood sugar are at their lowest so a well-balanced and healthy breakfast is needed to reenergize us. You should include a protein, vegetable, and a whole grain.

3. Don’t hit the snooze button

Once you are up, stay up, and avoid crawling back into bed as this will only make getting up more difficult. Try taking advantage of the extra time to read your favorite magazine or newspaper, or enjoy your cup of coffee and prepare for the day ahead.

4. Exercise before breakfast

Research has shown that exercising before breakfast burns more fat calories and results in more weight loss than exercising after breakfast.  Early morning exercise can help boost the morning energy surge, because of elevated body temperature and adrenaline levels after you exercise.

5. Turn on the lights

Your brain is sensitive to light and temperature, which is why it is difficult to sleep late into the morning unless we are in complete darkness.  To get up easier in the morning, lift the shades and turn on the lights so that your body knows its morning and time to get moving.

6. Turn off electronics at night

Turn off electronic devices an hour or two before bedtime to help create an atmosphere that induces sleep mode.  This will also aid your mind in associating the evening with slowing down so that you can mentally prepare for sleep.  You can’t expect your brain and body to slow down if you are not. It’s difficult to decompress if the glow off your phone, TV and noise from the radio is making it feel like midday.