How to make waking up for a morning ride a little easier

Morning rides on quiet roads are a cycling dream. In the summer the heat hasn’t yet hit and in the spring and fall, you get to watch the sun rise. You finish feeling ready to take on the day, having already accomplished something before even starting work.

Waking up for a morning ride, on the other hand, is a whole different story. For many non-morning people, the minute the alarm goes off any excuse to go back to sleep will dominate their thoughts. They know that they’ll be happy they rode, but until they get outside and sit on the saddle, the bed is still calling them.

Here are some methods to make getting up for a morning ride a little easier.

Start slowly

Jumping from a 8:30 a.m. wake-up time to a 5:30 a.m. alarm will not be pleasant or sustainable. Gradually increase your wakeup time, setting your alarm 15 minutes earlier every day or two, and try to adjust your bedtime accordingly.

Have an accountability buddy

Have a friend hold you accountable to your riding plans—it’s much harder to turn off your alarm, think about riding for 20 seconds then promptly go back to sleep when you know someone is waiting to meet up with you. Even if you’re not riding together, a message from them making sure you’re up and getting on kit (you can do the same) is a good way to keep the motivation going.

Soak up the sun

As soon as you get up, open the blinds. If it’s dark or overcast turn on the lights and a happy light if you have one. The light will tell your brain “it’s time to wake up” and will help you fight the urge to go back to bed.

Make your bed

The temptation to bail on a ride and crawl back under the covers will be dampened by a crisply laid out sheet.

Avoid caffeine at night

Caffeine and cycling go hand-in-hand, but drinking a coffee too late can make it harder to fall asleep and disrupt your sleep pattern. Alcohol can also cause sleep issues, so go easy on it if you’re planning an early ride.

RELATED: Here is everything cyclists should know about caffeine

Move your alarm

If you sleep in the same bed as someone else they might hate you for this, but a very effective way of getting yourself out of bed is forcing yourself to get up and walk across the room to turn off an alarm.

Eat breakfast before you ride

Even if you don’t have much appetite in the morning, eating just a small amount of food will signal to your body that you’re awake and the day has started. A tasty breakfast can also be a great motivator for getting up, so plan a meal that will make you excited to get out of bed.

Set one alarm

Setting multiple alarms or hitting snooze won’t help you get up, and it can even confuse your body as it tries to figure out if it should be sleeping or waking up. Be hard on yourself: Set one alarm, don’t hit snooze and sit up immediately when it goes off to avoid accidentally falling back asleep.

Maintain a schedule

Although it might be tempting to sleep in on weekends, if you’re trying to get in the habit of waking up early to ride maintaining a regular sleep schedule will make your life much easier. Your body will adapt to the time your set your alarm and you’ll be surprised to find how easily you wake up in the early morning.

That being said, if you happen to go to bed later or feel particularly drained from a hard workout it’s important to listen to your body and give it the sleep it needs for proper recovery—even if that means missing a morning ride and sleeping in once in a while.