At 6 AM, most of us are lucky if we have the energy to reach for a cup of coffee. Mornings may be rough, but hold off on sleeping in. There are perks to waking up with the sun, and we've got some tips on making it easier.
早上6:00，大部分人估計都沒那本事爬起來衝杯咖啡吧?早上是痛苦的，賴床怎麼也賴不夠。不過，還是有辦法能讓你伴著陽光醒來的，下面這些建議，就能讓你早起更輕鬆!
Snooze and Lose: The Need to Know
貪睡與損失：你有必要知道
The old 「I’m just too tired」 complaint may be more than a sorry excuse for waking up late. Research suggests there are biological differences between early larks, who wake up at the same time every morning and feel most active around 9 AM, and night owls, who get more stuff done once the sun goes down. And it may get easier to greet the day at dawn as we get older, thanks to body clock changes as we age .
那句「我只是太累了」的爛熟抱怨或許不只是晚起的藉口那麼簡單。研究表明，「早起鳥」和「夜貓子」在生物上有著很多區別。「早起鳥」每天早上同一時間清醒，上午9:00時大腦最為活躍;而「夜貓子」的辦事效率則在太陽落山後更高。而且，老了以後或許會更容易適應凌晨就醒的狀態，畢竟人體生物鐘也會隨著年齡增大而發生變化。
It turns out the early bird may get more than the worm. According to self-reports from college students, those who wake up earlier feel more optimistic and proactive than those who rise later. Other studies have found morning larks tend to be harder working and conscientious than night owls. (Still, it’s not clear whether waking up early actually makes someone more productive or optimistic.)
事實證明，早起的鳥兒或許真的就能吃到更多的蟲子。根據大學生的自我報告，早起的人比晚起的人要更樂觀積極。其他研究也發現，「早起鳥」比「夜貓子」更努力更自覺。(不過，早起是否真能讓一個人變得更有效率或更加樂觀，依然不甚清楚。)
And perhaps the secret to a 4.0 isn’t only hitting the books: Another study of university undergraduates found those who said they function better in the morning received higher grades than those who preferred the evening That’s possibly because morning risers are more likely to get to class on time or to forgo late-night partying. Researchers also suggest memory may improve during sleep, so getting to bed earlier in preparation for a morning alarm could help those exam notes soak in.
或許考高分的秘訣不只是「啃書本」了：大學生的另一項調查發現，那些自稱早上頭腦更清晰的人，通常也比那些夜晚型的人更容易考高分。這很可能也是因為早起型的人更容易準時上課或不去參加深夜派對吧。研究人員還認為，記憶可能會在睡眠時得到增強，所以早點上床準備第二天早起的話，確實會有助於吸收記憶考試內容吧。
Being a morning person may actually be good for our health, too. When UK researchers questioned adults about their sleep habits, they found people who stay under the covers on the weekdays until 9 AM are more likely to be stressed, overweight, and depressed than those who get up at 7 AM. Another study found teenagers who went to bed and woke up late were less inclined to hit the gym and more likely to be overweight than those who went to bed and woke up early. Talk about waking up on the wrong side of the bed. (Again, remember it’s not clear that waking up early causes stress, depression, or weight gain.)
而且，做一個早起的人確實也有益於身體健康。當英國的研究人員調查成年人的睡眠習慣時，他們發現，工作日賴床賴到9:00的人，比那些7:00就起床的人更容易增加體重、感到沮喪有壓力。另有調查發現，較之於早睡早起型，那些晚睡晚起的年輕人不太會去健身運動，自然也就更容易發胖。這正是起不了床又毀了一天的情緒。(當然，早起是否會導致壓力、抑鬱或體重加劇，依然不甚明確。)
Good Day Sunshine: Your Action Plan
陽光美好的一天：你的行動計劃
Night owls aren’t totally out of luck. One study found evening lovers are more productive than morning people are at night. Still, being a morning person may be more advantageous for most people’s work schedules and routines, since the workday typically starts around 9 AM and the office is (usually!) not open at midnight. Regardless of the situation, there are ways to reset the body clock and happily greet the day:
「夜貓子」也不完全一無是處。有項調查發現，「夜貓子」在晚上遠比「早起鳥」有效率。不過，對大多數人的工作計劃和日常事務而言，早起還是很佔優勢的，畢竟，工作日上班通常都是9:00開始，而不是半夜!不管怎樣，還是有辦法調整生物鐘，從而開心擁抱新的一天的：
1. Get enough sleep. It may seem obvious, but getting those recommended seven to nine hours will make getting up earlier easier. Pro tip? Keep the laptop and other work out of the bed to sleep soundly.
保證充足睡眠。或許有些老掉牙，但睡足7-9小時確實更容易讓你早起。小建議就是，請讓筆記本電腦以及其他事務遠離床頭，酣睡一覺吧!
2. Stay consistent. Try to set the alarm clock for the same time every morning—including weekends. A constant wakeup call may make it progressively easier to jump out of bed.
保持持續一致。每天早上的鬧鐘都要設成相同的時間——周末也是。堅持早上被這樣叫醒，然後你會越來越起得來床。
3. Start slowly. Pick a new wakeup time and gradually work towards it. Want to wake up at 7 AM but stuck at 8? Start by setting the clock for 7:45, and move down in 15-minute increments until that new time goal is reached.
循序漸進。重新定一個起床時間，然後慢慢去適應它。本想7:00起床，卻一直賴到了8:00?那就把鬧鐘調到7:45吧，留15分鐘間隙讓起床目標更容易實現!
4. Skip the snooze. Disrupting sleep an hour or so before actually getting out of bed may disturb our REM cycle, which helps stimulate brain regions linked to cognition. Don’t want to mess with that (or bug a roommate with multiple alarms!). Set one alarm for when it’s time to rise—and maybe another a few minutes later in case you snooze through.
不要貪睡。還沒完全睡醒準備起床卻被打擾，這樣可能會擾亂人體的REM(快速眼球運動)周期，而REM則會刺激大腦的認知區域。所以不要那樣，也不要設太多鬧鐘攪得室友睡不好覺!只在該起床的時間點設一個鬧鐘就行了，要是你特容易睡過頭，那就再調一個幾分鐘之後的吧。
5. Set some happy sounds. Skip the beeps and blares and set an alarm tone to something soothing or fun.
選一個愉悅的鬧鈴。不要再用滴滴滴類的鈴聲啦，選一個舒緩愉悅的吧。
6. Let in the light. Research shows a little light may be all we need to reset the body block. A simple solution is to keep the blinds open during the night. Or greet the day and brush your teeth outside!
讓陽光灑進來。研究發現，稍微一絲光亮或許就足以喚醒人體的生物鐘。一個簡單的方法就是晚上把窗簾拉開，或者到外面去刷牙!
7. Eat breakfast. Sleepiness doesn’t disappear just from drinking a cup of coffee. Having enough time for some green eggs and ham (or maybe just a yogurt parfait) will also provide energy, not to mention it』ll boost that brainpower, too.
吃早飯。一杯咖啡並不能趕走瞌睡。花時間吃點有營養的雞蛋漢堡(或乳酪)不僅補充能量，還能增強腦力呢。
8. Hit the gym. Those tired eyes may go away once a morning workout routine is in order. Exercise will definitely boost energy—give these early-bird exercises a try.
運動健身。早上若能安排健身，眼睛或許瞬間就能消除疲勞了。運動毫無疑問可以激發能量——嘗試一下「早起鳥」運動吧。
9. Treat yo’self. Have a reward waiting in the a.m. to motivate climbing out of the covers. Dive into some freshly based fruit and nut bars, or slide into a warm bath instead of taking a quick shower.
犒賞自己。早上設一份獎勵，激勵自己爬出被窩。比如吃點新鮮烘焙的水果和堅果棒，或代之淋浴而泡個溫暖的熱水澡。
10. J.F.D.I. Sometimes we need to bite the bullet and 「just f』ing do it." Researchers have found that creativity may flourish when we feel groggy, so don’t let a little drowsiness interrupt seizing the day!
拿出行動吧!有時我們真的只要咬咬牙「拿出行動」就行了。研究人員還發現，創意很可能會在人們昏昏沉沉時爆發，所以別讓頂點的瞌睡毀了新的一天哦!
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