6 Surprising Benefits of Being A Morning Person

As far back as I can remember, I have been a morning person. I am up and ready at the break of dawn to take on the day. The morning bird catches the worm, the common saying goes. But, is waking up early really all it’s cracked up to be?

Indeed, I’m sure there are positives to both morning and evening folk. But, for this particular post, I was genuinely curious about us morning-ies, and so I decided to do a little bit of reading into this topic. And, boy, I found some goodies!

I discovered that studies have found actual benefits to waking up early, quite a few, might I add. And, I wanted to share these with you. Here are six benefits of being a morning person.

6 Surprising Benefits of Being A Morning Person

If you are a morning person, you may:

# 1 – perform better academically!

Eliasson, Lettieri, and Eliasson, in their 2010 study, on sleep habits and academic performance in college students, found that earlier bedtimes and wake up times resulted in higher academic achievement.

They found that the timing of sleep and wakefulness is what correlated most with higher academic performances. And they found no significant differences when it came to total sleep time (with or without naps), or other factors such as gender or race (to name a few).

In addition, another study at a Texas university found that early bird college students tended to have higher GPAs.

Read more: 10 Ways to Calm Anxiety At Night

# 2 – be more physically active!

In studying the level of physical activity in children, Kohyama (2007) found that children who woke up early showed higher levels of physical activity than those who woke up later. The study suggested that promoting an earlier wake-up time was an essential factor for good health in children.

And, when it comes to consistency and working out, morning people may be at an advantage.  Cedric Bryant, Ph.D., Chief Science Officer with the American Council on Exercise, in an article on Ornish Lifestyle Medicine (ornish.com), states that “research suggests in terms of performing a consistent exercise habit, individuals who exercise in the morning tend to do better.”

# 3 – be more proactive!

In a study by Randler in 2009, he found that morning people tend to be more proactive. Randler suggests the following theories for this:

“One theory is that morning people are more proactive because getting up early gives them more time to prepare for the day. … But there’s evidence that something inherent may determine proactivity. Studies show that conscientiousness is also associated with morningness. Perhaps proactivity grows out of conscientiousness.”

Studies have also shown that morning people tend to procrastinate less.

# 4 – have greater career success!

Next, on the list of benefits of being a morning person, is career success!

Because of the proactivity in morning people, Randler also suggests that this may lead to better job performance, greater career success, and higher wages.

Furthermore, Randler states that his “earlier research showed that they [morning people] tend to get better grades in school, which get them into better colleges, which then lead to better job opportunities.”

One reason why this may be the case Randler states is that evening people are “out of sync with the typical corporate schedule.”

# 5 – be healthier!

In a study on the link between “morningness,” “eveningness” (i.e. morning people vs evening people) and depression, Hasler, Allen, Sbarra, Bootzin and Bernert (2010) found that those who were evening types had significantly higher levels of depression.

In addition, in a 2014 study by Merikanto and Partonen, they found that evening owls experienced increased psychiatric and somatic illnesses.

Studies have also found that night owls tend to have poorer lifestyle habits, such as smoking or drinking.

And, let’s not forget about the working out part mentioned above.  Lara Carlson, Ph.D., associate professor of applied exercise science at University of New England and President-elect of the New England chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine, tells Women’s Health Magazine in 2014, that “if you’re looking to shed weight or improve overall health, studies are starting to favor the morning”, for working out.

# 6 – be happier!

In a 2012 study, Biss and Hasher found that “morningness” in both younger and older adults resulted in higher levels of positive affect.

One possibility for this, Biss and Hasher suggest, “is that morning-type individuals benefit from the close correspondence between societal expectations and their preferred times for activity.”

See, I told you there were some goodies! Note to self: show night owls some love too, in a future post! Thanks so much for stopping by <3

What do you think about these benefits of being a morning person? Let me know below!
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DISCLAIMER: The information provided on this blog is written from personal and lived experience. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for, nor does it replace professional mental health services, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have any concerns or questions about your health or mental health, you should always consult with a health-care professional.