Dr Michael Breus, author of 'The Power of When' calls himself the sleep doctor. He has a practice in Los Angeles and guides his clients and readers in understanding their chronotype: their biological predisposition to be a morning person, an evening person, or somewhere in between. Each chronotype takes the form of an animal: a bear, lion, wolf or dolphin - and explains the ideal daily routine for each. Want to know what yours is? Take the quiz here.
Learning what your chronotype is and the best schedule that goes with it not only improves your sleep, it can improve your health, happiness and productivity. It encourages you to make changes like waiting until mid-morning to drink your coffee and putting away screens in the hour before bed. What's more? According to The New York Times' Emily Laber-Warren, organizations around the world are starting to recognize the importance of chronobiology and let employees craft their schedules around when they work best. Once you learn to adapt to the changes, you are likely to reap the benefits.
So, read through the information below, and determine whether you are a bear, lion, wold or dolphin:
Dolphins tend to be diagnosed with insomnia as they often have trouble sleeping. It is best that dolphins fit their exercise in first thing in the morning, before eating a high protein breakfast. The morning should be spent on brainstorming, or thinking big-picture. In the afternoon, they are likely to see their energy rise. This point is best for doing research or other tasks that require deep concentration. In the hours between dinner and bedtime - about 7 to midnight, this should be a time for the dolphin to wind down and shut off screens.
The key here is to not fight your internal rhythms but work with them as much as possible, instead of getting frustrated that you cannot hop out of bed at 5 am to run six miles. So, always find a time that works better for you. While it won't be easy, it will most definitely be worth your time.
