Last Updated on February 14, 2024 by Lifevif Team and JC Franco
Waking up early… what do you personally feel and think about that? Is it really as good as people claim it is? Are the benefits really all that “great”?
For me, I would like to play a bit of Devil’s Advocate. I would like to share a few of the disadvantages and drawbacks of waking up early and give you a few good reasons why you should sleep in a little later. Not many of us actually need reasons to unset the alarm clock and sleep in a little later, but if you do…here are 18 disadvantages and drawbacks that make waking up early look like a bad idea.
18 disadvantages and drawbacks of waking up early:
1. You don’t get enough sleep and might feel tired the whole day.
Yup, feeling lethargic can be a real problem to deal with when you force yourself to wake up earlier than your body wants to. You might feel mentally foggy and physically drained if you consistently don’t get enough sleep.
2. People start to expect too much from you.
When you are an early riser, people start to expect you to always be on time, always have the details, and always do the extra work. When people know that you get up early, they naturally expect you to be more productive and more responsible.
3. You don’t get the same sleep quality.
The body needs sleep, and when we don’t respect its actual needs, we start to struggle physically. Good quality sleep is needed, and that can only be achieved if you get enough sleep but also if you sleep the same amount of time every day. If you don’t have a sleep schedule in place, your quality of sleep will be compromised, and you will start to see and feel it physically.
4. There’s no time for breakfast/coffee in bed.
If you wake up and leap out of bed, there’s no time to enjoy a cup of coffee while under the covers or have a nice breakfast in bed. These are just some of the joys of life, and if you’re never in a position to enjoy them, you are going to miss out.
5. You miss out on quality time with your partner.
When you wake up in the morning, before the sun is beating down and the birds are singing, it is the perfect time to cuddle with your partner and share plans for the day. Chatting to your partner first in the morning is a great way to connect and feel at one with each other. If you wake up really early, chances are that you will miss out on this with your partner.
6. Your productivity levels can plummet.
If you get up early, chances are that you are going to get your day started long before anyone else. When everyone else is at the peak of their productivity, you might be simmering down. While you might think that your productivity will soar, in many instances, people find themselves becoming less productive.
7. The less you sleep, the harder it will be to lose weight.
Everyone wants to lose more weight, but what if the amount that you sleep isn’t enough and you are actually sabotaging your weight loss? When you are deprived of sleep, your body will produce cortisol, which is a stress hormone that triggers the brain’s reward center. When the reward center is triggered, it makes you crave food.
During sleep, the body produces growth hormone, which is good for burning fat and repairing muscle tissue. This means that the better you sleep, the more chance you have of burning fat.
8. It can reduce your happiness levels.
There are surveys out there that prove one of the top things people list that make them happier is getting more sleep. When you keep waking up early, you might feel like you are getting a head start on the day, but it might actually make you feel a bit sad or unhappy.
9. It’s a strike against your biological nature.
Everybody is unique and different when it comes to sleep. Some people are biologically designed to be better at what they do at certain times of the day. We all have an internal biological clock and if you are working against yours, you probably won’t do very well in the long run. It’s a better idea to figure out what type of body clock you have and to work with it instead of against it.
10. You wake others up in the home.
Yup, getting up early can be an inconvenience to other people that you live with. If you co-habit with a partner and kids, you could be disturbing their sleep when you are rustling around the house in the early hours of the morning. This can put pressure on your interpersonal relationships.
11. You could be sabotaging your peak performance times.
What if you experience your most alert time of the day at 3 pm, but because you are waking up at the crack of dawn, you just feel tired and drained by that time? It would be better to figure out what your peak performance times are so that you can use them to your advantage.
12. Not getting enough sleep might lead to stress.
As already mentioned, when you don’t get enough sleep, cortisol, the stress hormone, is over-produced in the body. The more you wake up early and don’t get enough sleep, the more stress hormone production you can expect, and the more stressed and “strung out” you can expect to feel.
13. Lack of sufficient regular sleep can lead to moodiness.
If you are anything like me, if you don’t get just the right amount of sleep, it can lead to moodiness. Being moody during the day can have a detrimental impact on your entire life. It could leave your friendships and relationships affected and even leave you to feel frustrated and annoyed.
14. Waking up too early can lead to poor concentration.
If you don’t get enough sleep, it will be hard for your brain to concentrate on what you are doing and thinking. The brain needs sufficient downtime so that it can fully apply itself to situations and focus.
15. You could end up overworking yourself.
When you wake up extra early in the morning, you probably get right to work getting things done. This can be great if you have a to-do list, but if you have a lot to do, you might find yourself overworking every day by a few hours. Overworking yourself can lead to burning out, which can be quite unhealthy for you.
16. You have less time to socialize at night.
Being an early riser really does put you at a disadvantage when it comes to socializing. Most people want to socialize in the evening and late into the night. If you have to get up really early in the morning, you will be making excuses to go home early in the evenings. That’s not going to do much for your social life.
17. Poor sleep could lead to a lack of creativity.
People who sleep more are potentially more creative because they are listening to their biorhythm. When you change your natural rhythm, you can throw your creativity off balance.
18. There’s no time to binge-watch your favorite series and movies.
Most people work by day and binge-watch their favorite movies and series by night. If you have to get up early in the morning, chances are that you won’t want to watch TV until the early hours of the morning. You could miss out on all the series and movies everyone else is watching.
Last Word
Who knew that waking up so early could be so detrimental to your happiness and quality of life? You probably didn’t – but now you do. If you have been thinking about becoming an early riser, consider these 18 disadvantages and drawbacks first. Perhaps you should get up a little later tomorrow morning!
This article was co-authored by our team of in-house and freelance writers, and reviewed by our editors, who share their experiences and knowledge about the "Seven F's of Life".
JC Franco
JC Franco is a New York-based editor for Lifevif. He mainly focuses on content about faith, spirituality, personal growth, finance, and sports. He graduated from Mercyhurst University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business, majoring in Marketing. He is a certified tennis instructor who teaches in the New York City Metropolitan area. In terms of finance, he has passed the Level I exam of the CFA program.