Feature Image by Isabella and Louisa Fischer
Waking up in the morning, despite if you got a solid eight hours of sleep or not, can be difficult. Being cuddled up under a warm blanket in a dark room makes it very hard to open your eyes and start the day. If this sounds like you, you probably are a culprit of hitting the snooze alarm one too many times — and according to experts, that can reverse your sleep pattern.
You might think you need those few extra minutes of shut-eye but in reality, they are doing more harm than good. The good news is that there are ways to help you stop snoozing and they all have to do with your phone. Whether you have an Android or iPhone, there are apps that will help you not only get a better night’s sleep but also stop hitting the snooze button!
Headspace
Headspace is classified as a meditation app but with the full monthly subscription, you get access to their Sleep library, which has countless sleep meditations, white noise, and stories to listen to before you go to bed. These meditations will help you fall asleep and stay asleep, making it a little easier to wake up in the morning.
Bedtime
Available on iOS
This app is already pre-installed on your iPhone because it’s hidden within the “Clock” app. You program Bedtime with how many hours of sleep you want, what time you will go to sleep, and then what time you want to wake up. It calculates that and will put you on a sleep schedule. Because it understands your sleeping patterns, it will slowly wake you up so you aren’t alarmed (pun intended) when it’s time to wake up in the morning.
Sleep Cycle
Sleep Cycle is an app that combines meditation and a slow rising alarm. All you have to do is put your phone on the mattress while you sleep and it will detect your sleeping patterns, eventually finding a way to slowly and calmly wake you up. The alarm will only start beeping once the app finds you to be in a light state of sleep. If you want to further analyze your sleep, that’s when you can subscribe to the premium edition.
Morning Routine
Available on iOS
Starting your day off with a structured routine may help you get out of bed a little faster. Well, at least that’s what this app wants you to think. Morning Routine lets you set different times for different tasks, that way your routine is all laid out for you before you get out of bed.
Walk Me Up
The easiest way to wake your body up in the morning is to get moving. Some people suggest placing your phone across the room (or in a different room) when you sleep so you have to physically get out of bed and that’s exactly what this alarm clock app does for you. When you download Walk Me Up, you can set the clock for how many times you are allowed to hit snooze, and then the only way to disable the alarm is to get up and walk around. The app also counts your steps so you cannot cheat it.
Alarm Clock For Me
Alarm Clock for Me has everything you could want in an alarm clock. You can set your own unique tone for the alarm, it tells you the weather first thing in the morning so you can pick out an outfit, and also will go off even if the app is not running so you will never have to wonder if you set your alarm.
Sleep As Android
Available on Android
Exclusively for Android, this Sleep app is similar to the Bedtime feature in iOS. It tracks your sleep cycle, gently wakes you up when you’re in the lightest stage of sleep and also gives you a sleep score. You have the ability to change your alarm to gentle nature sounds, your Spotify playlist, or choose from hundreds of other features in the app. To prevent you from hitting snooze too many times, Sleep As Android also has a wake-up verification, meaning you must solve a math problem or shake your phone to stop the alarm.
Rise
Available on iOS
Maybe you’re the type of person that doesn’t need any fancy way of waking up but you would like an app that is a little prettier than the normal iOS Alarm Clock. That is where Rise comes in. It has over 120 sleep guides to relax yourself and a sleep diary to record how you feel when you wake up. It also provides statistics of how you are sleeping each night.
Light Alarm Clock
Available on Android
This alarm clock app mimics alarm clocks that are supposed to wake you up with natural light. It wakes you up gently and in the most natural ways with light and sound, so you can say goodbye to blaring, annoying alarm noises. It has a pre-alarm sound that starts before the main alarm so you are slowly pulled from sleep, which honestly sounds great on a Monday morning!
Speak to Snooze
Available on iOS
This app is so simple! All you have to do is speak into it to snooze, shut it off, and let your phone know what time they should wake you up. There’s no need to fumble in the dark (or light, we won’t judge) when you can simply speak to your alarm clock!
xx, The FabFitFun Team
