'I'm a night owl who wakes up at 4:30am every day. This is how I do it.'

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For most people, getting up early looks like setting their alarm for 6am. Or maybe for 5:30am. Or, maybe, mayyyyybe for 5am.

But as someone who works the early morning shift here at Mamamia, my alarm goes off at a stark 4:45am in the morning.

The time before the birds have sung. Before the weather had decided what it wants to do for the day. And, certainly before any human who only drinks decaf coffee should arise.

The thing is, I absolutely love it. I love working in the quiet, long before the 'tippy tappy' of acrylic nails on a keyboard have descended on the office floor. And I love getting the hard things done first.

But I also love staying up late. Reading an extra chapter of my page-turning novel, binging just another episode of Love Island, getting in one last chinwag with my girlfriend over a freezing cold sauvignon blanc.

So, I'm here to tell you about sleep. Mainly, how to get it, how to get out of it when your alarm goes off, and how to do so without resenting your life or feeling like you have no fun. As someone who has perfected it over the years.

And don't just take my word for it, I've got sleep expert Olivia Arezzolo on my side to decode sleep for you. Thank me later!

Watch: WELL: Sleep relaxation techniques that actually work. Article continues below.

Sunrise alarm.

It fills the room with soft yellow light like a sunrise. Image: Supplied.

Your body works on this thing called a circadian rhythm, an internal 24-hour clock that you don't get to program (yay).

Sleep expert Olivia Arezzolo describes it as your "body's internal clock that tells you, via hormones like melatonin and cortisol, when to be awake and when to be sleepy."

The thing about your circadian rhythm is that it's primarily influenced by the presence or absence of light. When it's dark we feel sleepy, when it's bright outside and the sun is streaming in, we feel awake.

Kind of hard to manage your circadian rhythms when you wake up in the near-dark every day, right?

Arezzolo explains, "Many of us face circadian misalignment — the feeling of being exhausted in the morning and wide awake in the evening, and this isn't by chance, but more so, our circadian rhythm receiving the wrong input from our environment."

This is why my lovely ex-colleagues bought me a sunrise alarm clock when I exited my 7am role for an even earlier 6am shift. And it's been a godsend. Every day at 4:30am it slowly begins to beam a sunrise-like light into my room.

Without even noticing, it brings me into the day gently, and with kindness.

I didn't realise what a big difference it made until I started waking up at my partner's home, which is sadly sans-artificial-alarm-driven-sunlight. Waking up there can feel like being hit over the head by a blaring alarm clock, rather than already stirring by the time it goes off.

According to Arezzolo, "Sunrise alarm clocks work by mimicking natural light. They help suppress melatonin and encourage a healthy cortisol release, which helps you feel more alert upon waking, naturally."

Sounds pretty good to me. I have this one from Pixbee, and I love it. (HINT: I have also programmed it to turn red and play rain sounds when it is time to go to bed).

Blinds open.

For the same reason as above, I sleep with the window blinds open. 

Now, this can be annoying when I'm trying to go to sleep and my neighbour leaves the dang bathroom light on. Yes.

However, I find that even though it's dark outside when I wake up, there is some subtle brightness around that time and it makes a difference. Give it a whirl (and this one is free).

Clothes laid out.

Having your outfit planned is crucial! Image: Supplied.

You will not make decisions at 4am. Repeat after me, no decisions.

I have worn blue and green *without* something between them. I have decided to randomly attempt a cat-eye wing even though I had no time for it. Your 4am decisions are almost as bad as the ones you make at midnight in a wine bar.

So, I lay my FULL OUTFIT out the day prior. I just have to slip out of my warm bed and into my waiting clothes. No dithering or being cold in the winter time. 

I do my makeup and hair at my office and I do not allow phone time. I have 20 minutes between waking up and getting out the door and that is the only way to avoid morning dilly dallying, I am sure of it.

According to Arezzolo, "Preparation reduces decision fatigue and our allostatic stress load (accumulation of stress)."

So yep, the little things you do the night before can make your mornings SO MUCH easier.

News push notifications.

On the topic of phone time: I am a journalist. On top of that, it's my job to break the morning news.

So, despite my 'no phone time' rule, I need to know what has happened the minute I wake up, in case I need to skip my commute and write a story from my bed.

If your job is like this, I would recommend push notifications. I have them set up for Mamamia, The Sydney Morning Herald, the BBC and the New York Times. (If you pick overseas ones, you will get the stuff they've written while our local journos have been asleep, FYI).

I have a quick scroll through these to see what's happened overnight, and then go about my morning without having to worry that I've missed something.

If you're someone who works on emails, setting up some specific notification settings could help you get the 'down low' without spending 20 minutes on your phone in the morning. 

Have some house shoes.

If there's one thing I've discovered, it's that being cold is the enemy to getting up. Before bed, I place my house slippers or UGG boots (depending on the season) on the floor, at my bedside. It makes getting up feel like a hug, rather than a shock to the system.

I get ready in my warm room. If I need to exit the room and go into the house at any point, I pull on a robe.

These little coping mechanisms make the mornings feel more bearable.

According to Arezzolo, there's science behind keeping warm in the morning. She explains, "Heat helps increase cortisol, our awakening hormone, and reduces melatonin, our sleepiness hormone. 

"Psychologically too, stepping into warmth eases the shock of waking by maintaining comfort, which helps you transition out of bed with less resistance."

Pro tip: I also run my tap on hot water when I need to wash my hands.

Get to work early.

The beauty station happens AT my desk. Image: Supplied

I am often at work at least 20-30 minutes early, which is a lot when sleep is being shaved off.

But in line with not having a morning routine, I like to get in and sort everything out before jumping into the day. Often this means checking my notifications, getting a cup of tea and beginning my news sweep early so I feel 'ahead' for the day. Mid-morning, I'll quickly do my 5-minute makeup routine and give my hair a tousle, and then I'm good to go.

Figure out the morning that works for you and work with your boss to make it make sense.

Not rushing and having a plan are important to make sure your routine is comfortable, repeatable and, ultimately, successful.

The dreaded workout.

My preference is to do all the hard things in the morning, and that includes working out. But getting up as early as I do means I have to swap this for an afternoon run.

When your 3pm slump is happening, I'm out there hitting the pavement.

However, I do it day in and day out, because moving your body is essential to sleeping well. And early rising is also about making sure we go to sleep on time.

According to Arezzolo, exercise is essential to your sleep routine.

"Exercise regulates our circadian rhythm, and when done in the morning, helps you feel more alert in the day, more fatigued in the evening; and correlates with improved sleep efficiency," she explains.

"Research shows yoga, for example, can increase sleep efficiency by 15 per cent, helping you spend more time overnight asleep, and less time awake."

So don't miss your steps or stretches.

No caffeine.

A 1pm Diet Coke is my only caffeine for the day! Image: Getty

I am a minimal-caffeine girly, in that all my coffees are decaf, but my Diet Coke sometimes is not.

I try to avoid any kind of dependencies, and I'd recommend trying a day or two without caffeine — you might feel better and stop craving the 'pick me up'.

In saying that, a coffee here or there or a Diet Coke can't be the worst thing. Arezzolo says it really depends on if you have sleep issues or not.

"If you're struggling with sleep, yes — caffeine can contribute to lighter, restless sleep; even if it's in the morning," she explains.

"However, if you don't have any sleep issues, one cup in the morning is a-ok… a single shot please!"

The recommended cut-off times for caffeine consumption are 12pm, with 2pm at the latest.

"Research shows caffeine, even six hours before bed, can reduce sleep length by over an hour. This is due to its suppression of adenosine, a sleep-promoting compound."

Get the cooking done early or meal prep.

Lights dim, snacks with the BF, and Love Island. The dream. Image: Supplied.

Okay, now into the whole 'I want to feel like I have time to have fun' section of this article. Welcome fun people!

Going to sleep between 8pm and 9:30pm doesn't have to be for people with no personality, it's just that you need to get the boring stuff done another time.

I spend one hour on Sunday afternoons prepping meals for the week ahead. No week-night cooking for me.

I also change my sheets and do my laundry on the weekend, meaning that once I'm home, I've got a big slab of 'nothing' to do. And boy, is it sweet.

An episode of Love Island while I eat dinner? Yes please. Hemming my new jeans on my sewing machine while listening to Fleetwood Mac? Of course! Catching up with a girlfriend (with a strict 8:30pm finish time?) No worries.

I find that I want time to feel like I've 'relaxed' in the evening, and prepping in advance is the key for that.

Sleep routine.

And now for the pièce de résistance! Once it hits 8:30pm, I dim all the lights in my house. I start my Pixbee lamp's rain sounds and red lamp, and I largely put down my mobile phone.

I have a warm shower and hop into bed, and if I really need it, I will listen to a guided meditation.

And it seems this routine is sleep-expert approved.

"Use blue-light free, red night lights (like the kids' ones) within one hour of bedtime. Or better yet, two," says Arezzolo. "Bright lights within one hour of bedtime can suppress melatonin by over 50 per cent."

Another recommendation? A cooling mattress topper.

"Lowering your core body temperature through the night can help you sleep deeper and reduce the likelihood of waking up, especially around 3am," she says.

In addition, consider keeping your phone out of reach, using sleep scents like lavender, and keeping your sleep kit close (blue-light blocking glasses, book, gratitude journal, eye mask).

If you can't sleep, the number one thing you should do? Don't panic.

"In the moment, get up, to go into the lounge, keep lights low, read, meditate, journal, listen to a soothing sleep meditation or sleep story, or practice yoga nidra," says Arezzolo.

"Then, the next evening, ensure you have a bulletproof bedtime routine that increases melatonin before you get into bed."

And there you have it. Once you embue your days with these easy steps, your body will soon follow suit.

I often find myself waking up just a few minutes before my alarm these days — a surefire sign that my body is happy to meet me where my routine is.

Let us know in the comments if you try out these easy swaps.

Feature image: Supplied.

For more information on sleep expert Olivia Arezzolo, see here.