The morning light habit
Morning sunlight, every single day.
You know the advice: get outside and get light in your eyes soon after you wake. The hard part was never knowing. It is the door. So the alarm only stops once you are through it.
Your first 7 mornings are free. iPhone and Android.
Why morning light matters
Light in the morning sets the body clock. People living on natural light alone shifted their clocks so the biological night ended just after sunrise (Wright et al., Current Biology, 2013).
Bright light in the early morning raised cortisol by more than half and helped people stay alert after a night without sleep (Leproult et al., Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 2001). Office workers who got more light in the morning fell asleep faster that night and slept better (Figueiro et al., Sleep Health, 2017).
Indoors is darker than it feels
Your eyes adjust, so a lit room feels bright. By a window you get a few hundred lux. Outside, even on a grey morning, it is thousands, and on a clear one tens of thousands. That is why the alarm ends on the pavement and not on a button.
Making it a habit
UpandOut turns the advice into the default. The alarm rings until you walk out of a small zone around your home, so every morning starts outside. Insights shows the mornings stacking up: your streak, your fastest time out the door, your longest walk.
Questions
What if the sun is not up yet?
You still get out of the house and moving, which is the habit. And on a grey or dark morning, outdoor light is still far brighter than a lit room.
How long do I have to be outside?
As long as it takes to reach the edge of your zone, a few minutes for most people. Stay out longer if you like; the alarm ends when you cross the line.
What does it cost?
Your first 7 mornings are free. Then $59.99 a year, with the first year at $29.99 while the launch offer runs, or $9.99 a month.
Tomorrow morning, then.
Set the alarm tonight. The rest happens at the door.
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