Issue No. 27

Chronotypes & Productivity

My husband Tim gets up extremely early. We’re talking, like, 3 or 4 AM. “The hours are golden,” he claims, “and the most productive part of my day.” Try as I might, I can’t bring myself to get up that early. I’m groggy, bleary-eyed, and sleep deprived (something my Oura ring reiterates for me when it asks, “is something keeping you up?”)

Why is it so easy for Tim and so hard for me? Well, for one, women apparently need more sleep than men. And, for two, we all have unique chronotypes, or natural circadian rhythms that influence our sleep cycle, body temperature, and physical activity. So, our ability to easily get up in the AM is somewhat predetermined, largely thanks to our chronotype. In layman’s terms, our chronotype tells us if we’re a morning person, night person, or somewhere in the middle.

“A chronotype is a person’s circadian typology or the individual differences in activity and alertness in the morning and evening”

— Healthline

Why Our Chronotype Matters

Understanding our unique chronotype can help us better optimize our sleep and activity, setting us up for productive days. According to Oura, our chronotype dictates our sleeping schedule and presets our body’s daily rhythms for digestion, hormone release, and alertness. Knowing our individual chronotype can help us improve our energy, productivity, and sleep — ultimately enhancing our overall well-being.

The Four Common Chronotypes

Bear. (AKA the “morning person”). The most common of the four, the bear chronotype is most closely aligned with the patterns of the sun. Bear chronotypes typically wake easily in the AM and have no trouble falling asleep once it’s dark. This chronotype is most productive before noon. A post-lunch dip between 2 and 4 PM is common.
Wolf. (AKA the “night person”).The wolf chronotype typically has trouble waking up before noon and feels most energized when waking up around 12 PM. If a wolf, productivity peaks for you between 12 and 4 PM, and you are typically also productive again beginning around 6 PM. My brother Max is definitely a wolf. He plays poker professionally, and often plays tournaments that extend late into the night. Kind of a perfect match!
Lion. (AKA the “early morning person”). The opposite of wolves, lion chronotypes like to rise early in the morning (totally tracks for Tim). “They may easily wake up before dawn and are at their best up until noon,” says Healthline. Typically, lions wind down in the evening and end up falling asleep easily by 9 PM.
Dolphin. (AKA the “somewhere in between person”). This one is the trickiest (and most rare). The dolphin chronotype typically has a hard time following any sort of sleep and wake patterns, and tend to be very sensitive to noise and light. Fortunately for dolphins, peak productivity falls somewhere between 10 AM and 2 PM, which is a great time to get things done.

Discovering Your Chronotype

So how do you figure out which chronotype you are? If you don’t already have an intuitive sense of where you might fall, several quizzes exist (here, here, here). I’m a bear according to the Sleep Doctor quiz, which is consistent with what my Oura ring tells me. Oura takes the insights a step further, telling me I’m a “late morning type.” They measure this by tracking at least 90 days worth of data, clocking your body temp, sleep-wake cycle, and physical activity. Based on this, they recommend that I take advantage of early mornings (but not extremely early like Tim) by getting movement in as soon as I’m up and getting to work shortly after that.

Hacks for Lions & Wolves

It’s true that our chronotype is mostly fixed, but there are a few little hacks to help you balance your type if you fall on the extreme ends of being a morning or night person. Exposure to light in the morning, for example, may help a wolf-type (i.e. night owl) fall asleep earlier. Conversely, exposure to light in the evening may help a lion type (ie. early bird) fall asleep to sleep a little later.

Also, if you’re a wolf-type (night owl), you might thrive in a career that doesn’t require an early start time (like Max!) or a job that offers flexible hours. If you’re a lion- or a bear-type, conversely, you might benefit most from working traditional hours.

So where do you fall chronotype-wise and how do you optimize your day for it?! Curious if this is something others are doing?! If you’re willing, share it in the comments!

sources: Healthline, Oura

Links I Loved This Week

James Clear’s 3-2-1 newsletter is a delight (and free!).
Tally Health’s age test tells us how old we really are.
An at-home facial-toning device that’s like Face Gym, just at home. (They sent me one (!!!) and I’ve been using it daily. Knock 10% off with code LACEYZIIP).
An elegant summer dress that I’ve been eyeing.
Allara Health is onto something brilliant: pairing experts in hormonal health with consumers who need it.