Everything You Need to Know about the Lion Chronotype

Welcome to the Fix My Sleep Blog, where we find solutions to help the sleepy and sleepless find the rest they deserve.

Have you ever asked the question, “What is my chronotype?”

Maybe you just asked yourself, “What is a chronotype?”

Over the following few blogs, we will dive into the different chronotypes, the best schedule for that chronotype, and a few diet tips that can help make the most of your chronotype.

There are 4 chronotypes and each one is specific to a sleeping pattern that we all have.

We will be diving into the lion chronotype in this blog, but before talking about the lion, we need to answer the question...

What Is a Chronotype?

A chronotype is your body and mind's natural sleep cycle which dictates when it's time to sleep. It tells you when you sleep your best and when you will be most productive during your day.
Do you remember being called an "early bird" or a "night owl"? While those are not official names for chronotypes, they give a basic understanding of the concept.

While someone who goes to bed late might not have a problem getting up early, they won’t be at their most productive until the afternoon.
The same goes for those who go to bed early. While they might think that sleeping more means they will be productive longer, they will be most effective earlier in the morning and slowly see their productivity decrease as the day goes on.

Your chronotype isn't just influenced by when and how you sleep but also your age and diet. Different chronotypes have different personality traits, and those who fall under the same category could see similarities with:

• Sleep patterns
• Pain sensitivity
• Sexual activity
• Creative thinking
• Intelligence
• Personality traits

Those are only a few things that your chronotype can convey. Throughout our blogs, we want to look at the most popular categories of chronotypes and explain how you can take advantage of yours.

Changing Chronotypes

What Is the Lion Chronotype?

Lions love to stretch their creative claws right away in the morning. So the "early bird" chronotype, the lion, goes to bed early and gets up even earlier.
The lion chronotype excels at getting tasks done before lunch, with an enormous energy burst occurring early to mid-morning. Waking up is easy for lions, and they don't require tons of coffee or other outside energy boosts to get going in the morning.

The lion chronotype comprises about 15% of the population. Most lions are adults in their 30s and 40s who have adapted to the early schedule that their work demands. Being able to focus early in the morning allows lions to enjoy success because they can be at their peak earlier than most chronotypes.
A person who is a lion chronotype is typically:

• Optimistic
• Practical
• Athletic
• Overachieving
• Pragmatic
• Realistic

The downside for lions is they lose much of their energy in the afternoon. Lions love power naps that allow them to recoup some of their lost energy and continue to finish up the day.
The lion chronotype also goes to bed fairly early. However, they need around 8-9 hours of sleep to wake up early and feel productive during those early mornings.

What's the Best Schedule for the Lion Chronotype?

As a lion, you need to create a schedule based on your significant boosts of energy in the morning. Trying to cram in too much work can make mornings feel more stressful than they need to be. Finding a good balance is critical, and making sure you give yourself time to relax and settle in before bed is also very important.

The schedule we created is more of a guideline. Try following a few of these changes to start, and add more into your day as you get more comfortable.
Remember that changes come slowly and over time; never rush them, or you could end up more drained than you felt before.

Wake Up: Try and wake up between 6-7 am. Get a good, hearty breakfast and a big glass of water to help you boost your energy.

8 am - 12 pm: Your energy boost has hit! Focus on getting your big tasks for the day done in this window. If you start to get hungry before lunch, fit in a quick snack to keep that energy up.

12 pm - 3 pm: Lions usually feel quite drained around this time. Try and have a lighter lunch to avoid those after-meal nap thoughts. Lions will love to take power naps in this time slot if you don't have much going on.

Late Afternoon: This will all depend on how you feel. If you could fit in a power nap, this is the perfect opportunity to do something that requires some more energy, such as creative thinking or exercising.

6 pm - 9 pm: Wind down from your day. Lions are usually exhausted by this time. Make a good dinner and afterward do something that helps you relax. This could be reading, a bath, or watching TV in bed.

Sleep: Lions should be in bed between 9-10 pm. This will allow you to get your 8-9 hours of sleep that most lions need to continue to wake up early and jump-start their day with a ton of energy. For lions that still have trouble falling asleep, we recommend our best sellers, they are all-natural sleep aid specially designed to ease you into sleep and won't leave you feeling groggy in the morning. 

The Best Diet for the Lion Chronotype

Lions need lots of energy going into the afternoon to avoid the crash. A healthy breakfast can give a great boost to the already active energy that lions get right away in the morning to prolong alertness and productivity.
Since lions don’t have a lot of time between the morning energy and the afternoon crash, they need a quick but healthy lunch to recuperate their lost energy so they can power through the rest of the day:

• Egg Salad Sandwich
• Chicken Salad
• Soup
• Chicken Wraps
• Chicken Caesar Salad

Other Tips for the Lion Chronotype

You started this blog by asking the question, "What chronotype am I?"
If you love to go to bed early while getting an early start, you are a Lion.
Here are a few more tips for those in the lion chronotype camp to stay healthy and happy while still having productive days.

• Drink lots of water in the morning to stay hydrated during your big energy bust.
• If you don’t have access to a power nap in the afternoon, drinking a smoothie can help relieve those feelings of sluggishness when you are feeling drained.
• Exercising in the morning can also help extend that energy boost into the afternoon.
• Turning off screens an hour before bedtime can help you fall asleep faster and help you get up earlier.

We hope these tips will help you lions make the most out of your day.
Check out our other blogs as we continue our dive into the 4 different chronotypes.