How to reset your sleep schedule in a week

Late nights have a way of becoming permanent. A few evenings of staying up, a couple of weekend lie-ins, and suddenly you can’t fall asleep before 1 AM. The good news is that your body clock responds to a few simple signals, and you can move it on purpose.

Why your schedule drifts later

Your internal clock runs slightly longer than 24 hours in most people. Daylight, especially in the morning, nudges it back into line each day. Evening light from lamps and screens does the opposite, pushing it later.

Modern life gives us dim days indoors and bright evenings, so the drift wins. In one study, people who went camping with only natural light for a week shifted their body clocks about two hours earlier, without trying.

The plan

1. Choose a wake time and keep it every day

This is the anchor. Pick the time you want to wake on workdays and use it seven days a week, including weekends, for at least two weeks. Your bedtime will follow.

2. Get bright light soon after waking

Go outside within an hour of getting up, for 15 to 30 minutes if you can. Daylight is far brighter than indoor lighting, even on a cloudy day. Morning light is the strongest signal you have for moving your clock earlier. A 10,000 lux light box is a reasonable substitute in winter.

3. Dim the evening

For the last two hours before bed, switch to lamps instead of overhead lights and turn screens down or off. You don’t need to sit in the dark, just avoid bright light late at night.

4. Move bedtime earlier in small steps

Shift your bedtime 15 to 30 minutes earlier every couple of nights rather than all at once. Going to bed two hours early on the first night usually means lying awake, which makes things worse. Use the sleep calculator to pick a bedtime that lines up with your sleep cycles.

5. Don’t nap late or lie in

A late nap or a weekend lie-in undoes days of progress. If you must nap, keep it to 20 minutes before 3 PM.

6. Time caffeine, alcohol and meals

Stop caffeine at least 6 hours before your new bedtime (here’s why). Alcohol may make you drowsy but fragments sleep later in the night. A large late meal can keep you up too.

How long it takes

Most people can shift their schedule by about an hour every few days with consistent morning light and a fixed wake time. Within one to two weeks, falling asleep at your target time usually feels natural. It’s the same principle the jet lag calculator uses to shift your clock after a flight.

When to get help

If you’ve kept a steady schedule for several weeks and still can’t fall asleep until very late, or you regularly lie awake for more than 30 minutes, talk to a doctor. Insomnia and circadian rhythm disorders are treatable, and cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is the recommended first-line treatment.

Sources

• Wright KP Jr, et al. Entrainment of the human circadian clock to the natural light-dark cycle. Current Biology. 2013;23(16):1554-1558.
• Czeisler CA, et al. Stability, precision, and near-24-hour period of the human circadian pacemaker. Science. 1999;284(5423):2177-2181.
• Edinger JD, et al. Behavioral and psychological treatments for chronic insomnia disorder in adults: an American Academy of Sleep Medicine clinical practice guideline. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine. 2021;17(2):255-262.