I'm a sleep expert – this is the trick I use to get out of bed when it's cold

As T3’s Home Editor, I’ve covered wellness for years now, and considered myself somewhat of a sleep expert. Now, I can rant all day about which TikTok sleep hacks actually work and recommend which sleep hygiene tips you need to be doing but one thing I might struggle to help you with is getting out of bed when it’s cold.

I hate being cold, and when you live in the UK like I do, I’m pretty cold 90% of the time. But this week, the UK weather has finally had its cold snap, so I’ve been waking up most mornings feeling chilly and not wanting to get out of my duvet cocoon.

But I’ve found an easy trick that has actually significantly helped me get out of bed in the morning, even when it’s cold – here’s what it is and how you can do it too.

How to get out of bed when it’s cold: the 10 second rule

I have perfected my sleep set-up so I really hate getting out of bed, even when it’s not cold. But I’ve found that the worst thing I can do when waking up in the morning is lying in bed for a few minutes after that initial wake-up. This bad habit is even worse when it’s cold, as I lie there for even longer trying to prevent myself from getting out into the chill.

The best trick I’ve found is the ‘10 second rule’. After my alarm goes off, I count out 10 seconds before I jump out of bed. Simple, really! For me, I’ve found that immediately getting into a warm shower helps this initial shock and makes me feel more refreshed, but getting into warm clothes and leaving your bedroom can also have a similar effect.

Now, it’s easy to just ignore the 10 seconds and keep counting – I’ve done this plenty of times. So, to add an extra necessity for getting out of bed fast, I’ve started placing my phone with my alarm across the room from me, so I have to get up to turn it off. I also use a wake up light, which is opposite my bed so to turn the light off, I have to walk across the room to do so.

The 10 second trick is quick, easy and gets you ready for the day – whether it’s cold or not. For more sleep tricks, check out these 6 tips for getting out of bed when it’s cold, and these 7 things to avoid when trying to keep your bedroom warm.