Coaching legend John Wooden used to tell his players, “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail”. For most coaches, the goal of such a comment is to instill in players how important meaningful practice is.

However, it can also be applied to how players prepare for practice, especially early morning practices.

Parents often struggle to get themselves, let alone their children, up and out of bed for early practice sessions. While it’s easy to blame those issues solely on the early practice time, the truth may actually be more related to their overall sleep habits.

“If the child is getting enough sleep, there shouldn’t be morning grogginess,” said Karen Johnson, a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner in the Pediatric Sleep program at Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota. “That could be a sign that they are not getting enough sleep or the quality of their sleep is poor.”

Many children in today’s society have busy schedules that may include as many three separate activities on a single night as well as homework. By the time the day is over, it is usually sleep that gets cut short in order to fit everything else in.

That’s when you start to see the morning behaviors parents dread such as, “academics decline, lack of focus during the day, moodiness, irritability, behavioral problems, poor decision making, more frequent illness and their performance with sports can also be compromised,” emphasized Johnson.

Rather than allowing morning practices to make a poor sleep schedule even worse, Johnson recommends parents taking a proactive approach towards their children’s sleep habits seven days a week. Regular bed and wake times can help minimize the negative effects of a single early practice.  

Know Your Sleep Goal

The first step in developing good sleep habits is knowing how much sleep your child needs. The National Sleep Foundation recommends 9-11 hours of sleep each night for kids ages 6-13, and teenagers (ages 14-17) should strive for 8-10 hours. While each child may need more or less sleep per night based on their individual tendencies, these are a great starting point for parents.

Consistency is King

Human brains regulate sleep using what scientists call the circadian rhythm. Our circadian rhythm helps tell us when it’s time to go to bed and when we need to wake up.  To maximize sleep quality, it’s critical to keep that rhythm on a consistent schedule.

“It is important that kids go to bed at the same time seven nights a week and wake at about the same time seven mornings a week,” said Johnson.

Yet, most children (and adults) utilize weekends to sleep in and “catch up on sleep”. Rather than having a positive impact on energy levels, sleeping in, even just one hour later than their typical wake time, disrupts their circadian rhythm, which prolongs and can even worsen any issues that are occurring.

Johnson compares this approach to jet lag. Imagine: “Living on the east coast during the week, flying to the west coast on the weekend and flying back to east coast Monday morning. It just never resolves unless you make changes, keeping a regular sleep schedule that is the same seven days a week.”

So if your son or daughter has a practice or game time on Saturday that mimics the start of school, it may actually be doing you a favor in the long run. That is, of course, if you keep his or her bed times on Friday or Saturday night consistent with their week night schedule.

Create a Bed Time Routine

The best way to develop a consistent sleep pattern and enable children to occasionally fall asleep earlier than usual, such as the night before an early practice, is to signal your body and mind that it’s time to sleep.

“The recommendation for good sleep hygiene is to turn off all electronic screens one hour before bed, and get into dim light environment to read a book, color, draw or do something calm for at least 30 minutes or until you get sleepy,” said Johnson. “Then, get into your bed to fall asleep.”

Like any routine, this process may take a little time to become a good habit. Don’t quit on it if it’s hard at first.

“If still awake after 15-20 minutes of tossing and turning, give the child permission to do something calm like reading, coloring or drawing in a quiet comfy space in their bedroom but not in their bed,” said Johnson. “They should do this in dim light until they are sleepy. When they are sleepy, go back to their bed to fall asleep.”

Rise and Shine

Once you’ve ensured your child is getting the amount sleep they need to wake up feeling refreshed, the next step is helping them get through the initial wake up process.

“Bright light in the morning, specifically the sunlight, is the most powerful source of light to influence waking up quicker and easier,” said Johnson.

Household lights may be most easily accessible, but natural sunlight or lamps designed to simulate natural light are by far the most effective.

If you implement these four strategies and your child still has trouble waking up or experiences daytime sleepiness, there are two additional steps Johnson recommends. The first is further evaluating your child’s schedule to see if certain activities need to be adjusted or possibly eliminated. If the issues persist, parents should schedule a doctor visit to evaluate for potential sleep disorders.