5 Tips For Adjusting To Daylight Savings In Washington and Oregon

Until the Federal Government decides Daylight Saving Time is no longer needed, we will continue to roll back the clocks in the Fall and forward in the Spring.

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A dozen or so States have passed laws to eliminate Daylight Saving Time (Washington and Oregon both passed laws doing away with it in 2019) since the Uniform Time Act of 1966 was passed by Congress, with Hawaii and Arizona exempt from the practice altogether.

So as we prepare for another rollback this weekend, here are five tips to help you adjust to the coming time change...again.

1. Go To Bed and Get Up at The Same Time

On Saturday and Monday (the days before and after the change) try to get at least seven hours of sleep.  Do your best to keep your sleep schedule the same around the time change.  It might be very tempting to stay up later because of the extra hour of sleep, but doing so can affect your body's normal routine.  Not enough sleep will tell your body to begin storing fat as well as impacting energy levels.

2. Practice Good Habits Before Bedtime

In the days just after the time change, things like avoiding electronics before going to bed, not exercising withing 4 hours before sleeping, going caffeine free around 6 hours before sacking out, and not taking a nip off the bottle before bedtime will all help you adjust faster.

3. Keep Dinnertime Consistent and Have More Protein and Less Carbs

Try to eat dinner at the same time, or even slightly earlier in the days around DST.  Don't over eat and lean more towards proteins than carbs, especially when craving a snack.

4. Get More Light!

Sunlight is one of the best medicines for your body.  When you wake up Sunday go outside and bask in the sun to help your internal clock get right faster.  Heading into the darker time of the year, your mood can be impacted as sunlight impacts serotonin.  Any opportunities to grab more rays will pay big benefits.

5. Take a Short Cat Nap

If you're struggling to get your zzz's leading up to the time change, take a cat nap to restore some of that lost time.  Keep it to about 20 minutes at most as longer naps are counter productive.

For more info on the time adjustment and on these 5 tips, visit the Old Farmer's Almanac by clicking here.