How to Create a Routine That Fits Your Circadian Rhythm

Traditional productivity tells us to bulldoze through our day from the moment we wake up until we’re back in bed at night.

But believe it or not — humans are not robots with endless amounts of energy. (Shocking, I know!) We all have a circadian rhythm, a daily cycle with natural ebbs and flows of energy throughout the day.

Have you every noticed that you’re more productive during certain times of the day? That’s your circadian rhythm at work!

Personally, I’m unstoppable first thing in the morning— from about 9am to 11am. After lunch, though, I totally crash. I get a second wind in late afternoon.

I’ve adjusted my daily schedule to take my circadian rhythm into account. I tackle my hardest tasks in the morning. After lunch, I usually take a 15-minute power nap, go for a walk, and do some more mindless tasks like tidying up the house, sorting through my inbox, or paying bills. By 3pm I usually catch a second wind and can tackle a more substantial task before I wind down for the day.

I block these tasks out in my Schedule Magic notepad to help me stay on track throughout the day.

As a way to tune into your own circadian rhythm, we created this worksheet to track your energy levels for a week. Here’s how it works:

1. Set an alarm for every hour of the day from 7am to 11pm (or whatever your normal waking hours are).

2. When the alarm goes off rate your energy level on a scale from 1 to 10.

3. At the end of the week, calculate your average energy level for every hour of the day.

4. Reflect on your findings. How can you structure your day to align with your circadian rhythm?

We'd love to know if this is helpful for determining your daily structure. Hit us up on Instagram to tell us about it!