One of the best things you can do to support your body’s natural energy levels is to go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. While your sleep schedule might have gone out of the window a little bit over the Christmas break, now’s the time to put that schedule back in place in order to really feel the benefits in the new year.

The key, as sleep physiologist Stephanie Romiszewski previously told Strong Women, is making sure you wake up at the same time every day. You might not be able to control when you fall asleep at night but getting out of bed at the same time every day can help to regulate your body’s circadian rhythm, which controls fluctuations of the sleep hormone melatonin and the stress hormone cortisol.

“Your body needs a goalpost to understand when to start the day,” Romiszewski explained. “If you keep shifting that then the body physiologically can’t do all the things that you want it to during the day at consistent timings.”

It’s for this reason that following a consistent sleep schedule can have a positive impact on everything from your energy levels to your gut health.

7 things you can do now to start the new year more energised