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Andrew Huberman says a simple morning ritual helps him optimize his physical and mental health.
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The neuroscientist and podcaster says people should increase their cortisol levels in the morning and increase their cortisol levels in the evening.
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The “best way” to boost morning cortisol levels is to get sunlight exposure immediately after waking up, he said.
Stanford University neuroscientist Andrew Huberman says his morning routine plays a key role in his overall health.
In an interview with GQ published Monday, the host of the popular podcast “Huberman Lab” shared the daily habits he relies on to stay healthy in 2026.
“Keeping your body healthy and your mental health at its best is about intentionally raising cortisol in the morning and intentionally lowering it in the evening,” Huberman told GQ magazine.
Although cortisol has a bad reputation as a stress hormone, Huberman says it plays an important role in the body’s transition from sleep to wakefulness.
“No, you wake up in the morning because your cortisol is elevated. You want your morning cortisol to go up significantly. If your morning cortisol doesn’t go up, your cortisol is going to go up in the afternoon or evening, and then everything goes wrong, okay? You want your morning cortisol to be at least 30 times higher than your nighttime cortisol,” he says.
While cortisol levels do rise and fall throughout the day, these patterns can vary greatly from person to person, making it difficult to assign a specific number for what constitutes an “ideal” difference. Additionally, people with mood disorders are often advised not to have elevated cortisol levels.
Huberman says one way to keep your rhythm on track is to send signals to your body.
“The best way to increase your morning cortisol levels is to let bright light (preferably sunlight) shine into your eyes within the first hour after waking up. If you can’t do that, maybe invest in 10,000 lux of artificial light,” says Huberman.
If that’s not possible, he recommends turning on “as many artificial lights as possible.”
While morning light plays a role in cueing the body’s circadian rhythm, scientists don’t agree on how it directly affects cortisol levels, which can vary based on light intensity, duration, time of day and personal lifestyle factors.
“I made a mistake in the past – a tactical mistake, a strategic mistake – calling it sunshine. People say, ‘It’s cloudy.’ What we should be saying is, ‘Let the sun shine in your eyes,'” Huberman said.
Dark in the morning and bright at night is “the worst way to go,” he added.
While Huberman’s advice is consistent with what mainstream circadian research says about light exposure, it may not apply equally to everyone.
Huberman says the only important thing in the morning isn’t the light. He also encouraged people to exercise when possible.
“If you don’t have time to exercise first thing in the morning, you need physical movement. Even some knee bends, some arm swings, some jumping jacks. Movement produces cortisol and adrenaline,” he says.
While physical activity affects cortisol, there is no strong research showing that people need to exercise in the morning to increase cortisol to gain health benefits.
Huberman says people should take the opposite approach when it comes to winding down at night.
“If you want to wear BluBlockers, you can. But dim the lights and avoid caffeine. If you’re going to exercise, don’t do it too vigorously,” he says.
Wider research in this area supports the benefits of morning light exposure.
Mariana Figueiro, professor and director of the Center for Light and Health Research at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, told Business Insider in 2023 that getting daylight is “just as important as diet and exercise.”
“Light in the built environment is not always strong enough to synchronize the circadian clock,” Figueiro said. “The beauty of daylight is just the right amount, color, and timing.”
Additionally, getting enough darkness at night is just as important, Figuero said, because circadian rhythm disruption has been linked to poor cognition and a weakened immune system.
Read the original article on Business Insider