What kind of sleeper are you? An early bird or a night owl? Well it turns out they are no longer the only two categories.

Sleep experts say there are four ‘sleep chronotypes’ – each one represented by a different animal. And the chronotype you fit could help you determine how to get the best sleep of your life.

American sleep expert Dr Michael Breus explains the four different types of sleeper in his book The Power of When, and it details how to figure our which chronotype you are, and therefore when you will feel tired and when you will be at your most productive.

Dolphin

Dolphins are light sleepers, and tend to wake up at the slightest noise.

They struggle to wake up and fall asleep.

They tend to be tired for a large portion of the day.

They are often quite wired in the evenings.

About 10% of people fall in this category. 

Lion

Lions naturally wake up early. In prehistoric times, these people would take the morning shift of guarding the group.

They tend to lose steam throughout the day.

They prefer earlier bedtimes.

About 15% of people fall into this category.

Bear

Bears have an energy cycle that rises and falls with the sun. They’re most productive in daylight.

They tend to wake near sunrise.

They have a dip in energy in the afternoon.

They are usually tired by the end of the day.

About 50% of people fall into this category. 

Wolf

Wolves naturally stay up later and sleep later. They’re just starting to drift off when Lions are waking up.

Wolves struggle to wake up early.

They tend to have an energy surge late in the day.

They do their best thinking at night.

Only about 15% of people fall into this group

Do any of these categories sound like you?

Dr Breus says that identifying your sleep chronotype is the key to unlocking when you will be most efficient, and the best ways to use your energy throughout the day.

He says understanding your chronotype can help you set ideal bed and wake times, and help you better organise your schedule. 

For example, if you know you’re a wolf, your peak productivity happens in the middle of the day, so you can schedule your more intensive work for mid-afternoons.

If you’re a lion, and you’re most alert in the mornings, you will know to schedule most of your tasks before the early afternoon hours. 

‘Working against your natural wiring, as much as it might seem advantageous in a given moment, is not productive,’ Dr Breus explains in a blog post. ‘Understanding your personal circadian clock (and how it operates) can help you get rejuvenating sleep at night and lead a happy, healthy life.’

How to figure out your sleep chronotype

It can be difficult to figure out which category you fall into for a number of reasons. Most of us don’t know our natural sleep rhythms because of our relentless work schedules. What time would you actually wake up and fall asleep if you didn’t have to set a 7 am alarm every day?

But, experts can take some clues from your routines, habits and how you feel throughout the day. There’s a quick online quiz that you can take, developed by Dr Breus. But people have been figuring out their sleep chronotypes since way before the internet.

Chronotypes were first studied by Olov Ostberg in the 70s, but many researchers have added their expertise since then. There are loads of different tests you can take to determine your chronotype. A sleep doctor would likely give you the morningness-eveningness questionnaire (MEQ) or the Munich Chronotype Questionnaire (MCTQ). 

Another popular chronotype quiz is the Munich Chronotype Questionnaire, developed by Till Roenneberg. Roenneberg’s self-assessment was developed in 2000 and is one of the more popular chronotype self-assessments. This 19-question assessment analyses your sleep-wake rhythms, energy levels, exposure to daylight, as well as your sleep latency and inertia. 

How do sleep chronotypes work?

Your chronotype dictates your individual natural tendency to fall asleep and wake up at a certain time of day.

According to the science of circadian rhythms – our biological clock is influenced by the presence of bright light and more specifically, the production of melatonin. But not everybody falls asleep when the sun goes down.

Chronotypes explain why some people work better on a different sleep schedule. Why some people thrive late at night, while others are nodding off on the sofa at 9pm but are full of beans at the crack of dawn.

‘Your chronotype comes from the length of your PER3 gene and is dependant on genetic, environmental, and age-related factors,’ Dr Breus explains in his blog post.

‘Your chronotype influences hormone levels, metabolic function, and body temperature, to name a few. While we cannot actively change our chronotype, our chronotypes can change as our bodies and brains age (which is why many night owls become early birds in later years).’

 How to get better sleep

‘Understanding your sleep chronotype is key to maximising your productivity,’ Sleep expert and managing director of Kally Sleep, Ori Leslau tells Metro.co.uk.

‘The circadian rhythm – your brain’s sleep-wake cycle – controls when you are alert and tired during a 24 hour period. Everyone’s rhythm is different, and no rhythm is right or wrong.’

Here are Ori’s tips for improving your sleep based on your chronotype:

• Find out what type of sleep chronotype you are, and make decisions based around that. ie. if you know you are at your most productive in the mornings, try and make your important decisions during this time.

• If you suffer with sleep problems, consider investing in a quality sleep product.

• Reduce your caffeine (or other stimulant) intake, but especially avoid drinking coffee or tea in the hours leading up to bedtime. 

Sleep practitioner and founder of WyeSleep, Joanna Kippax, broke down her tips depending on your sleep chronotype.

So, whether you’re a lion, wolf, dolphin, or bear – she has practical advice to help you get the most restful night possible:

Bear

Managing caffeine intake is key for bears to avoid disturbing their sleep pattern overnight.

Caffeine takes 12 hours to be eliminated from the body so bears might want to stop having caffeine from lunchtime .

Waking at the same time every morning, will help anchor the body clock so the body expects sleep at a certain time. This improves both the quality and quantity of sleep.

Wolf

They tend to need more caffeine in the morning to help them wake.

An early caffeine boost can be really helpful to start the day, but should be avoided in the evening as this will only delay sleep further, resulting in even more difficulty waking the next day.

Getting outside in the daylight is a great way to help us wake, as light is the biggest trigger for our body clock.

In the winter, using a daylight lamp can really help us get the light we need on a grey day, or if you’re working from home.

Our hunger hormones are affected by our sleep time too. The level of our appetite hormone, ghrelin, is high  and our ‘feeling full’ hormone, leptin, is low if we are sleep deprived, so we have a tendency to eat more at night, which can cause problems with weight gain.

Wolves would find light and exercise a great combination to help them sleep well.

Lion

Lions may feel weary by the afternoon, so may want to take a nap.

Napping before 3 pm for 20 minutes is the most productive way to boost productivity and re-energise yourself. However, napping late in the afternoon can disrupt the sleep pattern and reduce the quality of your sleep. (Think of it as eating a doughnut before a big meal: It ruins the appetite)

The key to a ‘super nap’ is to have a small caffeinated drink followed by a 20-minute nap and this has been proven to be the most effective way of interrupting tiredness. (But it will catch up on you and a night’s sleep is the only way of properly replenishing your energy stores!)

If you experience regular excessive daytime tiredness, when you can’t get through the day without a snooze, seek medical advice. This can be the sign of a sleep disorder which can be treated.

Dolphin

Winding down, putting your mind to bed before your body, preparing the ‘runway’ for sleep are all important to help get dolphins to sleep.

Dolphins should be especially careful to avoid checking late night emails or exposing themselves to light from a screen. This stops the sleep hormone from being released and can add to the difficulty in getting to sleep.use black out curtains to give yourself the best chance of getting to sleep

Cover annoying LED lights and use black out curtains to give yourself the best chance of getting to sleep.

Using an eye mask and ear plugs can also help dolphins block out environmental noise that is likely to disturb them

Having a warm bath before bed also is a cue for the body and reduces the core temperature which is so important for getting to sleep.

Avoid alcohol and caffeine in the evening. Alcohol takes an hour per unit to be eliminated from the body and can ruin a good night sleep (sorry!)

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