Alarm Clock Apps to get your rear in gear

  March 14-19th is Sleep Awareness Week and it comes at a good time. Daylight Savings Time begins Sunday, March 13th and millions of Americans will struggle with their own sleep schedule as they lose a full hour of sleep. It can take days to adjust to the time change and to deal with the sun going down much later in the day.

   If the stock alarm clock on your phone isn’t enough, these alarm clock apps are guaranteed to keep you from hitting the snooze button.

“Alarmy” is one of the more popular alarm clock apps for iPhones and Android devices. This app doesn’t have a snooze button and to turn off the alarm you must complete a task. When the Alarmy alarm sounds you have a few choices. You can do a few squats or another exercise, take a certain number of steps, play a memory game similar to Simon Says, or complete math problems (the answer must be correct). 

“Mathe Alarm” is similar and you’ll be asked to answer a series of math questions. When you set the alarm you get to choose how many questions you’ll need to answer as well as the difficulty. The questions can be simple addition, subtraction, division, or much more difficult algebra equations. Be aware, don’t set the problems too difficult for your math ability. The alarm will not turn off any other way.

“Loud Alarm Clock” is a brutal and shocking way to wake up in the morning. It’s perhaps the loudest alarm you’ve ever heard. Imagine sitting just below the horn at a basketball game and you’ll get the picture. You can turn it off without getting out of bed but your nerves may keep you from dozing off again. 

A much more pleasant way to wake up is with the Wakie app for iPhones and Android devices. While this app started as a simple alarm clock app it has evolved to a worldwide community of people who enjoy talking over the phone with strangers. Ask someone to give you a call at a certain time in the morning and you’ll (probably) get a call from someone somewhere with a gentle “Good morning”.