Morning Routine Activities to Jumpstart Your Day
It only took me 49 years to figure this out. Having a morning routine is KEY to having a day that is productive, stress-free and focused on healthy habits.
Do you have a morning routine? Like, one or more things that you do every morning no matter what? I bet you do, but you don’t think about it. You probably wake up, head to the bathroom to pee, head to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee or tea, have a bite to eat and then brush your teeth. And you might fit in some exercise if you are motivated. Am I right?
Even if that isn’t your exact routine, you probably do something similar. It’s become a habit, so you don’t even put any thought into it – it just happens.
I recently read the book, Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. If you haven’t read it, get it and read it immediately. It will transform your days going forward. Anywho – I read the book knowing that I needed/wanted to create some sort of morning routine that fit into my lifestyle but also focused on things that I wanted to incorporate into my daily routine. You see, I’m a HUGE procrastinator, but if I can get in the habit of doing something every morning it will stick, and I do it religiously.
S.A.V.E.R.S. Morning Routine
In his book, Elrod introduces his S.A.V.E.R.S. – Six activities that are performed for ten mins every morning, creating a one hour Miracle Morning routine. The activities are Silence, Affirmations, Visualization, Exercise, Reading, and Scribing (Writing). He states that they can be done in any order, but they have to be done first thing in the morning. Turning this routine into a habit can transform the tone of our day and put you into the right frame of mind to tackle anything that comes at you.
That’s exactly what I need now that I am learning how to deal with feelings of anxiety. My brain has a way of taking me into uncharted thinking territory that can create havoc for my wellbeing. So, I started experimenting with a few things to see what might work for my morning routine. I found there are 12 activities that, when I do them in the morning, make me more productive, more positive-focused, more motivated, and I have way more energy. And no, I don’t do all 12 of them every day. I’m still in the stages of trying to figure out which six I will choose for my permanent morning routine (until I feel it needs to change), so I am trying out a few to see how my day goes.
12 Powerful Morning Activities that Can Make Your Day Shine
- Wake up earlier – I know this probably doesn’t sit well with many of you, but trust me on this. Waking up as early will change your life. When I was in my corporate job, for 24 years I started work between 8:30 and 9:30 a.m., so that meant I was generally out of bed (if I were lucky) by 7:00 a.m. About four months before I left my job I changed my schedule to arrive at my office at 7:00 a.m. and leave by 3:30 p.m. That meant I needed to have my ass out of bed by 5:30 a.m. at the latest to get to work on time. I never thought I was going to be able to do it, but guess what. I did. And it was an easy adjustment.
What I noticed was my level of productivity. The office was pretty quiet when I got to the office that earlier, so there were very few distractions. I planned my day, checked my schedule, reviewed and responded to all email, and started on one of my project, all before the rest of the office got to work. I was telling everyone how I wish I had come to this realization about 20 years sooner. It was a complete game-changer. Had I stayed in my job I am pretty sure I would have kept that schedule forever because I loved the feeling of accomplishment I had every day.
Now that I run my own company and work from home I have, unfortunately, fallen into old habits of going to bed late (I get a lot of my work accomplished after 9 PM) and waking up in the late morning. When I do get going I feel lethargic, and I drag myself around the house until Noon, trying to get myself going.
- Express Gratitude – Before you rise out of your bed take a moment and contemplate all of the things that you are grateful for in your life. A life of gratitude can bring more joy and peace than any amount of medication.
- Sit in meditation or prayer – Once you have stretched yourself out of slumber and removed the kinks, sit in meditation or prayer for at least 10 minutes. Quieting the mind in silence will open up your senses to the world around you. Do you need help getting started meditating – check out this video here.
- Write in your journal – I love this practice first thing in the morning because it allows me to do a few things. If there are activities, errands or other things that I need to do during the day, I jot them down in my journal so that I don’t forget. I can also record any dreams that I had during the night. There doesn’t have to be a rhyme or reason to your writing. Just put pen to paper (remember long-hand?) and get your thoughts, whatever thoughts that come up, down on the page. Remember to add the date for archival purposes.
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- Review your positive affirmations – This is a powerful technique that will start your day off in a positive way. Affirmations are positive statements in the present tense that describe either who you are, or what you want in your life. To find some affirmations or to give you some inspiration to write your own – check out the 101 affirmations from Louise Hay.
- Visualize your goals – After affirmations (or maybe even before), the act of visualization is so powerful, it’s scary. Visualizing your goals allows your brain and body to experience the goal even before it happens. It prepares the arena to help make the goal a reality. Every elite athlete in the world visualizes their goals before performing their sport. When you visualize your goals use all of your senses – touch, smell, taste, hear and see. What feelings would come up for you if the goal became a reality? Start feeling them in your visualization. Turn on the cinematic technicolor of your brain and start watching how your life changes through achieving your goals.
- Drink 16 ounces of pure water – Your body will become dehydrated overnight while you are sleeping. It is essential and beneficial to drink 16 ounces of water immediately upon rising. This will get your metabolism going, helps flush out toxins in the body, and it will help facilitate the production of muscle and blood cells. Often the sluggish feeling we have in the morning is caused by dehydration, so drink up! (Note about lemon water – it is not necessary to add this to your water in the a.m. to get benefits. However, adding the juice of half a lemon to warm water can help with digestion, increase energy, give you a good dose of vitamin C, and help maintain good blood sugar control.)
- Read something inspirational/motivational – We don’t read enough, at least the general public doesn’t. I read every day like clockwork. I cannot imagine not learning something new every day, so I read. I have several books going at one time, and I read blogs, news websites, and other material all day long (if you are a writer you should be doing the same thing). So, why should you read every morning? It is common knowledge that every successful person reads in the morning. Many of them read newspapers, magazines, industry journals, websites, and other business-related material. Other read inspiration texts like the Bible. If you want to keep your brain top-notch, learn new things, and find words that inspire, motivate and get you going – read. Here is a list of books to get you started.
- Listen to music – Who doesn’t like listening to music? Okay, there might be some people who don’t, but most do. And when you listen to music that has meaning for you, you get the boogie going and soon you are at the start of a productive and fun day. I could never create a playlist to suit the tastes of all my readers, so do some research and find some tunes that make you move, make you think, make you remember, make you want to take on the world. Keep them handy for your morning routine, and add a few dance moves while you’re at it. (I did find this playlist on Huffington Post, and this one on Spotify (you will need to be a member) to get you started.
- Eat a good breakfast – Your momma was right. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. There is a caveat though – do not eat a high-carb breakfast first thing in the morning. That means no cereals, no pancakes (unless they are grain-free and no added sugar), no toast, no donuts or pastries. That will only rev you up and then make you crash and burn – and you don’t want that. And let’s not forget to mention the chaos it causes your blood sugar levels – no bueno! Eat a high protein, high-fat breakfast that will fuel you with energy. Here is a good roundup of healthy breakfast options I found from Dr. Axe. Check out a few for your morning routine.
- Take a morning walk – I don’t like doing this much where I live in Los Angeles, so if I do walk, it is to an at-home DVD program by Leslie Sansone. Once we move to the mountains or where there is more nature surrounding me I will go for some loooooong walks. A good dose of moderate walking will wake you up, get your muscles warmed up for the day, build stamina, increase your strength, improve cardiovascular health, and make you feel damn good. Don’t make this a slow, lazy walk. Get some speed going (but not too fast). Better yet, make it an interval walk. Walk at a good clip for about three to five minutes, and then walk as fast as you can for one minute, then another moderate walk for three to five minutes, and back to a one-minute fast walk. Do this for at least 20 minutes, and you will see some significant health benefits in a few weeks.
- Do some yoga (sun salutations) – Okay, so you don’t know a thing about yoga. No biggie. Just about anyone can do sun salutations. This sequence of yoga movements is part of the vinyasa flow style of yoga practice. Almost all yoga teachers will begin with this flow at the beginning of class. It is a great way to warm up the body through full body movement. It does take some practice to learn proper technique, as the breathing component is essential to master. It’s always best to learn from a yogi in person, but when that isn’t possible, here is a great way to learn how to flow through the routine.
Let me know what you try and how your design your morning routine. Post a comment here on the blog, or join the conversation over at our new Facebook Group: The Clean Body Project Community.
About the Author Corrie Ann
Corrie Ann Gray is a writer, researcher, coach, and cookie enthusiast who lives in Los Angeles, CA. She started the Clean Body Project to share all of her knowledge and resources with others who are interested in running their own experiment into clean holistic living. She is also known as The Renaissance Soul Writer at www.corrieanngray.com.
