Rise and shine sleepyhead, because as you know…the early bird gets the worm. The worm in question, you might ask? Well, waking up earlier and perfecting a healthy and happy morning ritual, can significantly boost our mood and improve our whole day!
1. Structure Makes Life Better
2. A Morning Ritual Will Benefit Your Entire Day
3. The Science Behind the Benefits of Certain Morning Habits
4. Developing a Solid Morning Ritual
5. AVOID these things for a more beneficial morning
Mornings can be exciting because they represent a fresh new start, boosting you off into your long and busy day ahead. We all know how starting off the morning on a bad foot can have the potential to ruin the rest of your day, especially on the days where you need the most energy! So, how can we stray far, far away from those rough and unproductive mornings? Easy, create a consistent and realistic morning routine that works for you every day.
Creating structure in our life gives us a heightened sense of control that we all need in order to stay focused, happy, and motivated. According to the NYC Therapy group, having routines is essential to alleviating many mental health disorders, as well as promoting healthy habits. Starting off your day with structure can make you feel more like you are in control of your schedule, and not like your schedule is controlling you.
Out of all the times of the day to implement structure into your life, the morning is 100% THE MOST important–since it allows you to get in the right mindset to tackle the rest of the day. Having a morning routine also can help alleviate pent up stress and anxiety to make it easier to increase your productivity and achievements throughout the day.
Personally, if I ever wake up past 9:00 am, I am a whole different type of person you do not want to be around! This is because I get super anxious and fear I won’t be able to complete the tasks I need to complete during that day. This feeling is very normal for many people, which is why having a morning routine can prevent this anxiety, and actually your productivity and mental health throughout the day.
A habit takes around 21 days to fully form, considering that you stay consistent with it. The key is to be patient and stay honest with yourself when you are beginning to implement beneficial habits into your life. It can be hard to stick to a routine, but once you get there, I promise you will thank yourself! That being said, here are a few scientific backed habits to start implementing into your morning routines.
Waking up at the same time each morning has proven to help increase people’s feelings about everyday aspects of their lives. According to a study done by Mattress Inquirer, they found that the participants that had a strict wake-up schedule “reported higher satisfaction in their personal lives, work lives, and finances.” Having an irregular sleep pattern messes with your body’s hormones, thus leading to decreased mental function throughout the day.
A morning sweat can lead to a more motivated and productive day. When you workout earlier in the day, your body releases more endorphins which can boost your mood for the rest of the day.
If you’re anything like me, you despise breakfast. However, eating something nutritious in the morning is crucial to gaining energy for the rest of the day. Even if it is small, just eat something! Science shows that eating a healthy breakfast boosts your energy levels and restores your glycogen levels, helping you take on the day.
Break the habit of reaching for your phone first thing in the morning. Forbes makes a good point that going onto your phone first thing in the morning causes you to feel more distracted throughout the day, especially if you see something negative online that may trigger your stress responses for the rest of the day. Instead, maybe make a plan of your day and read a few pages of your favorite book when you first wake up.
Routines are definitely not the most fun thing when you are just beginning. It can take time and patience to master a healthy morning ritual that works for you. Also, many of us may not have a lot of time in the morning, but don’t let that scare you away from developing a short, yet effective morning ritual. Here are some ideas for both our early workers, as well as late sleepers, to start building your everyday morning routine.
Overall, take baby steps when you are developing your morning ritual. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to work for you to make your life feel more structured. However, remember that when you start to incorporate activities into your routine, be mindful of repeating the same steps every morning, so eventually it becomes a habit!
Interestingly enough, there are some key things we should try to avoid in order to improve our morning.
One of these things being alarm clocks…how are you supposed to wake up without an alarm clock?? Well, it may be hard at first so try to start this technique when you have more time on your hands, but essentially set an internal clock in your head before you go to sleep at night. Eventually, your body will begin to wake up naturally at the time that you would usually set an alarm for. Alarms actually contribute to poor sleep habits and lead to sleep deprivation. Seven to eight hours of sleep is key to healthy sleeping habits, so if you want to wake up at 6 go to sleep no later than 10 to help your body wake up naturally.
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Another thing to avoid in the morning is drinking coffee before putting anything else into your body. It is actually super beneficial to start brewing your coffee in the morning for the smell of it, but you should avoid drinking it for a little while. You should avoid coffee first thing because you don’t want to interfere with your natural level of cortisol. Drinking coffee messes these natural levels up, causing you to crash earlier in the day.
Developing a morning routine was probably one of the best things I have ever done for myself. Having a morning ritual can help get you excited to take on the day and make you feel like you have your whole life put together (even if you don’t). After all, if you win the morning, you win the day.
Written by Emma Carlson
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