I love my morning routine! I love routines in general, but my morning routine is kind of my favorite part of my day! I think mornings set the tone for your entire day. If you start your morning in a positive mindset, that sets a positive tone for your day! But, if you set your morning off on the wrong foot, that can set a negative tone for your day.
For much of college, I would simply wake up and get ready for the day. That was my whole morning routine. I wouldn’t do anything to set the tone for my day.
It wasn’t until the past year or two that I actually implemented a consistent morning routine.
My routine has changed and shifted throughout the past few years, but I feel really good about where it is at now! My current morning routine lets me bring positive energy with me throughout my day!
My Current Morning Routine
Waking Up Early
I love to start my mornings early. If I sleep in too long, I feel like I waste the day and like I have to rush through my morning routine. I like to have a decent chunk of time to do my morning routine so that I don’t feel rushed.
I typically wake up between 6:30 and 7:00 on weekdays. I find that this is the perfect time to wake up because my morning routine takes an hour to an hour and a half. Waking up at this time allows me to finish my morning routine by 9am to start work.
Meditation
Meditation is the newest element of my morning routine. Most days, meditation is the first thing that I do after getting out of bed. I find that meditation allows me to start my day with a calm and clear mind. It lets me connect with my body and my mind early on in my day. Through meditation, I can set my intentions for the day and try to cultivate a positive mindset right from the start!
Yoga
A few years ago, I started stretching in the morning. This was really when I began to form a morning routine because it added some structure to my mornings.
I have continued stretching every day because it helps with back and neck pain, but in 2021 I started doing yoga in the mornings following videos on YouTube. I particularly love Yoga with Adriene! I find yoga to be a great way to connect with my body first thing in the morning! I can determine where I have tightness or pain from my nights sleep and what areas need more care that day.
Tidy Up
My partner and I like to watch TV before bed at night, so usually, there are pillows and blankets strewn about the living room in the mornings. We like to have candles lit too, and we typically leave them out to cool overnight.
I’ll take a minute or two in the mornings to just pick up the apartment. I’ll refold blankets on the couch and put anything away that we left out the night before. This just ensures that we are starting our days in a clean and tidy apartment.
Get Ready
This is the most obvious part of my morning routine. I get ready for my day. I get dressed, put on some makeup, do my hair. You know, typical things that humans do to prepare themselves for their day.
Some days this takes more time than others. If I’m curling my hair or putting on more full-coverage makeup, this can take up to half an hour. On a typical day, though, it is about 10 minutes.
Read & Breakfast
The last part of my morning routine is reading and eating breakfast. I love to read, and I often read before bed at night. But because I’m always exhausted at night, I tend to fall asleep in the middle of chapters. Because of this, I like to spend time in the morning finishing the chapter that I fell asleep reading.
I finish my chapter while eating breakfast. I go through phases where I eat the same breakfast for several months, and then I get really sick of it and switch to something else🤷♀️
Things I Want to Add
I love my morning routine, but that doesn’t mean there are no improvements that can be made. I’d love to wake up earlier, but that would require going to bed earlier because I need at least eight hours of sleep a night. I can definitely tell when I only get eight hours versus when I get nine hours. I thrive on nine hours of sleep!
I’d also like to add a walk into my morning routine. I spend my entire day sitting at a desk, and I typically go for a walk after work or after dinner, but I’d love to implement another walk into my mornings. Having a second walk in my day will help me just feel better throughout the day. I get headaches from sitting at my desk all day, so I hope adding another walk to my morning will help with that!
How to Build a Morning Routine
Building a morning routine can be a bit tricky at first. Maybe you tend to wake up at the last possible second and rush out the door for work, or perhaps you don’t have to wake up at a consistent time because your job isn’t consistent or you’re a college student.
No matter what, everyone can build a solid morning routine that they love, and that will set them up for a productive and positive day!
Be Consistent
The first step to building a morning routine is waking up at a consistent time every day. This is easier said than done because it also means you need to go to bed consistently every day.
If you’re the kind of person who wakes up at 9:00am every day, I wouldn’t recommend abruptly changing your schedule to wake up at 6:00am. Your body will need time to adjust to the new routine, so take it slow. Start by waking up and going to sleep half an hour earlier and take it from there. You will often find that your body has a time when it wants to wake up, and that is something you can work with!
Do What YOU Love
Your morning routine is YOUR morning routine! Just because I meditate and do yoga doesn’t mean that you need to do that! Find what you enjoy doing in the mornings and incorporate that into your routine. Maybe you love putting on fun makeup but never seem to have the time in the morning. Try to make that a priority in your new morning routine!
You want to build a morning routine that you are excited about every day! For example, when I started stretching every morning, I really hated it. I dreaded having to wake up and move my body. But now that I use YouTube videos like Yoga with Adriene (who does yoga with her DOG!!), I am much more motivated to actually stretch in the mornings!
Be Flexible!
Flexibility is an essential part of morning routines! You want to be able to change and adjust based on what is happening on a particular day. For example, if I will be having an early workday, I can cut some time out of getting ready and reading in the morning!
You also don’t have to do your morning routine the exact same every day! On weekends I have a much less structured morning routine. My partner and I are also adopting a kitten in the next few weeks, so I’m sure my morning routine will be changed completely when that happens!
Your morning routine should be serving you and helping you create the best mindset for your days. It is a great way to practice self-care and prioritize yourself! This is the primary goal of implementing a morning routine!
Want more self-care ideas? Check out this post on self-care to prioritize you!