Every month I pick a healthy habit that I want to work on. Recently I picked coming up with a great morning routine that I could stick with. I wasn’t able to do this in one month, it took me several months to accomplish this. But there are really many healthy habits that go into my routine. So, I guess it’s okay that it took so long to find the perfect routine. Luckily, you can use mine as a jumping off point and hopefully save yourself some trial and error.
To be honest, my morning routine will not be the best morning routine for you. But you can use it to inspire you to find a routine that works for you. An ideal routine will be something you look forward to, that helps you accomplish your goals that, and fits your lifestyle. Otherwise, it will be very hard for you to keep using it.
I love starting my day off in a productive way. It sets the tone for my whole day. I have played with different morning routines for a long time and I have finally found one that is doable and feels good. So without further ado, here is my current morning routine!
My Morning Routine
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test my PH level (1 minute)
The first thing I do is test my PH level. I am trying to keep my body in an alkaline balance. I use these test strips and do the saliva test before I do anything else. When I started testing my PH level, I did it every day. Now that I know that I have a good alkaline balance, I only test once a week.
drink a few sips of water (1 minute)
Once I have my PH level tested, I drink a few sips of water. I do this to prepared for my Agni Sara breathing. This is a technique that I learned about in yoga teacher training. I’ll fill you in more on what Agni Sara is and how to do it a little later.
make my lunch, snacks, and tea (5 minutes)
In order to eat as clean as I can, I bring my lunch to work every day. I try to include a protein, fruit, and lots of veggies in my lunch. I also bring two snacks. Usually, my snack is cheese, a protein shake, nuts, veggies, hard boiled eggs, or olives. I am a tea fanatic, so I always like to bring a tea on my drive to work.A chai latte is my favorite in the fall and winter. I steep my chai tea for 5 minutes and then add a little bit of honey and a dash of milk. In the spring and summer, I prefer mint, fruit, or lemon tea, usually unsweetened.
do Agni Sara breathing (2 minutes)
Agni Sara is a heating breathing technique. It strengthens your core, detoxifies, and clears out negativity. It is a difficult technique to get down and requires a lot of practice. After a couple months of practice, I still am in the beginning stages of being able to do this technique.
get dressed (2 minutes)
I pick out all of my outfits for the week on Sunday. This is a very quick task in the morning.
do hair/makeup (4 minutes)
I don’t spend a ton of time on this. I usually have my hair and makeup done in a total of four minutes.
drink a green drink (2 minutes)
In an effort to be more alkaline, I drink a green drink every morning (and evening). I make my own in my Vitamix with live wheat grass if I have extra time. But, if I only have two minutes, I just use a scoop of this in a cup of water. Some of its benefits are; natural energy, promotes detox, helps alkalize, aids digestion, and supports immunity.
have breakfast (5 minutes)
I admit I don’t do a great job with breakfast. It’s hard for me to put in the time to have a healthy and filling meal before I leave for work. I usually just have some cottage cheese or yogurt. I would like to get better at this though because I am hungry when I get to work.
brush teeth (2 minutes)
I love our electric toothbrush. My teeth feel dentist clean every time I brush my teeth. I also have had better feedback at my six-month cleanings since we got it. The only downside is that it is much louder than a regular toothbrush. Which is why I love that we have two handles. We just each keep a toothbrush head in both bathrooms with the handles and then we don’t need to disturb the other one if they are sleeping.
–Drive Into Town–
do 15-minute meditation walk (15-miuntes)
This was a lot easier for me before winter came. I would walk outside. Now that it is cold I need to get better about getting to the gym in the morning and walking around the track. I use this time to focus on my breath and gratitude. I use a Tony Robbins techniques called the fifteen minutes of fulfillment. I look forward to this part of my day and hate when I miss it.
yoga (15+ minutes)
I love doing my self-practice in the morning. But, it is hard for me to do it before I have done my walk. I am way too stiff and am afraid that I will injure myself even with a gentle practice. Once I have done my walk, I have loosened up enough to practice yoga. I do at least 15 minutes, it can be up to an hour, just depending on the day.
Ideas for Your Morning Routine
If you are trying to create a morning routine for yourself, I would start out slow. Otherwise, you will get overwhelmed and not follow through. Write down all the things you have to do and put them in an order that makes sense to do them in. Then, start following it. Tweak the order if you need to. Once you have that down, start adding in those healthy habits that you are hoping to incorporate into your day. Add one habit in at a time, once you have it down, then you can add the next.
Remember to be reasonable with your time, don’t constantly underestimate how long things take. If you struggle with this, you may even want to time yourself doing each step of your routine. Maybe even do this over a course of a week. This way you don’t have to constantly take out the last few items of your routine.
Some ideas of healthy habits to add into your morning routine are:
drink a large glass of water
exercise
bring your dog for a long walk
make the bed
empty the dishwasher
check one thing off your to-do list
make a good breakfast
do yoga
have a green drink
check your PH level
meditate
do a breathing exercise
spend some time outside
Constant Change
My morning routine is ever changing. I am constantly optimizing and adding in new things that I want to improve on. I’d say every month it gets one or two tweaks. I try to keep an updated list for myself to follow in the mornings. I am not a morning person and just seeing the routine on paper and being able to follow the numbered steps is really helpful for me. While I am not a morning person, I have come to enjoy mornings because of my routine. Getting out of bed is a lot easier because I know exactly what I am going to do.
When I get to work, I know that I have already accomplished a lot of things that I wanted to do and it only takes me an hour! It is a really great feeling. I would highly recommend making your own morning routine. It may take some time to find a routine that you love, but it is totally worth it. Another way to optimize your day is by ending it well. I would highly recommend reading The Perfect Evening Routine to completely optimize your life.
What do you get done in the morning? Comment below!
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