When I started working from home, my mornings had no semblance of a routine.
I pulled myself out of bed at 10 a.m., gulped hot tea and ate “breakfast” at 11 a.m., showered around 12, lazed around for another 2 hours, and then only actually started working at 4 p.m.
I hated every minute of it, yet I couldn’t bring myself to make a change. I knew what I needed to change, even made long lists and wrote affirmations, but I couldn’t.
I promised myself that I would do better the next day.
“Tomorrow, I’ll wake up early, exercise, eat a better breakfast, and get 8 hours of sleep.”
One day, I woke up at 5 a.m., meditated, made lunch, stretched, journaled, ate, and even attempted a cold shower (I’m still traumatized from that experience.)
But lo and behold! I was disappointed once again. Nothing stuck, and I hated my life. I tried and kept failing to maintain a routine.
A few tries later, I realized it was because I was doing things that didn’t align with my goals or who I was.
When creating a morning routine, you have to ensure it works for your body, mind, and soul.
Since then, I’ve created a beautiful morning routine for myself that’s as simple as routines can get. But hey, it works for me.
So, here are my tips for creating a simple morning routine for a happier, healthier you.
Table of Contents
1. Go to Sleep Early
It’s nearly impossible to wake up happy at 6 a.m. when you’ve gone to bed at 2 a.m. It feels like the world is conspiring against you, and you’d rather be dead (I’m clearly no stranger to this feeling.)
Here are the tips I follow to go to bed earlier every night:
- Set a consistent bedtime: By having the same bedtime every night, you’ll regulate your body’s internal clock. Later on, it won’t be so difficult to slip into bed early because your body will be used to feeling tired at the same time every night.
- Have a sleep alarm: To remind yourself of your bedtime, set an alarm on your phone or smartwatch. I set mine to 10 p.m. as a reminder to switch off my laptop and get cozy.
- Create a bedtime routine: Have a calming pre-sleep routine that signals to your body that it’s time to wind down. This, for me, is reading and lighting incense. You might prefer taking a warm bath or doing some breathing exercises.
- Limit screen time: Blue light from phones, tablets, and computers interferes with the body’s production of melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep. Therefore, avoid all screens for at least an hour before bed.
- Don’t snack or eat heavy: I used to be a night kitchen prowler. Even if I wasn’t hungry, I craved to stuff my face with chips. But this caused me discomfort, and my tummy wasn’t in the best shape in the morning.
- Don’t drink anything at least 4 hours before bed: I have an overactive bladder, yet I love drinking black tea in the evening. Tea is a natural diuretic and has caffeine, which spells bladder trouble from a mile away. Hence, my sleep cycle was constantly disrupted by bathroom trips, and I was always uncomfortable in bed. Now, I only drink tea in the mornings and live on plain water for the rest of the day.
- Limit daytime naps: I used to be a professional napper, but it’s easy for a nap to go from 20 minutes to 2 hours. This will interfere with your sleep schedule. So, it’s best to avoid napping entirely or keep them strictly at 20-30 minutes earlier in the day.
Sleeping early does require sacrifice. I’ve had to give up tea, movies, and long naps — but it’s been worth it.
Having a good night’s rest and waking up early will increase the quality of your life more than anything else will.
Related Post: How to Stop Hitting the Snooze Button in the Morning
2. Plan Your Mornings the Night Before
One of the best ways to make your mornings more simple is to know your schedule for the next day the night before.
You can even pack your lunch or make breakfast for the next day if you’re in a good mood.
This will only lighten the morning’s load and give you a better start to your day.
Here are some things I like to do the night before:
- Review my schedule: I’ll open up my planner and see if I have any important tasks for the next day.
- Prioritize my tasks: If I have three or more tasks on my list, I’ll organize them in order of priority. I’ll start my most important task first in the morning.
- Set my outfit: I like selecting my outfit for the next day and ironing it. This helps prevent decision fatigue in the morning.
- Pack my bag: I got into this habit in university. I had to take a 6 a.m. bus to college and I needed a ton of books every day. So, in the evening, I’d figure out what books I needed for the next day and put them in my bag. This habit continued when I started working, too.
Some other things that would make your life easier are prepping breakfast and lunch, making a to-do list, or setting objectives for the day.
3. Stay Away From Your Phone
It doesn’t matter if you’re a millennial, boomer, Gen X, or Gen Z; we’re unhealthily attached to our phones.
But using your phone as soon as you wake up means giving somebody else control of your mind and time.
You also feel like your brain is fried before you set foot out of bed.
Try to stay away from your phone for at least two hours after you wake up. This will give you a more focused and mindful start to your day and time to connect with yourself and your loved ones.
4. Focus on Activities that Align with Your Goals
My morning routine used to either be jam-packed or non-existent because I never understood what rituals benefited me the most.
Don’t run at 6 a.m. if dancing makes you feel happier and fitter.
Don’t meditate if you’re better off writing your thoughts in a journal.
Don’t read if you’d rather be painting or gardening.
Your morning routine should include activities that make you more JOYFUL and ENERGIZED.
Here’s a non-exhaustive list of morning activities you can choose from:
- Breathing exercises
- Meditation
- Journaling
- Morning walks
- Stretching or yoga
- Reading
- Sipping a hot beverage
- Gardening
- Visualizing
- Reading affirmations
- Drawing, painting, or learning an instrument
- Aromatherapy
- Gratitude practice
- Slow breakfast
- Chatting with your family
There are so many things we can do in the morning, yet we pigeonhole ourselves into what the self-help gurus are doing, like running, cold showers, etc.
Also, if you’d rather just roll out of bed and drink coffee, that’s fine, too! Your morning is YOURS. Don’t let anybody else tell you how to spend it.
Related Post: Design a Mindful Morning Routine That Works for You: 9 Habits
Final Thoughts
And that’s it for this post. I hope you learned how to simplify your morning routine for a healthier you.
Let me know if there’s anything special you do on your mornings!
Thanks for reading 🙂