10 Morning Routines To Help You To Feel More Balanced
Our routines are EVERYTHING. All of the things we do each day are routines: we wake up, shower, eat, work, have lunch, come home, walk the dog, have dinner, and go to bed. Most of our routines are tasks that are so automatic that we don’t even think about doing them, we just DO them automatically. Some routines are good for us and build us up and help us to feel stronger, and some do not. Some rituals are in the form of physical tasks, some are thinking patterns, habits and things that actually decelerate our growth and reduce our potential for happiness.
The following list is ten morning routines that we can put into place that will accelerate our sense of well-being, help us to feel more balanced, more grounded, help us to achieve more and become more successful if that is what we desire. Routine is the hallmark of our lives…in a very real sense we become our habits. When we create positive, generative, healthy and balanced habits, our lives begin to change, little by little. As we change, our lives change.
Wake Up Early And At The Same Time Each Day: When we wake up early, it gives us enough time to practice self-care before we start our work day without feeling like we have to rush around, and as you know, when we begin the day with not enough time for adequate self-care, it starts our whole day off on the wrong foot, and we may even wind up in a bad mood as a result. Give yourself a bit more time than you think you will need in order to get everything done with ease. Some of the things on this list can even happen simultaneously.
Meditation: Daily meditation is a powerful practice that helps to alleviate stress, anxiety, worry, overwhelm. Meditation promotes presence, helping us to feel more at peace, more accepting of ourselves and life, deepens our connection to ourselves, quiets the chatter of the mind, and it calms and centers us. I suggest a minimum of ten minutes each morning, and there is a lot of wonderful meditation music that can assist you in achieving a deeper state of relaxation as you sit.
Choose Happiness: Choose Happiness?! What? Yes, that’s what I said! Most people think that happiness comes as a result of things happening in the outer world: for example, “when I get the job, I will be happy” or “when my boyfriend comes back to to town, I will be happy.” This is a backwards way of thinking of it, and it leads to constant disappointment and huge mood fluctuations because life does not always go our way, and even when it does, it doesn’t stay that way for long. Happiness is actually a CHOICE we make. When we choose happiness each day, we are taking over our conditioned mind and are directing it to where we want it to focus instead of allowing it to control us. It’s as simple as saying to ourselves, “today I choose to be happy,” and it works!
Make a Gratitude List: Ahh, the gratitude list. Gratitude is a BIGGIE. When we focus on what we are grateful for, we receive more to be grateful for: remember that what we focus on grows. Your gratitude list can be different each day or the same, and it can be as long as you like, but I generally suggest at least three to five things. Some of the things that most of us take for granted that may be good additions to your list are: being grateful for waking up to another day, for having a comfortable bed to sleep in, for having a roof over your head and food to eat. These may seem so obvious that we don’t even consider them on a usual day, but they are so vital to our sense of well-being that when we do give thanks for them, it is pretty powerful. When you make your gratitude list, try to really call up the emotions associated with gratitude when you make your list.
Make Your Bed: This is the one that most of us resented as children when we were made to do it, but it is a very powerful one for sure. When we get up right away and make our bed, we are practicing self-care and are taking pride in our personal space. We are creating order first thing in the morning when we make our bed, which starts our day off on a good foot in terms of continuing throughout the day to do things that are also aligned with self-care and orderliness. One important thing to remember is that our living spaces are an extension of us, and so when there is order in our home, we are much more likely to feel peaceful within.
Drink Warm Lemon Water: Drinking a cup of warm lemon water first thing before drinking or eating anything sets our bodies off on a good start for the day. Warm lemon water wakes up our digestive system, balances our PH, helps to detoxify our body and the lemon scent promotes feelings of joy. I can’t think of better reasons than that!
Exercise/Stretching: When we get our bodies moving in the morning, it gets circulation moving and endorphins flowing, promoting feelings of happiness, peace, well-being, confidence and more energy! Whether we go to the gym, run, do yoga, Tai Chi, stretch or walk our dogs, we are getting our body MOVING first thing, and above all else, this promotes good feelings and health, which assist us in drawing to us more situations and things that will help us to feel more of the same. Self-confidence is a wonderful side effect of exercising regularly, and it is automatic once we are in the routine of it.
Eating a Healthy and Balanced Breakfast: Many people seem to skip this most important meal of the day, and wind up paying for it with lagging energy pretty quickly. Some are rushing around so much in the morning with little time to spare and so grab quick food like donuts or muffins. These carb-laden foods may seem fine, but they are harder for our bodies to process and we wind up crashing fast, ending up feeling super hungry and maybe moody as well. The best thing we can do for ourselves is to eat a breakfast with protein and veggies, which is healthy and balanced and has nutrients that our body can easily use for sustained energy until lunchtime. Side note: try not to skip meals…it wreaks havoc on your metabolism!
Affirmations/Choosing Positive Thoughts: As much as possible we want to direct our mind first thing in the morning. Without our loving and consistent direction, the mind has a tendency to wander into dark, judgmental and fearful places, which ultimately draws into our experience more of the same. Instead, affirmations work well when we do them properly. Affirmations are positive statements that we make to ourselves in the present tense, and they are designed to direct our thinking and generate new perspectives based on abundance. Some examples are, “every day, in every way, I get better and better,” “every day in every way, I feel happier and more at peace,” and “the universe always supports me.” The main thing is to always state them in present tense as if what we want is already happening now. (since there is only NOW)
Call On Your Spirit Helpers For Guidance and Support: We all have many spirit guides, helpers, archangels, angels and ancestors who are always watching over us, guiding us and supporting us. You don’t have to know who they are – they already know you and will come when you call…it is their pleasure to do so. You can say in your mind, “I am calling my spirit guides, ancestors, archangels, angels and other beings who are here to assist in my growth and well-being to please be with me and support me this day in whatever is in my highest good. Intention is everything here. Ask and it is done!
Remember, habits are powerful, and they absolutely have the power to change our lives for the better. Creating better habits is a powerful way to begin to feel stronger and start to take control of your life and emotional world. It is a big step toward true healing.
