Let me start off by saying that I never envisioned myself being a morning person nor did I ever believe that I could be one. After studying those who have been successful, I noticed one common trait, they’re all morning people.
Well, I thought to myself, if they’re living the life that I want to live than it must be working for them. With that in mind I started off on my journey towards becoming a morning, but let me tell you it wasn’t all rainbows and blue skies. I struggled along the way, but was also able to develop nine steps for myself, so that now I can’t wait for it be the morning.
1. Alarm
This one seemed like a no-brainer to me, but a lot of people haven’t implemented it into their life. When you wake up in the morning, do you really want to wake up to some loud and obnoxious noise? Do you really think that’s the best way to wake up?
What I started to do was change my horrendous alarm clock to noise, to light classical music. Trust me, when you wake up to a soothing sound and not blasting god knows what noise, you’ll be in a more peaceful state.
2. Water
When you’re sleeping for seven to eight hours, your body is not taking in any water. This could allow you to become dehydrated overnight and without your knowledge.
One of the first things that you should do when you wake up is drink a glass of ice cold water, allowing you to feel refreshed.
3. Brush Your Teeth
After drinking your glass of water, proceed to brush your teeth, getting rid of any bacteria that was in your mouth overnight. You’ll start to feel energized and ready to tackle the next item on your list.
4. Meditation
Using the app calm, which I use every day and highly recommend, start off the morning by meditating. Most importantly, I focus on my breathing and calming down any thoughts that might’ve bounced around my head while I was sleeping.
Not only is meditation a great exercise for you, but also makes your present in the moment. You can take in all the surroundings you’re in.
5. Yoga
If you think about it, you’ve lied on your back for seven or eight hours, I’m no doctor, but that can’t be good. From meditation I flow into a thirty-minute yoga session, allowing all my muscles and joints begin to come to life.
Once you’re done with your yoga session, you’ll start to feel happy. Happy for what you just did and happy because you’re almost done with your morning routine!
6. Reading
From yoga, I read at least ten pages in a self-development / business book. Not only does this get me motivated, but it also gives me a great mindset for the day.
When you read about someone who’s accomplished so much, it will inspire you, and you can take that with you. You gain valuable skills before even heading into your work.
7. Gratitude Journal
Stay with me now; we’re almost done! After having completed six of your nine exercises, it’s time to reflect on everything that you’re grateful for. I try to write down at least five things I’m grateful for in detail.
You begin to see how much you actually have in this life. That the problems you have to deal with are no match for others. You start to have more appreciation for who you are and what you’ve done.
8. Cold Shower
This may sound crazy to some people, but aren’t we all? By taking a cold shower, I’m talking an ice cold shower, don’t even think about it turning it to warm, you begin to realize some things that you never even knew existed.
Besides being scientifically proven that it’s better for you and has more benefits for you than a warm shower, cold showers are amazing!
Not only do you get mentally tougher, yes it took me a couple of minutes to get in the first time and most likely the entire first week, but it also wakes you up.
According to the Medical Daily, cold showers increase your alertness, see I wasn’t lying. When your body goes into shock from the cold water, you breathing increases thus increasing your heart rate.
When our heart rate increases, blood is rushed through our entire body, giving us energy for the entire day.
9. Breakfast
If you’re parents and teachers didn’t tell you enough, I’m here to tell you once more, have a good breakfast! The food you eat in the morning is how you start off your day. Would you start your day off by watching TV?
Start your day off with fruits, perhaps even juice up a healthy shake. Try to stay away from fattening foods and foods high in sugar. For a whole list of foods to eat in the morning, check out this article by Health.
These nine simple steps have profoundly changed my life. I feel more energized, more alive than I ever was before. Through this, I’ve been able to live a happier life and accomplish more, what else could you want?
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