The morning has such beauty to it.
I love the quiet and the way the light starts to seep in through the windows like a good friend slowly waking you up for the day.
I wish I could say I’m an early bird, but as a self-professed night owl, I have to work a little harder to get up in the morning. That snooze button often gets pressed more than once (a habit I’ve been trying unsuccessfully to break for many years).
When I do get up though, it’s a calm before the day that helps me to settle, to pause, to reflect.
When you have young children, it’s not always possible to get up really early. I’ve seen YouTubers and bloggers posting “my 5am morning routine” or similar, which Krista from A Life in Progress said best:
“Never have I ever been interested in awakening at 5 am to get a head start on the day (and honestly, reading suggestions like this when I had little people made me want to cry!).”
I’m right there with her. Sleep is precious.
But as my daughter gets older and the windows for myself during the day become shorter, I’ve tried to make the most of the evening, and now the morning. This doesn’t mean getting up at the crack of dawn, but it does mean getting up with enough time to care for yourself physically, emotionally, and spiritually. If you’re a numbers person, that means at least 30 minutes earlier than normal.
As someone who enjoys routines (check out my evening routine), I wanted to share my simple morning routine in hopes that maybe it would inspire you to take that extra little bit of time to start your day with intention.
Try to get up at the same time everyday (and don’t press snooze).
This might be really easy for you, or it might be challenging. Full disclosure, it’s challenging for me. But I keep trying in hopes that someday I’ll just naturally wake up early. Regardless of what time you get up, whether it’s 6am or 8am, be intentional about getting up at this time everyday Monday-Friday. I believe weekends are for resting, so make sure you turn off that alarm on Saturday.
Keep boundaries with your technology for at least an hour.
I didn’t used to keep boundaries with my phone in the morning. In fact, for most of us it’s right by our beds and the first thing we look at in the morning. I was listening to a podcast interview with John Eldrege a few months ago who talked about the importance and the beauty of the morning. He said something along the lines of “the world is still there, but I don’t need to interact with it yet. Make a cup of coffee. Enjoy it.” So keep your phone out of reach. If you use it for music in the morning, be very intentional about not looking at email or social media. If that’s too hard, try buying a record player or something similar.
Drink water before caffeine.
Drinking water is something I’ve learned to do first thing in the morning. In fact, the days when I drink coffee before drinking water I usually end up with a headache. Hydrating will not only be good for your body, but it will help you wake up if you are extra groggy or still half-asleep.
Read or write.
One of my favorite times of the morning is getting to read or write by myself for 30-45 minutes. When I read, I go back and forth between reading fiction and non-fiction (subscribe to my soul letters where I share weekly what I’m reading). The most important part for me is reading from a physical book rather than a kindle or on a laptop. The feeling of reading from a page is much different than from a screen. Other mornings I write or journal which helps me take a deep breath before the start of the day.
Now those of you who absolutely must use a screen to read or write, make sure to turn off the wifi. The point of this morning routine is to hold off “being available” to others. This time is about you and your thoughts. This is not the time to get lost in a rabbit hole on social media or stumble into a long thread on reddit.
Eat breakfast.
If I can encourage you to do anything, it’s to eat breakfast. Spending an extra 10 minutes to make yourself some eggs or a bowl of cereal is so important. But here’s the crucial part. Give yourself enough time to sit down and eat it before you move on to the next thing or head out the door for work. I’ve been there done that with eating at work or in the car, and it’s just never satisfying. I feel less stressed and hurried when I take the time to pause and give myself some fuel before I go on to the next activity of the day
Now, this routine has changed many times over the years, from being in college to having a baby. The necessity of getting up early to finish a paper meant not being able to read at my leisure, and getting an extra hour of sleep when parenting a newborn was much more important than getting up at the same time everyday.
I think this is the most crucial thing to understand, routines and rhythms, they change with the season we are in. And it’s ok if you don’t follow them to the “t” every day.
What is important is that you set a routine of some sort for yourself. It’s part of self-care. Our human nature desires to be important and to be cared for, and setting rhythms like this remind us that we have value.
Routines, like this morning routine, are for no one but ourselves.
But the impact the routine has on us? That is what will positively or negatively affect those around us.
Those that practice self-care will be more empathetic, better at navigating challenges, and more content.
Why?
Because they’ve already spent time caring for themselves.
So if you don’t have a morning routine, try this one.
Do you have a friend who might benefit from this post? I’d love if you’d share it with them.
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