The Power of Morning Rituals
What if I told you that you have the power to set yourself up for success, every single day?
It’s true. But it doesn’t mean that nothing challenging will come your way. Or you won’t have the occasional meltdown. It doesn’t mean that everything will run right on schedule or you’ll be on time or won’t spill coffee on your cute outfit while driving to work.
What it DOES mean is that you’ll have a much more grounded and level-headed energy in order to deal with every difficult moment or plot twist that life throws at you (spills included).
So how can this magic happen?
Developing a morning routine. And beyond a routine-rituals.
Sacred, non-negotiable actions that you do daily just for the health of it. You know those little moments of bliss like sipping warm coffee, or reading the newspaper(does anyone do that still?)? These peaceful moments are CRUCIAL for our sanity, and developing a routine of just a few of those rituals every morning can make a world of difference for your whole entire day.
You know those mornings when you press snooze 3 times and rush out of bed only to run around the house frantically with no time to eat breakfast let alone take a deep breathe? And the rest of the day feels like a lost cause and you’re just counting down the moments until you’re laying in bed? We all have those. And maybe that’s you every single day. But it’s okay, because it is totally possible (and up to you!) to change that. I’m here to tell you that your life has so much more potential than that, it just requires a bit of self love and care.
My Morning Rituals
I’ve been trying to lean more towards rituals than routine, because sometimes the word routine can feel too rigid to me. I end up putting an insane amount of pressure on myself to make this routine happen, and when it doesn’t it has a worse effect on me than if I hadn’t even attempted it in the first place!
I find that by having a few morning rituals that can be done in any order, at any time I wake up, I’m much more likely to stick with them.
-Big glass of water
Right when I wake up, before I have any sort of caffeine, or even brush my teeth, I chug a glass of water. I usually add lemon every other day. We naturally dehydrate while we sleep to get rid of toxins, so we wake up thirsty! Drinking water first thing also gets things moving (insert poop emoji), gives you energy, and kick starts your metabolism!
-Foursigmatic Mushroom Coffee
I feel like I preach about mushroom coffee on the daily, but only because it will change your life. But even beyond the health benefits (energy without the jitters!), the act of relaxing with a warm (or cold!) yummy drink first thing in the morning is blissful. Sometimes I do tea instead! It’s just about having a moment to myself to soak in the magic of the first part of the day.
-Meditation and gratitudes
Meditation practice is a must do every morning for me. As a naturally anxious person, I find that it brings me immense grounding and clarity when I start my day with it. I aim for at least 10 minutes in the morning, and my biggest goal is to do it before checking my phone at all! I also follow the meditation with listing out at least 5 gratitudes, sometimes in my journal, sometimes just in my thoughts. Getting in the habit of gratitude will allow you to naturally return to that state when things get tough.
-Move my body
Some form of movement is necessary for me in the morning, whether that’s a quick gentle stretch on a rest day or a 10 mile run, it does so much for me physically AND mentally. Moving first thing in the morning gets your blood flowing, gives you natural energy, and a mood boost that will stick with you throughout the day thanks to endorphins. Bonus points if it’s outside and resets your circadian rhythm!
The goal here is to find a few things you can do every morning to ground you, and get you in a clear and open headspace for the day ahead. Rituals help us to slow down, savor life’s little moments and find gratitude for all the abundance that surrounds us.
I hope this inspires you to find your own rituals! These are my rituals and what speaks to my soul and body, and you may find that they work for you or you may find something better (except the water part-everyone should chug water upon waking!). Whatever it is you do, just be sure to make time for it every single day. Set your alarm a little bit earlier so you can move slower and do things that fill your soul first thing in the morning-you may find that they give you more energy than that tricky little snooze button!
