MY MORNING ROUTINE
Welcome back to this week’s post on The Dairy Free Diaries! I hope you guys have had an amazing week, but if not that’s okay too. Not every week is going to be great, but as long as you are able to pick yourself back up, that’s all that matters.
One word – Energizing: It was pretty weird this week. I had this crazy amount of energy that came out of nowhere. It was so weird how different my energy levels became this week, and honestly, I believe that it was because the morning routine, which I discuss later, finally kicked in.
I started adding a lot of positive and productive things into my life and I am truly living the results of it. This week I have felt excited, energized, and ready to tackle my days.
Last week felt sort of off and this week was exactly what I was hoping for. I know this energy may not last forever, but I am surely taking advantage of it while it is here.
One low point- Struggling to be consistent throughout the week: This is something that has been hard for a while, but it progressively got worse this week. My problem is that during the week, I am hitting my tasks and goals every day.
But on the days where I don’t have work, I am not able to keep up that work ethic. I know that my weekends should be more relaxing because I don’t have work, but there is a big difference from taking some time to rest and purposely procrastinating my work.
And that’s where I am at right now. I catch myself finding excuses as to why I should do the things I need to. Honestly, if I were just taking time off from more laborious activities such as studying, I would be more understanding of myself.
But when I start to not do the habits that make me feel good, such as journaling, exercising, reading, etc., that’s where I draw the line. This is something I am definitely going to try and focus on next week, so I am hopeful.
One high point- Hitting three 5am workouts before work: This was such a great part of my week. It has been pretty hard to get myself up for these early mornings, but I am so proud of myself for finally getting it done.
It was really hard to do, but once I implemented the morning routine I describe below, it made a tremendous difference. I learned the importance of preparing for your workout and it made a huge difference.
I feel ready and energized to work out every morning, which is so crazy to hear me write. I used to do early morning workouts about 6-8 months ago but was unsure if I had it in me to get back on that horse. But it only proved something I like to remind myself everyday: If you did it once, you are capable of doing it again, and again, and again.
MY MORNING ROUTINE
So, for my mornings, I have changed the way I used to look at them. I used to be so caught up on time blocks that I never really had the experience of fully enjoying my mornings. And because of this, I made the change to focus more on the things I am doing, then the times. Obviously, I have a job to be at by 8am so there has to be some sort of structure with time, but I make sure to give myself plenty of time so that this isn’t a worry of mine. So instead, I am going to focus on the components rather than the increments of time. Without further ado, here is my morning routine during the week.
WAKE UP AT 5AM
I know. 5am is a shock to most people, even me. But it honestly works so well for me and with my schedule. As soon as I wake up, I am so tempted to go on my phone, but I always try to resist. Every day is different; some days I won’t, others I will. It is definitely something that has been challenging for me, but that I am working on.
HYDRATE
In addition, I always like to hydrate before anything else. So, the night before I make sure to leave a large glass of water on my nightstand. And before I even leave my bed, I will chug that glass of water. It has really helped me to get some energy first thing in the morning.
BREATHING EXERCISES
This is something that I have known about for a while but never actually experienced it. I had come across Wim Hof’s breathing exercises when I was looking for meditative ways to help with my anxiety and stress. I always felt like it was too simple to actually work, so I never tried it. But recently I have incorporated this into my morning routine, and I have been utterly shocked. I didn’t notice it at first, but one day I forgot to do it and I got really anxious and wasn’t sure why.
The rest of the days I had been really good about managing my anxiety, so I was confused as to why I wasn’t able to this time. And I honestly believe it’s because of breath exercises. It is so simple, but so effective. It allows me to take some time to sit with myself and focus on my breathing, which completely relaxes me. If you are interested in trying this out, just search “Wim Hof’s breathing exercises” on YouTube. He has many different breathing exercises for beginners and advanced.
MAKE MY BED
Isn’t this such a classic? I know its common knowledge that it is so important to make your bed in the morning because it’s the first completed task that will snowball into your other tasks for the day. This is pretty common so I won’t go into too much detail, but just know you should be making your bed. It doesn’t have to look straight out of a catalogue, but at least tidy it up.
GET READY FOR MY WORKOUT
This stage of my morning routine might not seem important, but it definitely is. I believe that the way you prepare for your workout determines what kind of workout you have. If you are feeling good and full of energy before your workout, you are going to kill it.
And with these 5am wake ups, it’s pretty hard to gather up the energy for an intense workout. But what has really helped me in this department is having a little pre-workout snack but being very specific on what that is. I have tried all kinds of snacks, but none of them give me the same feeling as some fruit and a handful of cashews does. I don’t know what about it makes me feel energized and ready for my workout but trust me it works.
WORKOUT
So, working out has been an interesting aspect of my life. I feel like I have been constantly switching the types of workouts I am doing. I have, at one point or another, been focused on workouts like walking, Pilates, HIIT, running, lifting, etc. But as of recently, I have started getting back into workouts that combine HIIT with lifting weights and am really enjoying it. I feel good while I am doing it and boy do I feel good afterwards. My workouts have given me such long-lasting energy throughout my day that I don’t even need to drink coffee. Who would’ve thought?
COLD SHOWER
By this time, I have already done so much today, but it is still probably around 6am and nothing sounds worse than a cold shower that early. It was hard for me to push myself to do this, but everything they say about cold showers is right. Even if it’s just taking 5 mins at the end of the shower to be under the cold water that more than enough. After my cold showers I feel so refreshed and I think that the workouts I am doing combined with this aspect have truly changed my energy levels for the better.
SKINCARE
I will keep this one short and sweet because I have a whole blog post dedicated to skincare, so if you want to check that out just click on the beauty tab and you will see my post. But let me tell you, skincare is probably one of my favorite things right now. I have made skincare feel like a reward to me because it makes me feel good that I am putting only good things on my skin and taking care of it. Just to keep it short, I splash my face with cold water (yes, more with the cold water), use my hydrating serum, put on moisturizer and sunscreen, and call it a day.
HOT LEMON WATER
Hot lemon water has so many great digestive benefits and I have really enjoyed its impact on my morning. I like to drink it while either reading a book or journaling or just relaxing on the couch. It’s a nice change to enjoy some warmth after all of that cold water. Sometimes I will put a splash of apple cider vinegar to make it more of a probiotic or add some honey if I want something sweet.
GRATITUDE
I think it is so important to find little bits of gratitude throughout the day and this is something I am striving for. And one actionable way that I can strive for this goal is to take some time every morning to write down what I am thankful for. And I have experienced that starting your day off with gratitude makes it much easier to find gratitude throughout the rest of the day.
And that’s what I want to do. By practicing gratitude, it allows me to recognize all that I have currently and appreciate it, which is a beautiful thing. I have “The 5 Minute Journal” which already comes with prompts for gratitude among others, but I have also at one point just used a blank notebook and written down 5-10 things that I am grateful for.
BREAKFAST
The most important meal of the day. You better make it count. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and it is something that I can look forward to first thing in the morning. I really make sure to balance my breakfast between carbs, healthy fats, and protein. My go-to is oatmeal because you can make it so many ways that you will never get tired of it. I also really like gomacro bars with fruit for when I am in a rush and don’t have time to make anything. Either way I like to get in something substantial and that makes me feel good.
