I’ll admit it, I was not always a morning person. I remember when I was younger, I could not stand hearing the alarm go off. I always waited until the last minute to get ready. I felt like half the time I went out to the bus stop with my eyes half open! Then I got into nursing school and realized if I was going to get through the program. I was going to have to become a morning person. I started getting up a little earlier each morning over the span of a few months. This totally transformed my mornings and helped me become more productive. It really helped set the tone of the day. Over the years I have had to adjust my routine depending on getting my daughter to school and getting myself to work. Since 2015, I have established a pretty good morning routine. My morning ritual is sacred to me and is honestly the best part of the day! As we start this new year, I highly recommend you coming up with a morning routine (if you don’t already have one). Starting the day off on the right foot will make all the difference in the world! You will find yourself looking forward to those few quiet moments in the morning before everyone else wakes up. Here is what my mornings look like Monday through Friday:
WAKE UP AN HOUR EARLY.
My alarm goes off at 5 am. I usually go to Barre 3 on Wednesday mornings at 5:45am so on these days I will set it for 4:30 am. I try to only snooze it once or twice, so I am usually up and letting the dog out between 5:15 and 5:30 am.
PREPARE BREAKFAST AND LUNCH FOR THE DAY.
This also includes drinking 32 ounces of water before I leave for work! I fill my water bottle (I love this one from Amazon) before I do anything else. Then I will start to prepare Scott’s coffee, waffles and lunch for the day. Then I will prepare my lunch and snacks. I always write out all of my meals for the week in my planner and all I have to do is open to see what is on the menu for the day.
SQUEEZE IN A QUICK CARDIO SESSION.
After I get everything ready to go, I head out into the garage for some cardio. I usually try to do between 20 and 30 minutes of either the elliptical or the stepper or a combo of both. This cuts down on my workout for the afternoon. I do a quick warm up then I will lift weights.
COFFEE TIME.
This is the one thing I look the most forward to! I love to make my steaming cup with creamer and stevia. Then I sit down and catch up on the news, go through my emails, peek at my work schedule and get my breakfast ready. I will also lay out anything that needs to be thawed for dinner.
MAKE OUR BED.
This is such a simple task but effective! Trust me, I can’t get off on to a good start if my bed isn’t made. I feel like once the bed is made the day can begin. Knowing the bed is made and everything is decluttered and in it’s place clears my mind so I can conquer the day!
I hope you enjoyed my 5 things I do before 8 am. Let me know in the comments which ones you might implement into your day!
