6 Practices to Include in Your Mindful Morning Routine
Having a steady, mindful morning routine is the best thing you can do for yourself - mentally, physically, and spiritually.
When you have a mindful morning routine, you set aside time in the morning to prioritize YOU - unarguably the most important thing in your life!
With a morning routine, you won’t have to question what you’re going to do first when you’re going to do it, or anything that makes you stressed. Keeping a set schedule for yourself can also increase your productivity levels throughout the day.
Adding the mindfulness element to your mornings turns it up a notch. Being mindful means being present. I know this sounds cheesy, but be present now because it’s truly the only time you are guaranteed.
6 practices to include in your routine:
Gratitude and/or prayer
What you tell yourself and the things you think about when you wake up are SO important. Your mind is still in that dream-like, sleepy state, which means that the subconscious mind is very susceptible to what you tell it.
Every morning is a fresh start, a blank canvas. Are you going to fill it with yesterday’s problems or today’s intentions? After waking up, most peoples’ minds are rushed with the thoughts, problems, and dilemmas from the day before.
Instead of filling your mind with issues from the past, fill it with the intentions and appreciation of today. Fill it with optimism and gratitude.
As soon as your eyes open, say a message of gratitude (or prayer) for your morning.
It can go something like: “I am so grateful for waking up today. I am happiness, I am love, I am joy, and I am success. Today is going to be a beautiful day. Thank you, Universe (God, Source, higher-self, ancestors, spirit guides, etc.) for another day.”
You can say this message out loud or in your head, and you can even smile when saying it (this is the secret sauce).
This simple message sets the tone for the rest of the day, and I promise your days won’t be the same after doing this!
2. Make your bed
Making your bed as soon as you get out of bed can help you be more productive.
Think about it...how good does it feel to cross something off your to-do list? Really good!
Making your bed takes about 1 minute, and when you’re done, you feel so accomplished. You did something productive as soon as you wake up.
Looking at a neat bed will also make you feel better because your environment is clean. Your environment is a reflection of your mind, so when you keep your room organized, your thoughts and emotions will feel more organized too.
3. Journal
No matter how well you start your mornings off, there may be days when you don’t feel the best. Maybe some residual thoughts from the day before will come creeping back in. That’s totally normal.
The best way to handle any *negative* thoughts or emotions is to journal about them. Do a brain dump of everything that’s on your mind. Every. Single. Thing.
There’s something about writing down all of your thoughts that make them less intimidating. When you see them on paper, you’ll notice that maybe they aren’t as bad as you thought they were. Or you can elaborate on the thoughts and get to a point mentally that feels good.
Writing a gratitude list will also help put you in a feel-good mood, raising your vibration.
4. Meditation
Meditating is the ultimate form of being in the present. Many people believe that meditation is only for the “super-spiritual” people, but that’s so far beyond the truth.
Meditation is the “journey from external activity to inner silence.” People are so busy doing things that they never give themselves time to be.
Your morning meditation routine can take as long as 20 minutes or as little as 5 minutes. It’s not about how you meditate or how long you meditate; it’s about how you feel afterward.
It’s normal to get lost in meditation, your body's here but your body somewhere else. Meditation allows you the opportunity to completely ground yourself and be.
You can do this by sitting up with your back erect or lying down and quieting your mind and focusing on your breath. You can listen to music or sit in silence. If this is difficult, you can listen to a guided meditation on YouTube (this is one for stress and anxiety.)
5. Stretch your body
After getting out of bed, it’s important to move your body. You can move your body with a workout, yoga, or simply stretching your body. You'll notice that your body will feel tight when you get out of bed and maybe even sore.
When you stretch or move your body, you are moving the energy around in your body. Stretching helps get the blood flowing throughout the body. It’s a great way to wake you up and get you ready for a productive day.
6. Intentions list
Creating intentions for the day can help you keep yourself on track for the day. When creating an intentions list, you can include things you need to get done for work, school, home, etc., and things you want to do for yourself.
Maybe on your list, you’ll include eating healthy meals, taking a relaxing bath, or even making it a priority to laugh. Your intentions list can consist of anything you want. You want to make an intentions list not to rigidly stick to something but to ensure that you have an idea of what you want your day to look like or feel like.
Your intentions list can say, “I intend on feeling joy everywhere I go and giving myself a compliment every time I walk by a mirror.” This is how simple it can be!
Have fun with your day because feeling good and setting the intention of feeling good can boost your mood and direct your mind the way you want it to go!
Morning routines are so so so important! I can’t stress this enough!
A morning routine sets the tone for the rest of the day and can help you be more productive throughout the day as well.
You can do these practices in any order, but I recommend gratitude and/or prayer first and making your bed the second!
Remember to keep this fun and add what you like to it, don’t be afraid to change it up a little! The whole point of a mindful morning routine is to start the day in a peaceful and joyful state!
Love,
Sangeetha