where women celebrate their ageless authenticity

What's Your Morning Routine?

We are all masters at managing calendars and juggling our time, but how often do we look at where our days begin? If it’s been a while since you thought about how you greet your day, or better yet, who you choose to show up as in it, then together, let’s explore the impact of waking up with intention.

Just as flight attendants ask us to put on our own oxygen masks before assisting others, it starts with us. The priority is to be of service to ourselves before we out-source our energies throughout the day. It starts with a consistent morning routine. Do you happen to have one?

What iF, we started our day with feelings of gratitude and joy, wearing that as who we are? Would we be more open to whatever comes up without judging it as good or bad? Would the challenging and the unexpected parts still overwhelm us? Or would we simply be more awake to the wonder of it ALL, and move more with the flow?

Aside from a coffee buzz, for most of us, getting up in the morning is an unpredictable, blurry process we move through with the clock ticking. Though mornings have the power to dictate how we feel for the rest of the day, we rarely recognize the active role we play in setting up our day for success.

Count me among the guilty. Only after returning “out of sorts” from a long road trip did it occur to me that dismissing my morning routine had landed me feeling unbalanced and anxious.

What would it look like to invest time in your routine, knowing it’s not a luxury, actually more of a conscious healthy habit, like brushing your teeth? It’s more important that your morning system works for you, so experiment with ways to let the joy and gratitude in. It’s a good place to start, literally.

Everyone’s morning routine is uniquely theirs, of their own creation. I’m only sharing mine here to encourage you to give some thought to yours.

• Typically, I naturally wake up early, around the same time as the day before. That way I’m not rushing around. I’m able to keep my mind clear and it helps maintain my circadian rhythms.
• Before I get out of bed, I spend a few moments reflecting on what I’m grateful for. For me, it’s about accessing my state of mind, so I start with being and feeling, before moving into thinking and doing. I purposely stay away from checking my phone so I ease into the day rather than entering the world operating at warp speed.
• After hydrating with a glass of water, I make a cup of coffee and savor it while sitting on the floor at the top of our entry stairs, enjoying the morning sunlight view of my front yard. It’s become my sacred space where I read my morning affirmations and write in my journal. (Neuroscientists have revealed that our bodies get beneficial chemical boosts from morning sun, and evening sunset)
• Then I meditate, and exercise.
• I eat a healthy breakfast after my workout before heading into my home office.
• As my day unfolds, I read the news, clear my emails, and try to tackle the most difficult tasks first.

What will be your new morning routine? I encourage you to play with it, and see how it makes you feel. Life coach Tony Robbins starts each day with a hot sauna before jumping into a cold plunge pool. Works for him! Whatever you choose, consistency is key, as I learned from my road trip when I left my practice behind.

I look forward to hearing how your choices impact your ability to simply and beautifully “have a nice day.” It’s fun to start creating new ways to see and be more of who you already are.