Chris O.No one is completely immune to what the movie “Office Space” (1999) referred to as a “case of the Mondays.” There are times where we all feel groggy, exhausted, and simply unprepared for the day ahead. Unless you are Ashton Hall, chances are your morning routine does not currently consist of pool dives, banana peel skin treatments, and face baths in Saratoga bottled water. For everyone else, there are practical tips and tricks you can apply to get your morning off to a proper start. Here are some steps that I take — both at the start and end of the day — to help get my mornings off to the best start possible.
Don’t Hit That Snooze Button
I know how tempting it is to want to snooze. Your alarm goes off — it’s loud, annoying, and disrupts your sleep — and at that moment, there is nothing you want more than to smack that tantalizing button and sleep another five minutes. However, more often than not, that five minutes spirals and becomes a whole lot more. It might be thirty minutes past the time when you initially meant to wake up before you realize that you have hit that snooze button a handful of times, and are now just as tired as you were before, but now also pressed for time. In my opinion, that slight bit of drowsiness you feel in the morning is hardly worth putting you into a time crunch that you will struggle to get out of. Fortunately — in addition to avoiding that snooze button — there is a sensible solution to this that will help you get the sleep you need without inciting a mid-morning panic attack.
Prepare the Night Before
The nights after work, and at the end of the weekend before the work week starts, are crucial for getting you into a far better morning routine. One of the easiest ways to improve your morning routine is to give yourself adequate time — both physically and mentally — to get ready for, and then head over to, your place of work. This is true even if you work from home, which I know many of us find ourselves doing these days. If you are not in the right headspace when you begin your workday, chances are you are not going to be nearly as productive as you otherwise would be. There are some ways nighttime preparation can help with that:
- Set out your outfit the night before a workday. This way, you will not be scrambling to find the perfect top, bottoms, and socks to get you out of the door looking professional and ready to work.
- Preferably on a weekend, spend the night before bed meal prepping for the coming days. This doesn’t have to be for every meal of the day, but having a lunch packed and ready to go will save you time at the office and allow you to get ahead of work while munching on some precooked goodness.
- Get to bed at a reasonable time. You want to give yourself enough time not just to sleep (after all, we aren’t robots with an “off” switch), but to fall asleep as well. This could mean a winddown period of reading, mindfulness meditation, or simply doing something that relaxes you.
- Make yourself a short to-do list for the following day. Even a few action items of priorities you have at work can assist your future self in cracking down on what’s truly important. There’s no need to rely on your memory — you can become your own personal assistant.
Breakfast and Hydration
Needless to say, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You are going to want to make sure you are ending your morning with a healthy breakfast. This could be a full plate of protein and sides, or just a protein bar to give you the jolt you need to conquer the day. In addition to your morning meal, you are going to want to make sure you are getting plenty of liquids to keep your body functioning at peak shape as well.
Conclusion
If you adopt all of these tips, you will be well on your way to improving your morning routine. I know it has helped me loads since I decided to stick to it. If you are looking for more lifestyle or wellness tips, please check out our other blog posts for more!
