Welcome To Fit Five Friday!
It’s time for a brand-new Friday Five, and we are thrilled to bring you this Fit Five Friday link-up! Join hosts My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday to share your weekly fitness favorites!
5 Key Elements of a Morning Routine
There’s no doubt that how you spend the first hours of your morning sets the tone for your day. With the holidays and some time off behind me, I’ve spent these first few days of January re-focusing on my morning routine.
For me there are 5 key elements to a morning routine:
Hydration — Drinking a glass of water after you wake up helps to rehydrate your body, boosting both your energy and mental clarity. Yep…as much as I love my coffee, it’s water first!
Movement — Of course you knew this one was coming! Whether you only have time for some stretching or a few yoga poses, or take on a walk/run, ride, or full-on “gym session”, any type of exercise does a body good. And, no surprise, those who exercise in the morning benefit from boosting their metabolism and enjoying more energy throughout the day.
What's in your morning routine? Sharing 5 key elements for the first edition of the #FitFiveFriday link-up Click To TweetMeditation — For me, meditation is a chance to get centered and connect before the chaos of the day kicks in. There are so many advantages to making meditation apart of your morning – it’s a moment to pause, set intentions, and reflect while lowering your stress level – honestly I’ll probably do a whole separate post on this at some point.
Planning/Intentions — I’m an old-fashioned pen & paper planner girl and my morning is not complete without a little time sitting quietly with my planner and a mug of coffee (finally!) to review schedules, identify the “must do’s” vs. “like to do’s” and set my plan/intentions for the day. Taking time in the morning to plan and set your intentions for the day helps you to avoid diving into the day on autopilot.
Self Care — Carve out a little time for some form of self-care. An additional step to your skincare routine, incorporating a body scrub into your morning shower, dry brushing, or the like can be very restorative. I don’t consistently do the same thing every morning, but I am trying to add a little self-care to my day.
Ultimately the key to a good morning routine is finding what works best for you. If there are elements you want to add or change in how you approach your morning, it helps to start slowly. Conventional wisdom says it takes at least 21 days to form a habit. And, taking baby steps is more likely to be effective than making one giant leap – especially if the routine you’re trying to adopt is a radical departure from where you are now. Finally, if part of your routine feels more like a chore than a source of inspiration, you might want to consider making some changes until you find what feels right for you.
What are the key elements of your morning routine?
A good morning routine really does set the tone for the day! I like to start with water and coffee, checking blog stuff, and then doing my workout. Right after that the day gets hectic once my son wakes up!
Makes such a difference to get some time to yourself before the rest of the house is up and moving!
These all are spot-on! I’m a morning gal, and getting the morning started with some fitness is what gets me charged for the day. Some days it’s just a 20-30 minute walk, other days it’s full-on high-energy. Like you said, though, we all are different machines (paraphrasing LOL), and we all got to find what works for us and our individual journeys 😉
Absolutely, the one-size-fits all approach never works 🙂
My morning starts with a leisurely slow cup of coffee. The rest depends on what I’m doing for the day. Today, I will pack my lunch for work, make my smoothie, and then head out the door for a run before I get ready for work. I love working out on my work days. It makes me feel like I had ‘my time’ before I devote the rest of my day to my job.
So important to have that time for yourself first!
So many poo-poo the morning routine, or say they’re just too busy — of course we all find times for the things we want to do!
Morning routines can be life changing!
Mine starts with tongue scraping, and then some self massage on my face. Then it’s on to a warm lemon water. Next it’s Yoga, followed by meditation almost every day.
I have tried other forms of movement in the morning, but most of them just seem like a bit too much for me daily — Yoga totally works for me.
I do my planner the night before. Most days, anyway.
It sounds like you have a nice routine in place! I think being intentional about how you spend the first hours of the day makes such a difference!
Great topic Michelle! I’ve got water, fresh air, movement, and me-time before I plunge into work. I should be more intentional about goal planning for the day.
I always see your IG posts and marvel at how much you’re able to fit in before you start working!
My morning routine does set my tone for the day as well. I too, start with water and coffee and breakfast. Then it’s some sort of exercise or running. Stretching always. I like to set mini goals for the day like a small to do list to accomplish. Thanks for the link up
Sounds like a great start to your day!
Ha Ha I say. Mine is coffee, oatmeal, get on the computer for work.
I do more in the evening. Others are sitting and watching TV. I’m moving and planning the next day’s fitness.
It’s funny while I still think of myself as a “night owl”, I’m not nearly as productive in the evening, especially once I’ve had dinner. By that point, I’m ready to sack out with a book.
I honestly need to come up with amore dedicated morning routine. The only thing that’s constant is that I wake up and throw on my clothes – some mornings I do pre-workout, some morning I eat a piece of toast, but I need to set up a sustainable routine I can do every morning so thanks for these tips!
Sure – I hope these help to spark some ideas for you 🙂
I’m with you on the old fashion pen and paper planning!
Because I am now taking care of two dogs in the morning, my mornings aren’t as peaceful as I’d like them to be..lol …. until I get to work…lol
Oh I’m sure with the two pups things are pretty lively in the morning LOL!
Yay for the Fit Five!
So my morning routine is literally hit my alarm off, roll out of bed, get dressed, feed and walk the pugs and go out for my walk or run. It’s not very glamorous or intentional, but it gets the job done.
It gets the job done and it’s consistent – to me that’s a win!
Since corona and working from home i have no real morning routine anymore. Definitely not since we moved. But I think it’s necessary and I’m gearing my head up to at least start something. Last week I made much more of an effort to shower/dress in normal clothes, etc. Most of the time I’m still wearing sports clothes and tend to shower more at night now… but I do miss the morning routine.
The lockdown threw me way off my morning game…it’s taken me a while to find something that works for me.
I start off my day with a cup of coffee while catching up on blogs. Then I go for a run. Sometimes I drink water before heading out for it but not all of the time. I don’t meditate but I do turn up on the volume in the car and sing. Does that count? 🙂
Singing in the car is always a good thing 😉