Waking up with a refreshed and focused mind during the day can be challenging. Morning routines play a vital role in setting the tone for your day, which provides an opportunity to maintain activity level and well-being.
The ideal morning routine will boost your wellness and equip you with energy for the day. This article will help you achieve those desires of being productive throughout the day, starting from optimizing the basics to incorporating new activities into your morning routine.
Start your day with a glass of water
Starting the day with a glass of water is crucial for optimal performance. Based on a study examining human water intake, dehydration, which is common upon waking up, can negatively impact cognitive functioning, fatigue, and mood problems.
Therefore, ensuring you have drunk enough water before starting the day is important. Water plays a significant role in bodily functions, particularly in concentration, alertness, and memory, that facilitates you to perform well in daily activities. So you remember to drink water first thing in the morning, prepare it the night before and place your bottle in the most visible location from your wake-up view.
Incorporate movement into your morning routine
Moving your body during the morning can boost your energy level. It doesn’t always have to be playing sports with a uniform or registering for a gym membership. In fact, by only doing muscle stretching daily, you will be able to decrease body pain and fatigue, raising levels of vitality, mental health, and flexibility.
A note to remember is to pick the exercises that suit you the most and start targeting small goals such as a 5 to 10-minute time block for exercise, in order to maintain consistency. Adding movement to your morning routine will make you feel more energized, focused, and positive throughout the day.
Get enough sleep
Preparing a good quality sleep is one of the important steps you must do the night before to get optimum energy. Sleep is essential for restoring and rejuvenating the body and mind. During sleep, your brain processes information, consolidates memories and clears out toxins.
On the other hand, sleep deficiency can negatively affect attention decline, difficulty managing emotions, and reduce the ability to think clearly.
Here are some tips by Peter Hauri, a psychologist and an expert in sleep studies, to improve the quality of your sleep:
Avoid consuming caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol during bedtime
These substances can disrupt your ability to fall asleep and disturb your sleep cycle.
Try not to make napping a regular habit
While napping can be beneficial for some, it’s important to avoid turning it into a regular habit, especially close to bedtime. Long or late-afternoon naps can interfere with your ability to fall asleep at night and disrupt your sleep schedule. If you need it, try to limit it to a short power nap earlier in the day.
Maintain regular sleep and wake time
A consistent schedule is as important as getting enough time to sleep, even on weekends. It helps regulate your body’s internal clock and promotes a better quality of rest.
Create a comfortable and quiet environment
Keep your bedroom cool, dark, and free from noise disturbances.
Keep your bedroom only for relaxing activities
Avoid engaging in highly demanding or stimulating activities, such as work-related tasks, intense exercise, or emotionally charged discussions. The bedroom should be primarily associated with relaxation and sleep.
Eat a nutritious breakfast
Breakfast plays an important role as fuel for your body as we’ve been fasting during sleep. Breakfast boosts energy levels and sharpens mental clarity. Furthermore, it’s also critical to consider what you eat during breakfast. In fact, a study found compelling evidence supporting the impact of breakfast quality on individuals’ health.
The healthy criteria included consuming grain-based products such as bread or toast and incorporating dairy products. The research showed that individuals who consumed a nutritious breakfast experienced lower levels of stress and depression than those who had a low-nutrition or no breakfast.
If you have limited time, you can pick a meal that can be prepared the night before, such as overnight oats or chia seed pudding, so you can still get a quick and good quality breakfast the next morning.
Take a cold shower
Last but not least, the routine that everyone does, taking a bath, can actually serve as an important productivity booster if you incorporate cold showers into it. Research has revealed an intriguing connection between cold showers and reduced absenteeism.
The study, involving 3,018 participants, demonstrated that those who incorporated cold water into their shower routine were 29% less likely to call in sick for work or school. This suggests that practicing a morning cold shower ritual can be the key to minimizing sickness and maintaining optimal performance.
In conclusion
Creating an effective morning routine can greatly affect how productive and healthy you feel throughout the day. Start by drinking a glass of water to stay hydrated and keep your brain sharp. Adding small exercises, like stretching, can boost your energy and make you feel better mentally.
Getting enough quality sleep at night is also important to recharge your body and mind. Don’t forget to have a nutritious breakfast to optimize your cognitive and physical functions. And here’s a surprising tip: taking a cold shower in the morning has been linked to better performance and health.
Each person is unique, and what energizes and sets a positive tone for one individual may differ from another. Try incorporating different activities into your morning routine and pay attention to how they make you feel throughout the day. By finding a routine that fits you, you can start your day positively and set yourself up for success.
If you would like to see more resources on daily routines, check out the Happiness Science Labs. The lab uses the research of the Institute for Life Management Science to produce courses, certifications, podcasts, videos, and other tools. Visit the Happiness Science Labs today.
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