How to find a healthy morning routine that works for you

You don't have to start your day with coffee or a green smoothie. You don't have to exercise for an hour before breakfast and you don't have to take contrast showers either. The only thing you need to do is learn to listen to how you feel in your body to find a morning routine that is truly good for you. You can find out how to do this in this post.

This guest post was written by Johanna from https://bowlsandbalance.de .

We humans are not all the same. Fortunately. While some feel wide awake and full of energy at 7 a.m., go jogging first and then have a hearty breakfast, others are anything but awake and alert at this time. This is completely normal and a good thing, because otherwise the running tracks would be completely overcrowded early in the morning. 😉
We can't all choose the time we start the day and start working in the morning. But we have a big influence on the energy and mood with which we start the day. That has a lot to do with whether we follow our nature and do ourselves good, or whether we torment ourselves right from the first minute we are awake.

In fact, your morning routine starts the night before. Because if you go to bed too late and don't get enough sleep, getting up in the morning doesn't go so well or you feel less fit than usual. The basis for a good start to the day is a restful and sufficiently long sleep. Some people get by with 7 hours, others feel better with 8-9 hours. This is individual, so listen to your body and adjust your daily routine so that you get enough sleep on a regular basis.

Most people fall more or less clearly into one of two types: morning person (lark) or morning grouch (owl).
In the course of life this can change several times. It may even be related to your current life situation. If your job makes you very dissatisfied, then maybe you're more of a morning grouch right now. But that doesn't mean that everyone who loves their job is a morning person. That's why it's so important to really look inside yourself and honestly ask yourself: What's good for me? what do i need in the morning

There is now so much advice on what a perfect start to the day should look like. But I don't think there is one right option for everyone. That's why I present you with a number of options that you can easily integrate into your morning routine - even if you don't have much time.

It pays to try different things over a period of at least 2 weeks to really see what works for you. If you do something differently for just one day, there's a very small chance that you'll love it the first time and stick with it. We are creatures of habit and need time to adjust to changes.

6 building blocks of a healthy morning routine

1. stretching in bed

Not everyone likes to jump into running tights or yoga leggings in the morning to start the day actively. But what also helps morning grouches to wake up and is good for a stiff body after the night is mini-stretching in bed. So you get out of bed many times more smoothly and have gently woken up your body. In this video you will find a few simple exercises that you can easily do in bed.

2. breathe you awake

If you're already doing yoga, I don't need to explain how and why the breath helps us so much to wake up. But if you are not using your breath very consciously, here are a few tips: A deep breath brings more oxygen into the body. It fills the lungs and thus creates more width in the chest area, which feels very tight in the morning. There are various breathing exercises you can do, but even 10 conscious, deep breaths are enough. You can combine them wonderfully with your mini-stretching in bed to save time or stand by the open window.

3. Drink something warm

After the night when we sweat out quite a bit of fluid, you need fluid to get bodily functions going again. This is best done with a warm drink, as this will save your body from heating up (if you were drinking cold water). Try out the best drink to start the day with. For some it is the coffee, for others the lukewarm lemon water or a soothing tea. Anything goes, as long as you feel good about it. Ideally, the drink or the anticipation of it will even help you when you get up.

4. Gratitude & Daily Goals

A little gratitude ritual is the easiest and most effective way to start the day positively. To do this, take a few quiet moments (preferably with your eyes closed) in which you think about at least three things in your life or personality traits that you are grateful for today. Then formulate 1-3 goals for this new day. It can be as small as holding the door open for someone, or it can be as big as making an important decision. Imagine how it will be when you have already achieved these goals at the end of the day.

5. Have breakfast

The same applies here: everyone is different and needs something different. Maybe you love a hearty breakfast first thing in the morning. But if you don't want to eat something right after waking up, but rather a little later, it's better for your energy level than skipping that meal altogether. If every minute in bed is sacred to you as a morning grouch, then prepare your breakfast in the evening. You can find healthy breakfast recipes - whether warm or cold, simple or unusual - here, for example .

6. Exercise in the fresh air

Whether before or after your breakfast - a little bit of exercise in the fresh air helps enormously to wake up. I don't mean that you have to jog before work. But maybe you can walk or bike at least 10 minutes on your commute . If you combine this with a few deep breaths, the wake-up effect is twice as high.

As you can see, many components for a healthy morning routine can be combined with each other. In addition, they are flexible and do not require much time. Nevertheless, I advise you not to start with everything at once if your start to the day looks very different at the moment. Take one point at a time and give yourself and your body time to experience how the new ritual feels.

Feel free to try a different order and remember: it can be fun and should feel good for you!

Would you like to read more from Johanna ? On her blog she shares her enthusiasm for yoga, healthy eating and inspiration for a positive mindset. In her coaching and workshops you will learn to find joy in healthy habits and adapt them to your individual needs.