Set Your Day Up for Success with a Balanced Morning Routine

Written By: Alysia Vega, RD, LDN

We’ve all seen our favorite influencers’ 20-step morning routines. And while that sounds great, for many of us, this feels unachievable. But what if a morning routine didn’t have to be so complicated? What if starting our day with a few tasks could help us feel ready and grounded for a successful day? Here are Karuna’s top ingredients to a successful morning routine as well as tips to help stick with it.

The Benefits of a Morning Routine:

Having a consistent morning routine provides several benefits. Research shows that it can help reduce stress, boost energy levels, increase productivity, improve sleep quality, and boost happiness and confidence levels. With these benefits in mind, let’s dive into the essential components of a supportive morning routine and how to set up your day for success.

Mindful Wakeup:

Resist the urge to check your phone right when you wake up. Doing this can influence your brain and lead to increased distraction or can trigger a stress response and put you on edge for the day. Instead, take a couple of deep breaths, set an intention for the day, and ease into your morning routine.

Balanced and Satisfying Breakfast:

We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. But why is that? After a night of fasting, breakfast provides your body with glucose, which can boost energy levels and alertness. Additionally, eating breakfast can enhance memory, focus, and attention.  Lastly, by starting your day with a balanced meal, you are jumpstarting your metabolism, providing essential fuel to your body and brain.

When thinking about what to eat for breakfast, focus on including a combination of the macronutrients – protein, fats and carbohydrates. A couple examples include:

• Toast with avocado, eggs, and tomato
• Oatmeal with walnuts, chia seeds and fruit
• Bagel with peanut butter and banana

Breakfast doesn’t have to be complicated to be delicious! Taking a couple of extra minutes out of your morning to make a balanced breakfast can go a long way in setting up a successful day.

Self-Care:

While self-care may be trendy right now, it’s for good reason – it’s an important component of a balanced life and can help improve mood and overall wellbeing. Self-care looks different for everyone, and the key is to find activities that feel best for you. Examples include:

• Meditation
• Journaling
• Listening to music
• Calling a loved one
• Reading with a cup of coffee

Remember, self-care does not have to be time consuming. Even 10 minutes can make a significant difference in the tone of your day. Self-care can look different day to day. Maybe one morning you’re in the mood to meditate, but the next morning you want to read your new book club book. It’s important to tune into your needs and honor them, practicing flexibility in your morning self-care.

Mindful Movement:

Movement is not a required component of a morning routine but could feel beneficial to some. This could include gentle stretching, walking your dog, or a workout class with a friend. Benefits of morning movement include improved focus, increased energy levels, and enhanced sleep quality. Remember, everyone has a different relationship with movement. Ensure that you are listening to your body and supporting a positive relationship with movement .

Plan and Organize:

Take a couple of minutes to review your day’s schedule, prioritize tasks and set goals for the day. In doing this, it can help you stay organized and focused throughout the day, which can reduce the chances of feeling overwhelmed.

How to Stick with a Routine:

Setting up a new routine can take time while you experiment and find what does and doesn’t work for you. Try a task, see how you feel, and tweak until it feels supportive. Similarly, don’t try to completely transform your morning routine overnight. Try gradual changes, such as adding in 10 minutes of journaling before work. By making more gradual changes, it makes it easier to maintain the new routine and decrease overwhelm. Lastly, practice compassion. Change is hard, and it’s okay to take it slow.

Conclusion:

Morning routines don’t have to be complicated. By focusing on a couple key components such as a balanced breakfast, self-care, mindful movement and planning and organizing, you can start your day with intention and set yourself up for success.

References:

https://www.performancehealth.com/articles/morning-routine-tips-for-a-successful-day

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/12/18/psychologists-morning-habits-to-help-you-be-happier-more-productive.html

https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbescoachescouncil/2021/04/02/why-you-should-stop-checking-your-phone-in-the-morning-and-what-to-do-instead/

https://valleywisehealth.org/blog/the-importance-of-eating-breakfast/

https://www.calm.com/blog/working-out-in-the-morning