I am NOT a morning person. Waking up in the morning has been difficult my entire life. My ideal day would be waking up on my own at 10am, have my darling husband hand me a cup of coffee and carry me downstairs to the TV to watch hours of Orange Is The New Black. While I binge watch, he’d bring me French toast topped with bananas drizzled in chocolate….with more coffee.
Alas, life doesn’t work that way (ever, it seems *staring at husband*). I work 9-5, five days a week in order to pay for all of the stuff I seem to constantly shop for. Le sigh…first world problems.
While overhauling my diet, I started thinking a lot about overhauling my life. I work out a lot, I’m reading more books, watching less tv, taking time for myself and overall, feeling great! While I love to laze around in the mornings, I do keep busy constantly, especially when I’m at home. Be it puttering around the garden, doing laundry or cleaning the house, I generally can’t keep still. I started thinking to myself, “Jeez – how much more could I do if I changed my morning routine?” and “Boy – it would be nice to not feel rushed every single day of my life in the mornings.” That’s when it really dawned on me…maybe I should wake up a little earlier (and go to bed earlier too).
I did some research and found good advice from www.jezebel.com. When you have a moment, check out the actual article and read the comments – the comments are the best part – lol!
Now, I do not have children, and due to my terrible allergies, I had to give my beloved cat Jones to a family friend, therefore I am not woken up very early any more. I am relisting these tips and I am totally aware that they do not take into account little toddlers needing care in the morning. Any mothers out there care to add their own tips?
- Use an alarm clock. Do not use your phone as an alarm! The temptation to start browsing through every app as soon as you wake up is too great. Really. I cannot stress enough how much time I waste in the morning scrolling through Instagram while lying in bed. Your brain says: “You’ve only been doing this for 10 minutes. You’re ok.” while your clock says: “You’re going to be late again, idiot. Chiara Ferragni cannot help you.”
- The moment after you wake up is one of the most vulnerable times in your whole day. Start it off by thinking about yourself. You can’t make a difference in anyone else’s world unless you take care of you. So, focus on you for a moment, not what other people are doing on social media (because we know it’s all a lie anyway. And don’t think about what other people are thinking about you. YOU think about being the best YOU.
- Right after waking up, meditate. I know, I know. Even if you don’t know the first thing about meditation, try this: Sit up on your bed, legs crossed, breathe in and out slowly counting each inhale and exhale as 1, and then count all the way to 10. That’s it. It helps to reset your mind, calm it down, and organize your thoughts.
- This might sound dumb, but it’s been proven to reduce stress and increases performance: tell yourself one great thing about you, and believe it. “You have really great eyebrows.” or “You are one helluva blogger.” *wink*
- Get out of bed. Just do it. Take a quick moment to stretch. Touch your toes. Pop those hips. Move your head side to side.
- Before any other type of food or drink, have a cup of warm water with a slice of lemon in it. Lemon water gets your metabolism going and gives you nutrients your body needs including vitamin C, potassium, magnesium and iron, to name a few.
- Eat something real with nutritional value. Step away from the muffins, or as I like to call them “morning cupcakes”, and have some fruit-laden oatmeal or a smoothie. Try consuming carbohydrates, protein, and fiber, as you need foods that will keep you feeling full for longer or have high satiating power. Protein, dietary fiber and water have high satiating power, as well as carbs like whole grain bread and oats. (Processed carbs like the ones found in baked goods have a low satiating power.) Eating good carbs and protein will fill you up, and keep you regular…if your catch my drift.
- Give yourself enough time to get to where you’re going. SO IMPORTANT. Try saying “no” to that extra thing you want to cram into your day. Running around and rushing to every place that you go makes you an anxiety-ridden, stress ball.
Any other tips anyone would like to share? Please do so in the comments!
xo,
*Header pic courtesy of www.jonathanpearson.net
Dominique is a Canadian-based fashion and beauty influencer with a strong voice in Ottawa’s black community. Since launching her blog Style Domination in 2015, she has amassed a global fanbase. Dominique shares her life through beautiful imagery and compelling story-telling that speaks to her fans on a personal level. She’s been featured in The Guardian, Flare, The Kit and Cityline. She also hosts events for Dress for Success, the Gem Conference, and has been named a United Way Person 2 Know for the past three years.
Great post! These are all great tips! I am not a morning person at all! I just love to wake up and then go back to sleep lol. I will even wake up, eat some breakfast, then go back to sleep lol. Awful I know! Haha! xo
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Haha! Sounds like heaven to me. I don’t know how all of these early birds do it.
I don’t either lol. 🙂
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Sounds perfect to me, Katie! Lol!
Great post! As a mother of four boys (now almost grown) I can attest you have the right ideas listed. Gladly, I can wake up later than I used to have to and sometimes take advantage of it, but waking up early and going to bed at a decent hour makes the top of the list for me!! ?
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Excellent, Linda! I wanted to be sensitive those with small kids and realized that these may not be realistic and attainable for some. Yay sleep! xoxox
I agree! Sleep! Love sleep!! ?
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ME TOO! Lol! xo
We are truly kindred spirits. 😉 I hate mornings (or at least any morning I have to be somewhere before 10 a.m. — which is most days). Your tips are great … ESPECIALLY the lemon water. Not sure I could trade my coffee for that, but I’m inspired now. 🙂 Have you tried putting some fresh sage & thyme leaves in it? So delicious, and the sage has some nice immunity- boosting properties during cold season. 🙂 I haven’t done this in forever, but you made me want to!
It’s funny, but one of the best things for my morning routine has been rearranging our bedroom so my side of the bed is close to a sunny window in the morning. It just makes me happier about starting my day.
I also remember reading somewhere that having fresh flowers or a green plant on a nightstand where you can see it when you wake up has been shown to improve your mood throughout the day. It sounds silly, but I totally believe it. 🙂
Thanks for the inspiration — I needed it. Tomorrow morning I plan to take some deep breaths and focus on some positive things before jumping straight into mental problem-solving for the day. (A stress-inducing habit of mine, now that I think about it… Yikes!)
And on that note … maybe I’d better step away from my phone and get some shut-eye. 😉
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Ashley – this is a great set of comments! I’m right with you. I could never trade my coffee for lemon water, but I definitely drink a big cup of lemon water before my big cup of coffee! I will definitely try adding some sage leaves. Sounds delicious and I’ll try anything to boost my health.
Good job rearranging the bedroom so that you wake up facing the sunlight! That’s definitely good for the soul! I had blackout curtains made for our bedroom that completely block out the sun. I kind of regret it now because it’s way too dark in our room at night!! Pitch black, in fact! I should get a little night light. Sigh. The morning sun only filters on a little now.
I love plants and have several house plants. I will definitely move a little one to my nightstand. I wholeheartedly believe that waking next to fresh flowers or some live greenery is great for your mood!
Thanks again for all of these great tips!! So glad I found your blog and we are sharing all this positivity!! xo
Me too, friend. Sincerely. <3
???? for this post.
I was laughing to myself as I scroll down. For the alarm clock thing, I feel guilty. ? I was like that, 10 minutes for this (looking at my notifications, then the clock) and I’m all done. Only to find out I’m on my way replying the queries. Tsk! When will I learn???
It’s a great help to have that morning mantra. Mine is “I’m beautiful, I can do this!” ? (come one, the girl could also dream, right?)
What a brilliant post for me to read on my commute into work! You’ve inspired me 🙂 xx
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Wow – thank you so much, Hannah! Glad to inspire you! xo
Let me just say i DO have a baby, and although i can’t sit in bed and meditate or even breathe, i did come into work this morning and have a cup of hot water and lemon. i also did some of the other things you mentioned, and i’m feeling great! Thank you for your tips (from a mother of a 10-month old!)
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You are sooooo welcome!! Glad that you put some of the tips to good use and that they made you feel great! Thanks so much for reading! And you look AMAZING – can’t believe you just had a baby!!!
I (Kay) and totally guilty of the cellphone alarm clock and scrolling through Instagram…..and playing Soda Crush….lol. The hot water with lemon is amazing!! I still like my iced coffee in the summer morning (#basicbitch I know). Great tips Dom!! xoxo
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You are soooo not a basic bitch, Kay! LOL! That really made me LOL! You’re such a sweetie. Yeah – I started drinking warm lemon water in the mornings over a year ago and I feel that it makes me feel more full during the morning hours. It’s not for everyone, but apparently it’s supposed to be very healthy!
I am totally guilty of checking my phone first thing in the morning. I’ll be there, bleary-eyed, staring at the too-bright screen through one squinty eye. Sigh! Damn you, Instagram! LOL!
I use the radio as my alarm and sometimes it lulls me back to sleep, lol. My bf, on the hand, uses the most obnoxious beeping alarm but I guess it works! I don’t struggle to get out of bed too often – I love flinging my covers off and just getting the day STARTED! 😀 That cupcake is totally a bully! 😮
My tip is to get some light or sun if possible – it helps to wake me up too.
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Great tips. Sigh – I wish I was more of a morning person. I’m staring at my phone bleary-eyed right now! Lol! I had some curtains made for our bedroom that completely block out all light. Lol! That may be contributing to my perpetual bed-ridden coziness! Lololol! Thanks for reading! xo
I really like this post. It reminds me of Hal Elrod’s the Miracle Morning. Have you read that book? I haven’t read it yet, but I plan to. Have you heard of It Starts With Food? That’s another good one for us healthy eaters. It’s basically eating paleo for 30 days or longer to put your body back in balance, eliminate cravings, etc.
http://laceandpearlsblog.com
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Hey Asa!! No – I haven’t heard of either book! I will keep my eyes peeled for them. Thanks so much – glad you liked the post!
These are amazing tips! Such a great and oh so inspiring post. Fortunately, I am a morning person and definitely do go through with some of the pointers you have mentioned in this post. Although, I will start incorporating the lemon water into my day-day shenanigans! Thanks for the lovely read lady!
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Xo. http://www.sonamnaiducreative.com
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Hey Sonam! Thanks for reading and thanks for your kind words!! I’m incorporating these tips into my routine too. The hardest is not checking my phone first thing in the morning! Lol! I will definitely check out your Instagram giveaway. Exciting!
This was really needed, I wake up and lounge on my bed for a long time, till I almost hit the deadline for whatever I was meant to do, thanks for the great tips.
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No probs, luv! I thought we could all use them. The meditation thing I’d really like to get into.
Yeah me too