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Are you a morning person? Do you struggle to get out of bed – let alone focus – in the mornings?
I’m mostly a morning person, preferring to go to bed early and get up early so I can get stuff done before the emails start coming in (and before the child wakes up!) I find it satisfying knowing I’ve already achieved loads before 9am, and it definitely makes the rest of the day more productive.
I’m not a sleep expert – or a dietician. What I do know, though, is what seems to work for me personally to invigorate my morning routine and improve the day ahead. It starts with…
1. Sleep
This one’s a no-brainer. If I don’t sleep enough, the next morning is an absolute write-off. I end up unfocused and unproductive, and no amount of caffeine can change that!
Ideally, my solution would be to get into an amazing nighttime routine, but that seems to be pretty much impossible. Instead, I’ve just made sure that we have a comfortable and supportive mattress and bed, a bedroom that’s as calm and uncluttered as possible and as much of a routine as I can manage. My body clock seems to wake me at around the same time every morning, so I need to make sure my bedroom – and my brain – are set up for rest as much as possible the night before.
2. Nutrition
The circle revolving around food and sleep can be either vicious or virtuous. I find that if I eat too close to bedtime – or if I eat really fatty or high calorie foods in the evenings – I sleep poorly. The next day, what do I do? Rely on caffeine, junk food and sugar to get me through to the evening, and that vicious circle starts again. Eating like this makes me feel sluggish, as well as affecting me mentally – I get annoyed with myself for sabotaging my diet, my productivity and my likelihood of a good night’s sleep. When you’re in that vicious circle, though, it can be hard to break out.
If I eat better – plenty of fruit and veg, protein, whole grains and a diet with the right nutrients to promote sleep – it makes a world of difference. The longer I do this for, the easier it gets, and it becomes habit…with the added bonus of weight loss, too! There are certain foods that are supposed to be great at promoting sleep. Think foods like seeds and nuts, which contain melatonin, or things like seafood and legumes, which contain tryptophan. Magnesium, potassium, calcium and B6-containing foods may also help to promote better sleep, leaving you feeling more refreshed in the mornings.
Conversely, if you drink caffeinated beverages or alcohol before bed – or eat spicy or fatty foods – then you’re likely to disrupt your sleep, leading to struggles the next morning. I always try and avoid foods with a high water content before bed, too (things like cucumber, watermelon etc) – otherwise I find my bladder waking me in the night, and it’s tough to get back to sleep again afterwards!
I’ve also recently started taking lion’s mane supplements every morning. They’re supposed to be great for both cognitive function and mood – and they do seem to be making a difference!
3. Movement
Working from home definitely has its perks. However, it also means that there are days when I don’t bother getting dressed until I have to pick the child up from school, which I’m pretty sure doesn’t help my productivity levels. On the days when I do have to do the morning school run, we walk – it’s about 20 minutes each way and I definitely feel more invigorated and ready for the day ahead as a result.
Even if it’s simply walking to the shop to pick up some milk – or to the charity shop down the road to make some donations – or even round the block while I catch up on social media on my phone, getting out and moving early in the day certainly helps.
4. Mindset
As well as sleep, nutrition and movement, a great morning routine for me needs a positive mindset. If I start the day with an “I can do anything” attitude, it makes it more likely that I actually can.
In all honesty, I sometimes ‘trick’ myself into this mindset. I’m very much a list person – and I’m competitive, too. I’ve always got a to-do list on my phone, and every morning I’ll add one thing to the list that I know is easy to tick off, whether it’s work-related or something else. Generally it’ll be a task that only takes a few minutes: sending an email, taking out the recycling, posting something on social media.
By achieving something on my list first thing in the morning, that subconsciously seems to set me up for the day ahead!
Do you have any top tips for healthy morning routines that are easy to implement? Let me know in the comments!