Looking for ways to give your productivity an edge that can set you up to achieve more? Want to make some positive changes that can dramatically improve the quality of your life? If you answered yes to either of these questions, then this morning routine for success is exactly what you need.
Now most people’s routines consist of shooting up from bed to silence a blaring alarm, sliding into the shower, and grabbing coffee as they rush out the door to fight traffic. All of which are oftentimes done with a gnawing pit in their stomach as they dread the day ahead.
A morning routine is grounded in rituals can help give you the structure you need to support a positive mindset and the beneficial physical habits to transform how you approach your day. “Rituals” may have the connotation of ceremonies with singing bowls and gongs, but you can design your own to fit the life you want to achieve.
Let’s dive right in and learn how to implement the best morning routine for success, so you can crush every day from the start.
BEST MORNING ROUTINE FOR SUCCESS
1. Exercise Your Demons (No Priest Necessary!)
Do you wake up with a smile on your face and a song in your heart? No? Neither do most people. If your heart sinks the minute the alarm goes off, then you need to move your body first thing in the morning. It’s the quickest and easiest way to improve your mood and your outlook. Exercise causes the release of endorphins, the hormones that relieve pain and reduce anxiety.
You’ve heard it before that working up a sweat is phenomenal for stress relief, but making it a priority at the start of your day has many more benefits than that. Upon rising, you are still in a fasting state which makes exercise more effective, allowing you to burn twice as much fat.[1]
Another benefit of rising early to get a workout in is increased focus. Sure, there are fewer distractions when you’re out early in the day, but exercise can help improve your focus overall. In fact, morning exercise can help your attention and improve your better decision-making capabilities.[2]
Also, Newton’s first law of motion tells us that a body in motion stays in motion. If you’re already making the effort to move, you’ll feel more inclined to keep that momentum going.
Related: Fitness and Success
2. Dry Brush To Get Your Blood Pumping
Using a stiff brush on dry skin first thing in the morning can increase blood circulation and help with lymphatic drainage. Not only does it feel good by stimulating your nervous system, but it can even help unclog your pores and help your body to eliminate toxins.[3]
Brushing the skin also helps to remove dead skin cells which can leave your skin with a brighter appearance and more even in tone.
Dry brushing is also fairly simple. Find a long-handled brush with natural stiff bristles and use it just before you shower. Start at your feet and move up to your ankles in fluid strokes. Continue to move upwards towards your heart, going easier on your more sensitive skin.
3. Breakfast of Champions
This may seem like an obvious one, but it bears repeating since it’s commonly sacrificed in the rush to get out the door for work. Those who skip breakfast are more inclined to smoke, drink more alcohol, and exercise less.[4]
Not only will making sure to eat a nutritious breakfast lead to healthier habits and choices throughout the day, it will also provide you with more energy and focus.
While we all love to greet the day with a donut or a bagel slathered with cream cheese, eating these simple carbohydrates will lead to a sugar crash. If you want to keep your energy up, go for a mixture of protein, healthy fats, and complex carbs. Oatmeal is a great choice because it has plenty of fiber to keep you full. Adding a hearty fat like almond butter and berries for their antioxidants will keep you satiated.
4. Drink Salted Water (So You Can Say You Did It First)
Sure, it’s important to drink water, but there are some ingredients you can add to make it work harder for you.
Salt is responsible for proper muscle function, nerve impulses, regulating blood pressure, and even relieving muscle cramps after a workout.[5]
Therefore, adding salt to your water in the morning is a great way to not only keep you hydrated, but as a way to recover from your morning workout by replenishing the minerals you’ve lost by pushing yourself to run that extra mile.
Now what kind of salt should you be using?
Regular table salt has been refined to remove impurities that can strip it of beneficial minerals.
Pink Himalayan salt, however, is minimally processed and estimated to have up to eighty-four trace minerals.[6] In fact, the iron found in it is what gives this salt its special pink color.
Of course, like anything else, salt should be used in moderation as too much salt can lead to high blood pressure and heart disease.
5. Reading By Dawn’s Early Light
English poet and playwright, Joseph Addison, once said, “Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.” To which you may respond, “Really, Joe? Read before work, you say? Who has time for that?”
Well, if one is indeed looking to make meaningful changes to supercharge their morning routine for success, and to ultimately upgrade their life, one had better learn to get out of bed before dawn. Yes, dawn.
Sure, reading is the best way to boost your vocabulary and become a better and more interesting communicator. However, it also has the added benefit of keeping your mind young and your brain healthy as it forces you to think and prompts your imagination.
You don’t have to be a voracious or high-brow reader to reap the benefits. Pick a book that speaks to you and read just one chapter a day. No more, no less.
6. Strategize Your Day Like You’re Going Into Battle
There is nothing more satisfying than being able to cross something off your list.
So, before you hit the road for work, take a few minutes to sit down and think about your day. Write down everything you want to accomplish and prioritize those tasks according to importance and time sensitivity. Use a handwritten list or get fancy and use a work management program like Asana or Monday to track your progress.
Use whatever works for you as long as you get things done. Chances are that you won’t finish everything you want to do, but as long as you’re making a dent in the list, you’re well on your way to making progress. Progress is better than perfect, right?
Pro-tip: be sure to include both work and personal tasks in order to keep a healthy work/life balance.
Related: Keystone Habits
7. Make Your Bed
Perhaps you’ve already successfully integrated these morning rituals and things are going extremely well for you. Your internal clock wakes you up before your alarm goes off and you dramatically throw off your covers in anticipation of bringing the world to its knees.
However, there may be days when the only knees that buckle are yours.
Without failure, we can’t have success and there will certainly be times when everything gets bungled beyond belief. Everyone messes up from time to time, and often times we must also endure the screwups of others. It doesn’t matter of it’s global circumstances beyond your control, or local ones, sometimes your life will just be thrown into turmoil.
Whatever it may be, there is one thing that you can control: making your bed. There is comfort in this small action because you know however awful the day was, there will be a fresh start and high thread count goodness waiting for you at home at the end of a day. So make your bed, because it’s a promise to yourself that you can begin again the next day in regardless of what the world throws at you.
Till you find the success you’re after,
STRIVE
PS – If you enjoyed this article on the best morning routine for success, then you’ll likely also enjoy these supporting resources to help you create the morning routine that suites you best:
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