Why is it so important to have self-care rituals for your morning routine?
Life as a young professional is exhausting. Fresh out of college and right into our first job we feel more stressed and overwhelmed than most of the older folks. Our days of waking up at 9 AM are long over. We struggle to crawl out of our warm bed hitting the snooze button way too many times. A quick change of clothes – while half asleep – and a short bathroom routine and you are ready to go. 5 minutes until you have to leave the apartment and get into your car or to the bus station. You use the time to jug a down cup of coffee because you need more energy and motivation for the day ahead.
But is this our best way of starting the day? Or does this routine make us even more stressed and jittery? Let’s be honest – we know it’s not the healthiest for us. But what is a healthy morning routine then?
Four Key Aspects of Morning Routines by Cajspirituality
- Physical (Vinyasa Yoga, Stretching, Healthy Breakfast)
- Mental (Journal, Write your thoughts, Read self-healing/development books)
- Emotional (Gratitude Journal entry)
- Spiritual (Pray, Meditate)
A healthy morning routine should prepare your body and soul for the upcoming day. You shouldn’t wake up with thousands of things on your mind or whizzing through the apartment because there is already so much to do and not enough time. Maybe you even let anxiety cause you to panic before you even leave the house. It should be soft and preparing, productive and beneficial to your day, and calm, so you can start confident and full of inspiring ideas.
Then what is the best morning routine ever? Or what should my morning routine be?
The best morning routine is always based individually on your lifestyle. You can watch hundreds of Youtube videos with inspiring girls who wake up at 5 AM and still not find the perfect routine for youself.
Think about what makes a difference to you. Are you filled with worry or sadness – then you can try to write down your thoughts and brain dump everything that bothers you. If your body aches from sitting on a desk all day you can start with a gentle stretching routine that will make you a lot more flexible and even reduces back pain long-term. Or if you cannot go without coffee then make your favorite cup and plan your day while sipping the delicious drink. The best routine is always what works best FOR YOU. If you work until 2AM you simply cannot wake up at 5 AM (and even if you do it is highly unhealthy – a person should sleep at least 8 hours)
Self-Care Morning Routine Ideas
Habits for a Powerful Morning Routine by Everythingabode
- Schedule your day
- Exercise for 5 minutes
- Make your bed
- Avoid your phone
Self Care Rituals for your Morning Routine
Adding self-care rituals to your morning routine is important. They can improve anxiety and depression, reduce stress and make you feel more relaxed and motivated for your day. If you are asking yourself: how can I add self-love in the morning? – we created the perfect self-care ritual checklist just for you! There are many ways and ideas on how you can assemble the best fitting self-care rituals for your morning routine. This way you can start your day with confidence.
No idea what to write into your journal? Then get our free 365 journal prompts
- Get to know yourself better
- Reduce stress
- Figure out what you really want
Or check our 64 creative coaching journal prompts for more inspiration!
What is your morning self-care ritual?
This is how we usually start our busy mornings:
Carina’s home office morning routine
- Wakes up at 6 AM
- Does Vinyasa Yoga for 10 – 15 minutes
- Makes a cup of Tea
- Does her bathroom routine
- Drinks a glass of water
- Starts work
Julia’s stress-free self-care routine:
- I wake up at 5.15 AM
- Bathroom routine incl. face mist and serum
- Vitamins and/or water
- Prepare backpack
- Gratitude journal
- Write down my to-dos for the day
- Listen to music or podcasts while taking the train to work
How long should a morning routine be?
The time of your morning routine is based on your daily schedule. If you want to wake up at 5 AM because you are a lot more productive then you should wake up at that time. If you have night shifts and waking up early is just impossible for you (or you simply are most productive during nights) you can also wake up at 10 AM or 2 PM.
Important: You do not have to wake up at 5 AM to have “the best morning routine”, instead you should concentrate on being intentional in what you do in the morning (Jenn from Health Happy Impactful)
Books to read for your morning routine by Vishaka Blone:
- Atomic Habits
- Courage
- Eat that frog
- The 5 AM club
The same goes for how much time you plan and invest in your self-care morning routine. You can spend 30 minutes, 2 hours or even longer than that. But I wouldn’t focus too much on time. Choose morning routine components that fit comfortably in your time slot and do them slowly and carefully. This way you do not feel pressured by the many rituals nor by having not enough time to complete them all.
A 10 minute morning routine for a busy day
What are the benefits of having Self Care Rituals for your Morning Routine?
According to Mia Fox, having a “morning routine is crucial for a productive and successful day”. First, we tackle our day much better as we prioritize our tasks and time. This can be done by journaling, by adding your emotions and fears to your writing, or by transforming your hopes and goals into actions.
Your life will feel a lot more grounded and calm by reflecting during your meditation or spending a few minutes for confidence-boosting affirmations. Adding Self-care rituals for your morning routine can increase your motivation and make you feel a lot more stable during the day.
You worry less and put more effort into the things that make you happy. By creating a self-care routine you love, and improving your attitude through self-care habits you will also change your moods during the day, being less irritable, and create better relationships with your colleagues, family, and friends.
Remember, setting self-care rituals for your morning routine is not based on time or how many steps you build in. It is about reflecting on which rituals will make an impact on your life and implement it successfully for your own benefit. As your next step, we encourage you to create your own self-care morning routine and hope we see each other in next week’s post!
That’s amazing that you guys get up so early in the morning. Currently I get up around 7am and usually workout. I enjoy working out in the morning. I totally Believe that the way you start you morning prepares you for the day. It’s good to start you day right.
Right! I always feel that on days I work out in the morning the day turns out better. 🙂