Are you looking for things to include in your morning routine?
Morning is a very important time of day. After all, it is the beginning of a new day, and having a morning routine is a great way to set the tone for the new day.
If your morning routine is productive and refreshing, the rest of your day is guaranteed to be at least a little better than it otherwise would.
But do you really know what you should do in the morning?
Here are the 8 things you should include in your morning routine to start off your day right.
These are easy steps that you can incorporate into your morning routine to ensure that your day gets off to a great start.
Drink Water
Drinking water should be the first thing you do after waking up! If you prefer to brush your teeth beforehand, that works too.
In my experience, warm water and cold water are both okay!
Cold water helps wake you up and actually burns more calories, while warm water (even better with some honey and lemon juice) helps boost digestion. You can also put flavor packets into your water if that helps you drink more.
However you want to drink your water, make sure to have a glass shortly after waking up.
Take a Shower
Some students (me included) are literally unable to wake up early enough to take a shower in the morning. And that’s okay!
Night showers are great too. Taking night showers has its benefits, such as helping you go to sleep faster.
But morning showers also have science on their side. Studies proved that showering in the morning boosts your creativity and relieves stress temporarily.
I also say that morning showers wake you up. I mean, you’re literally being hit by water! So if you can, showering in the morning is a great thing to incorporate into your morning routine.
Quick Stretch
Some prefer to work out in the morning, while some would rather not. I am among the latter.
Rather than jumping around and sweating buckets first thing in the morning, I like to do some stretches while listening to music.
In the mornings, I am always feeling stiff, so stretching really helps.
By warming up my limbs with some lunges, squats, shoulder, and lower back stretches, I feel a lot “looser” and ready to face the day – meaning about 9 hours of sitting.
Stretching only takes a few minutes, but it sets a great precedent for the day ahead!
Eat a Good Breakfast
A cup of coffee is not enough!
Black coffee does help get rid of bloating, but just drinking coffee is definitely not enough in the mornings.
It’s important to have a good breakfast too. Studies have shown that eating breakfast improves your focus and energy throughout the rest of the day.
This means that you should really fill up your plate at breakfast! Some toast, one or two eggs (fried, scrambled, boiled, whichever you like) and some bacon; a bagel, some cereal and fruits; or whatever you like.
Just make sure you make breakfast a part of your morning routine.
Read or Listen to a Podcast
I like to do this while I make and eat my breakfast. But how I do it depends on how I’m feeling on the day.
Sometimes, I listen to podcasts while other times I listen to audiobooks or read an ebook on my Kindle. Reading or listening to a podcast is a great way to start your day.
It’s more constructive than mindlessly scrolling through social media, and it can help boost your mood and start your day off positively.
I recommend reading or listening to something for fun rather than choosing something academic or serious.
Make a To-Do List
Time can fly, and without a to-do list, you might suddenly find that it’s the end of the day and you haven’t accomplished everything you hoped to.
By making a to-do list and/or setting a schedule in the morning, you’re more likely to be motivated to actually do stuff during the day.
Writing things down helps you stick to your to-do list and get things done.
And usually, I like to put the most energy-consuming tasks first. According to common sense, you have the most energy and brain cells in the mornings. So why not put them to good use?
Then you can get the big things out of the way in the morning and not have as much to do in the afternoon and evening.
Do Some Last-Minute Studying
Your brain is the most active in the mornings. So use this time– either while eating breakfast or on your way to school– to do some extra studying!
By studying, I don’t mean reading through your textbook and taking Cornell notes. I mean reading through notes you’ve already done, going through flashcards, and watching review videos on YouTube. Chill studying.
Also, mornings are right before school! So whatever you study has a better chance of staying in your brain during the day.
Check out this post to find the best apps you can use to listen to podcasts, make todo lists, and do bite-sized studying!
Conclusion
Having a morning routine is very important because it helps you start off the day on a positive note and make the most of your time.
These are some easy activities that you can incorporate into your morning routine. None of them take that long to do — it’s just a matter of building the habit and adding these little routines to your day.
After committing to these morning routine activities for about a week or two, they should become like second nature for you.
Which activity are you going to include tomorrow morning? And if you liked this post, check out these similar posts for more productivity tips: