How the First 2 Hours of Your Morning Can Shape Your Entire Day
Before you read on, I wanted to make it clear from the start that this blog post is not going to be a “5 steps to making your morning routine better”, nor is it a “10 easy exercises to do when you first wake up” blog. Instead, I wanted to share some of the changes that I have made to my morning routine and the positive impact they have had on me. I’d also like to preface the post by stating that there are many days I do not stick to the routine and even more so where I only partially stick to it, but what I have found is that when I do go though the 2-hour morning routine, my days are usually much better!
It’s 4:50am in my house when the first alarm goes off. Usually surprised and confused, thinking I must have misset my alarm, I reach for my phone to find out, unfortunately, it really is morning. I hit snooze and fall back to sleep instantaneously.
4:55am — the second alarm goes off. I hit snooze quickly and lay my head back down. This time, however, I try not to fall back asleep; instead I use these next five minutes very purposefully, for self-talk.
This is a routine I have only added to my repertoire in the last 2 years, and although there are days I find it frustrating or useless, I keep trying because the times I do it well, have had a tremendous impact! After reading countless books and listened to numerous successful people say one of the most important distinctions between happy and positive people is that they give themselves daily positive affirmations. (If you’re looking for a great read which covers this topic, I highly suggest Jack Canfield’s “The Success Principles”)
In my grogginess, the speech in my head usually goes something like “Laura, you are strong and capable person”, “Laura, you will sleep better tonight, simply by getting to the gym this morning”, “Laura, all you need to do is make it to the couch, you will have a coffee and read a great book”. Most days I catch myself and realize I am talking in 3rd person and so I do it all over again, but in the “correct way”; apparently this is a very important distinction.
So, I do it over. “I am strong and capable person”, “I will sleep better tonight, simply by getting up to go to the gym”, “all I need to do first is make it to the couch, have a coffee and read a great book and the rest will fall into place”. Usually by now, my Labrador Rudy, who yes sleeps on our bed, is making lots of noises because he wants what we call “a morning rub down”. But I don’t give in just yet.
“I am strong and capable.”
This starts me on my second part of the routine for which I list all of the things in my life I am grateful for, which usually goes something like this “I am grateful for Rudy, he brings me such joy. I am grateful for my body and the health that I have, I am thankful for my husband who loves me so much. I am grateful for my family and all of the support they’ve given me. I am lucky to have a career which I am so passionate about.”
Usually by this point the 3rd and final alarm goes off and the thought process is broken. For me, the goal of this exercise is really to start my day off in a positive frame of mind. In years past, there have been countless times where I would wake up in a rush, stub my toe, jump in the shower, rush to get ready, hop in my car, only to realize I’ve forgotten my phone. We all know that feeling when the day is just not working for us. But, I find just by getting up a little bit earlier to calm the mind and give myself a boost of confidence, somehow the whole world seems to slow down.
I hop out of bed, give Rudy his highly anticipated rub and pleasantly start my day.
Now 5:00am the routine is quite basic. My husband makes the coffee, I make the protein smoothie and we plop ourselves on the couch with Rudy curled up warmly between the two of us. We give ourselves 30 minutes to work our way into the day. I used to think this was wasted time, time that could have been spent sleeping, but after 6 years of getting up this early to go to the gym, I have found that this 30 minutes has become my favourite time of the day; in essence, this is the time I make for myself.
Most days I do one of two things: first is work on a blog a post, such as this, and the second is to read a book. The book topics vary but in general are within the realm of self-improvement, sales or entrepreneurship. I take my notes and do the exercises suggested in the pages. What I’ve learned by reading so many of these books, is that most of them say the same thing, just repackaged differently. Perhaps you’re thinking that it is boring to consume content that is always the same but I must admit, some days I just need a healthy reminder that I am in charge of my mood, that I have the power to change my circumstances and that doing good things for myself is important.
5:35am — I quickly get ready, drive to the gym and am usually warming up on the elliptical around 5:55am. Roughly 3x per week we meet with our trainer who puts us through a rigorous 30 minute workout. We first hired a trainer to prepare us for our wedding; although it is not cheap, we decided it was important to us that we stay motivated and so we have decided to prioritize spending money on this.
By no means do you need a trainer to get a workout in; in fact, if you workout at home, you’ve just saved you 20 more minutes a day of commute time!
Our workouts range. We do weights some days, mostly cardio others, some days I’m running outside, others I’m flipping a tire. I love it because every day is different, and every day I’m a little scared of what is to come because I know our trainer will push us outside of our comfort zone.
6:30am — we get an additional 20 minutes of jogging in and then head home. It is in these last 10 minutes of my 2 hour morning routine is where all the pain and tiredness seems worth it. Our conversation on the car ride home usually goes something like this “that was so f*#king hard, but I’m so glad we did it”, followed by “well, the good news is, we got the hardest part of our day over with, everything else from here will be a breeze.” I give myself the proverbial pat on the back.
“We got the hardest part of our day over with, everything else from here will be a breeze.”
I am not suggesting everyone get out of bed at 5:00am, nor do you have to train at the gym like I do. I’m merely suggesting that if you spend just a few minutes in the morning talking to yourself like you would your best friend, and then maybe find 20 minutes to do some stretching, go for a run or do some exercises around the house, (wall sits, dips on the couch, lunges in the hallway) what you’ll hopefully find is that if you do it consistently over time, you will actually start craving it. Some mornings I find excuses to not get up, but if I’m honest with myself, they are rarely good excuses.
I challenge you to take a look at your own excuses and dissect them in the same way; be honest with yourself, you can always get up a little bit earlier! You may even recognize that making time to do something good for your physical and mental health is the most important thing you’ll do in the entire day.
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