I’ve been slacking in upholding a solid morning and nighttime routine. Honestly, a lot of things have contributed to that.
For whatever reason(s), I’ve been having trouble sleeping lately. It started gradually, and for a while I was able to stick to (but struggle through) my 5:30am wake up time even while getting less and less sleep. It wasn’t healthy and I felt sluggish and testy most days, but I wasn’t willing to scrap my wake up time since I was involuntarily nixing my earlier bedtime.
But as falling asleep started to take longer, waking up early became nearly impossible.
So I started cutting steps from my morning and nighttime routines, for the sake of being too tired to do them and to spend those extra minutes stealing sleep.
Now that we’re nearly a month into the New Year (how?!) and I’ve gotten some other things under control and in place, I’m ready to get back to normal, steady routines.
Here are some things I’ll be getting back into doing regularly.
+ Making breakfast at home.
I’ve adopted a bad habit of either only having coffee brewed at home for breakfast or buying food out on my way to work. Typically that means sitting at my desk chugging the last of my first (or second) coffee and having a muffin or something quick. If I’m doing this, it usually means I was short on time…which usually means I didn’t reach for an earlier option. It’s not great for my body or my wallet.
+ Journaling and meditating first thing.
Now that I’m getting into YouTube content, I’ve been spending more and more time watching videos, taking courses and viewing tutorials. In the morning, the first thing I’ve been doing is jumping into work or scheduling social media for the day. I feel so much better when I start my days reading my devotional or doing bible study and getting some thoughts down in my journal.
+ Drinking hot lemon water first.
When I’m waking up late and rushing, I usually down some coffee to try and perk up (pun absolutely intended) and nothing else. Truthfully, there are days when I’m heading out to lunch and realize I haven’t had water all day. I used to start my days with a cup of warm water with lemon, honey and apple cider vinegar, so I’ll be returning to that before that first cup of joe.
Those all may seem like such small things, but they really make a big difference in how I start my day.
What steps are essential to your daily routines?
I just need a morning routine, period. Mine is typically: wake up late, literally every day; start working (form home); shower at lunchtime.
Nottttt ideal!
Making breakfast at home is SUCH a good feeling. I always love my first few days back in the States when I’m slightly jetlagged and wake up early and have slow mornings and lots of time to do the things I need to do. Drinking water and eating breakfast are important to me. I always have my handy dandy water bottle with me, both at home and out, so I sip on that. Not as fancy as hot lemon water, but it keeps me hydrated! And I try to always have a quick breakfast option at home on the ready (with varying degrees of healthiness haha, but gotta be realistic… when you’re in a rush, you’re in a rush) -Audrey | Brunch at Audrey’s