Your Morning Routine is an opportunity. 

How you start the morning plays a major role in quality of your day.

Whether we are intentional or not, how we start every day could be the deciding factor in living our best life.  I’m not exaggerating in my last statement.  What is life? A non-stop, minus sleep of course, conscious stream of evolving moments. Every moment you are either cultivating or using energy, either stimulating the parasympathetic or sympathetic systems of the autonomic nervous system.  With each moment, we have opportunity for being mindful, distracted in past or future thought or somewhere in between.  How we start our day affects everything else we do and how efficiently our bodies function.

So, if you don’t have a morning routine, now might be the time to adopt one and if you have one, now might be the time to elevate your current routine.

Here are some tips for an excellent morning routine:

Intent

I believe we can shape our reality through being intentional. What, when and how we think is the spark for where we focus our time and starting the day with intent can be extremely powerful for living the life we want. This can come in the form of a couple short and sweet intentions, declarations, or mantras.

Meditation 

Meditation is magical in that it can be practiced many ways. Depending on your time in the morning, it might be only a few minutes of focused breathing or fifteen minutes of Thai Chi or twenty minutes of sitting or standing meditation. It’s about the practice over time so the secret is practicing meditation and not judging whether you are good or bad at it. With time, you will find a deeper connection to soul and space between thoughts. Try not to over think it.

Water 

Every one of us wakes up in the morning a bit dehydrated from breathing all night with no water consumption. Some people more than others depending on environment, their daily hydration practice, and their body’s specific needs.  We coach every client to start their day with 16 ounces of structured water. To add structure to water simply put a pinch of sea salt, squeeze of lemon or anything else with electrolytes or nutrients. I personally add fulvic/humic minerals, oregano oil and vitamin D to my first water of the day.

Morning elixirs

After my initial water intake, I consume Athletic Greens, which is a multi-vitamin with adaptogens and pre/probiotics. Along with the AG1 I add five grams of creatine. Creatine has shown positive cognitive function benefits and is used for recovery from training and building muscle. I coach all clients over forty to utilize its benefits.  There are many combinations of elixirs that can boost energy, cellular regeneration, and recovery. Do a little research to see what your body might need to perform at its best.

Breakfast

Breakfast is another opportunity to lay your caloric foundation for energy, muscle growth and wellbeing for the day. Commit a little time to testing what nutrient and fiber dense breakfast is best for you. Whether it’s all plant based or has animal protein, know the quality of the source and assess how it works for your digestion, energy and if it checks the protein box of at least twenty grams. This meal will set you up for a day that you can optimize and perform at your highest level.

Stretch/Morning protocol 

Most clients that I worked with over my twenty years of training have architectural challenges that need attention. These can range from past injuries to alignment issues and when managed consistently with smart protocols they can end up feeling great! When not, it can lead to discomfort, pain or in worst case scenarios, injury. Your morning protocol is specific to your body and its needs. To know what protocol is best for you takes curiosity, practice and having a coach/trainer can help immensely. You have to become aware of muscles and areas of fascia that are tight and areas of the body that are experiencing weakness. Then work on those areas with soft tissue techniques, mobility drills and strength training.

I love personal protocols!  They are a longevity-based collection of actions, habits or movements that when performed assist with consistency, focus and a results based on a long game mindset. That’s a tongue twister but it encapsulates what I want to express: that having specific protocols for maintaining healthy posture, gait, digestive system, skin, teeth pays dividends in the long term.

There are of course more soul inspiring actions we can take in the morning, ranging for a cold plunge to yoga. The major take away is that I hope you walk away with is: what can I do to elevate my morning routine?

To your health,

Daniel