Mornings can be chaotic when we’re just trying to get out of the door, whether to head to work or drop the children off at school. Most people don’t have the luxury of a slow and steady morning but there are ways you can adapt your already existing morning routine to give you some space and calm among the chaos.
As a yoga teacher, my intention is to always live in a mindful way and this includes throughout my day, not just when I’m on the yoga mat. These are three simple things I do to start my day well and from a place of calm. When I start my morning like this, my whole day seems to go better and I’m better able to handle any hiccups that might happen.
1. Practice mindfulness
Mindfulness has become a bit of a buzz word over recent years but there is something to be said for starting your day in a mindful state. Rather than waking up and immediately running through your to-do list or rushing around the house, try waking up slowly and practising mindfulness as you go about your morning routine.
As you wake up and open the curtains, stop and take a look outside. As you head to the shower, connect with the sound of the running water and pay attention to how the water feels on your skin. What’s the temperature like? How does your shower gel smell? When you go downstairs to make yourself a coffee or tea, watch as you stir the milk in and notice the patterns. When you take your first sip, savour it rather than rushing to finish it. These are all things we can notice while we continue with our morning routine.
By starting our day in this more mindful state, we are more likely to move a little slower and our mind can also start the day slower. This will result in less feelings of being rushed, on edge or overstimulated and instead will see you enter your day in a stress-free way.
2. Get fresh air
Depending on your job and lifestyle, this may be something that naturally happens for you each morning. However, for most of us, our jobs are based indoors and so we may not connect with the outside world much throughout our day. Make a conscious effort to get some fresh air in the mornings. If you have a garden, you could take a warm drink outside and take a few deep breaths. You can bring your mindfulness into this moment, too.
By ensuring you get some fresh air in the mornings, it can improve mental health by reducing anxiety and improving concentration. It can also increase oxygen intake which can improve lung health as well as give a boost of energy. It’s a worthwhile addition to your morning, in whatever way you manage to get it.
3. Practice yoga
I may be biased but yoga is a great form of gentle exercise that can be practiced in the mornings to help wake up the body and mind. I’d recommend yoga after having been awake for some time so your body has already moved around a bit, and it fits nicely after the first two hacks in this article.
If you're familiar with yoga, you can choose to move intuitively by practising random postures that feel good in your body and help you to get moving. Tune in to how you feel and let the movement come from this place. If you’re not familiar with a range of yoga postures, YouTube has some good short classes you could try. If you’re a beginner, it might be a good idea to find a local yoga teacher to learn from first before practising at home alone.
There are many reasons why people practice yoga. Traditionally it’s to unite the mind, body and spirit. If we take this approach into 21st century, we can argue that yoga is about bringing all parts of ourselves together and connecting with ourselves. By moving the body mindfully with controlled breath, yoga helps calm the nervous system, open the lungs, relieve physical tension and reduce stress among many more benefits such as enhanced mood, improved focus and memory and lower blood pressure.
By bringing yoga into your morning routine, even for five or 10 minutes, this regular practice will help you to start your day from a place of calm, and give you longer term benefits, too.
