The ways we choose to spend our mornings can have a huge impact on the way we feel during the day. As well as allowing us a little pamper time, getting mornings right means a positive mental attitude and a generally improved outlook for the day.
By comparison, a morning routine done wrong could leave you stomping around like a bear with a sore head. We’re talking about a short temper, headaches, and a generally gloomy outlook. Yes; mornings really do matter that much!
The trouble is that, with many of us more pushed for time now than ever, our morning routines are often pushed to the side or altogether crowded out by activities we consider more important. This is a significant step away from the wellness that you work so hard to achieve in other aspects of your life. And, it’s something we’re going to help you to overcome by looking at where you go wrong, and what you can do to make positive change.
A slave to your snooze button
Starting from the beginning, your bad morning mood could be down to something as simple as a trigger-heavy snooze button habit. After all, we all love being able to set our alarms to snooze while we roll back over into the blissful land of nod. For many, this would even be their idea of a perfect morning. But, the snooze button is not your friend, and we’re going to look at why.
Most pressingly, snooze buttons are bad news because they allow us to fall back into a sleep that’s never going to be deep enough. Rather than refreshing us, this ten-minutes (or more) of half-sleep is guaranteed to leave us groggier, and thus grumpier, than we would be if we just jumped out of bed when the alarm went off.
It’s also worth noting that a snooze-button habit eats up the time we have in the mornings like nothing else. Instead of being able to take a leisurely shower or eat a decent breakfast, snoozing means rushing around and running out of the house without once taking the time that you should.
Getting breakfast all wrong
Breakfast is another significant morning downfall for many, despite being long-hailed as the most important meal of the day. The simple fact is that the vast majority of us either skip breakfast altogether or eat entirely the wrong things for a positive mental attitude. Yes - breakfast really can impact your headspace!
With that in mind, leaving the house each day with an empty stomach is a significant no-go. Instead, breakfast should be about slow-release foods like oats, which keep us fuller for longer so that we’re satisfied right through until lunch.
Sadly, with more people than ever experiencing oatmeal and gluten intolerance, this healthy option can seem off the cards, but it needn’t be. With oats naturally gluten-free and oatmeal intolerance usually manageable by introducing small amounts daily, there’s really no excuse not to get stuck in. Alternatively, you could turn to many other healthy, lasting breakfast options including eggs on wholemeal toast or just a good old breakfast smoothie containing all the essentials.
Don’t you drink in the morning?
Eating might matter a great deal, but it’s worth considering what you drink each morning, too. After all, drinking enough can offset a range of health complaints including the headaches and fatigue that seem to haunt your mornings. This is especially the case considering that we often become dehydrated after a night of sleep.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re drinking orange juice, tea, or just plain water, so long as you drink at least a glass of something before heading out into the world.
Can’t hear yourself think?
It’s also worth noting that many of us fill our mornings with noise, of both the literal and metaphorical variety. Yet, whether your issue is the physical noise of the television set or the metaphorical noise of your social media feed, the outcome is the same, and it often looks a lot like that ‘out of bed on the wrong side’ feeling.
That’s because noise of all kinds stops you from being fully present or recalibrating your brain in the ways that you need each morning. Worse, these habits could see you filling your head with stuff that you simply shouldn’t think about so early on.
Instead, focus on creating a peaceful morning space, allowing you to check-in, look up, and head out for the day on the right footing at last.
