I have a life without many routines, and to be honest I am having the hardest time keeping them up. But the inconsistency in anything regularly catches up. And I do know the little things that help in certain situations. With that in mind – I wanted to build something that wasn’t reactive to situations but that set me up to a grounded and proactively set day. A plan or routine. One that is adaptable to circumstances and isn’t rigid – I continue to change around as much as I need in order to make it perfect for me aka to make it work for me as much and as often as possible. Actions that turn out not to fit get thrown out – maybe moved around, but most likely thrown out.
You may wonder why I started with a morning routine as a non routine person. Fair point. I even wondered / am still wondering myself. I love sleep and have a hard time not maximizing on sleep but instead to cut it off to pull my focus and attention elsewhere – on a routine. Seems super counterintuitive. But I have also gotten to know that there are certain things that calm me, that keep me grounded. So I tried to make them part of my everyday. I even noticed that the practices ground my mood and my emotional stability. Actions that ensure that I can incorporate a little bit of movement no matter what the day has in store for me. Daily reflections that help me stay anchored in gratefulness, that consistently show me how wonderful the little things in life are. Taking time to take care of myself, for which I am often too tired in the evenings. A few things that often fall short due to prioritization of others and during the day. Even writing about the routine and the little different moments brings me joy and makes me smile while I think about it. It structures my morning incl. supplements and makes sure I give myself and my areas of importance some time.
Before having such a thing as a routine, I got out of bed, got myself ready and presentable in front of the camera or for the office with a coffee in my hand. Sometimes starting the day beating myself up for not having or following the current routine. The first negative news, unexpected text, critical moment, traffic, etc. could set me off. And I would have to fight and debate about it with myself sometimes for the rest of the day. I couldn’t get it out of my head. It was horrible. I knew I had to change something. So I did, with A LOT of trial and error. But in order to find out what works for you, trial and error is part of the journey. Let’s dig in and dissect.
After getting up (aka going to the bathroom) I have a glass of water and my first round of supplements. Then I fix a coffee with which I either snuggle back to bed for some news or chill on the couch. After the news I do some breathwork (Kapalbhati and Anulom Vilom) – please know I am a certified yoga teacher and have a high degree of practicing those – it may be advised to start with box breathing based on the outcome you are looking for. Then I do my daily journaling – a few questions to reflect on how I want to show up, what I am grateful for, etc.. I then use this state of calm alertness for some 15 min of reading, preferably a non fiction book to continue my path of learning and growing. In order to not take the easy way out and use the calm mind and body to go back to sleep (and yes, it has happened and still does happen at times, something I am not proud of) – but consistency beats perfection – so I am getting back up on the routine train again and again and again. It’s like a game I play with myself. Therefore, I am moving my body after – getting it all going to send the sign that the ship for going back to sleep has sailed. I am getting my body moving with a few yoga sequences for mobility and a bit of Pilates for continued strength. The sweaty workout then calls for a shower, totally making going back to bed not an option.
Before the shower I have introduced dry brushing – and also here: sometimes I love it and really take the time and sometimes I do a short one. I take a short shower (I usually wash my hair in the evenings after my workouts) and then move on to gua sha my legs (arms haven’t made it into the routine yet). With the dry brush, gua sha etc. I started at the beginning to print the strokes and movements and hang them in the bathroom to minimize friction and make implementation as easy as possible. Once that is done and the oil is being sucked into the skin I am moving on to my face. Massaging the lymph nodes activates the lymphatic system and circulation as a basis before I put on oil / serum on my face and do 5 different gua sha movements. After I continue with my skin products and basic make up routine – combined with a set of clothes (either work or workout) et voila I am ready for the day.
Breakfast is so far not part of the routine, which does not mean it won’t become such. But so far that still looks quite different from day to day. In case I had a short sleep because I need to catch a super early train, flight or something of that sort – I usually try to minimize my morning in order to get as much sleep in as possible. So I sorted things out and adapted – and sometimes the adaptation happens in the morning, when I feel like I need more time for something or I feel like I need to skip on something. Having everything I need for the routine close by reduces friction and decision making aka willpower – so that has also been a key element for me: preparation.
So what’s the takeaway? Interestingly enough I read that in a Morning Mindset Survey, 90% of respondents confirmed that their morning routine did set the mood for the rest of the day – and I can only confirm. Even though I am not a routine person in everyday life and I am still as of today struggling implementing it consistently. Performing the routine keeps me grounded, makes me happy and more attentive throughout the rest of the day. Even for those of you not drinking coffee you can rely on the morning cortisol increase to keep you going through the routine. And even after some time of turbulence and lots of error and staying in my head for way too long – I remember what actually does help and feel good. And I go back to the routine, jump back on the train. Without judgement because it simply doesn’t help. Oh and very importantly: one thing I normally do not do is compromise my sleep in order to perform the routine. For me personally sleep is so much more important than the routine, so I take the shortcut and do the short version instead. Consistency beats perfection and I cannot reinforce this enough – do what feels good and do it consistently.