You see, despite how aggravating Instagram morning routine posts may seem and the endless amounts of slack you get from people who always manage to wake up before sunrise, there’s a lot more merit to waking up early than we give it credit for. And while we enjoy our fair share of sleeping in and setting that alarm clock to snooze, there’s no denying that this habit often leads to crunch hours and a last-minute deadline rush that nobody likes going through.
However, instead of crying over spilled milk and thinking about everything else that went wrong with your day, it’s about time more people give mornings a chance, especially given the fact that its success mostly rides on your ability to stay consistent. And if we can guarantee you that there’s so much more to feeling drowsy in the morning, then we can also promise that you’ll feel a lot more fulfilled day in and day out knowing that you’ve got most of your to-do list checked off before lunchtime.
Adjust Your Body Clock and Start the Day Strong
Transforming your daily routine to match that of a morning person’s is no walk in the park, but that doesn’t mean you’ll have to struggle needlessly first before you reap any of the benefits. The key is to adjust your body clock by strictly following your alarm, pushing it back 15 minutes for the next day, and staying on that grind until you reach the desired schedule, like 5:30 AM. And once you’ve got that in place, you’re next step is knowing what a productive morning should look like.
- Squeezing in a Workout Routine: Firstly, if you’re already enjoying your workout schedule at night or maybe even don’t exercise that often, then you might want to try squeezing in a workout routine in the morning instead. Nothing beats getting through the most challenging part of your day first, and whether that’s going for a run or lifting some weights, you’ll feel a lot more energized for the rest of the day. Plus, a delicious coffee brew pairs well with an after-workout burn.
- Planning and Packing Your Essentials: In addition to flipping your workout schedules, you could also use that early morning start for planning and packing all your essentials for the rest of the day. For example, suppose you’re in charge of making breakfast for the family. In that case, you can use that extra time in the morning to prepare the ingredients, have everything ready before anyone’s awake, and still have some spare time to shower and get ready for work.
- Going for That Snowball Effect: Of course, we don’t expect everyone to gun for that running start, and, in contrast, you could go for a snowball effect instead that lets you accumulate productivity over time. All you have to do is take things slow and work your way up to more pressing matters and responsibilities. Once the later afternoon rolls around, you’ll be surprised to have nearly everything on your list complete, with some free time left to ponder about your Thanksgiving dinner budget plan.
Of Course, Your Definition of “Morning” Can Vary
Nevertheless, we can’t force the morning person agenda onto everyone because the concept of waking up early and getting stuff done refuses to jive with some people’s routines. However, we can still mimic the same practices of a productive morning onto other parts of the day and still reap the same benefits but just at a different time setting. So just because your definition of a healthy morning varies from the rest doesn’t mean the gates of heaven are sealed off for good.
- Some People Prefer Nighttime Peace: Whether we like it or not, some prefer the nighttime peace and operate like night owls, wherein they feel the most motivated to get things done during the later hours of the day. You’ll want to work with your strengths by doing the heavy workloads and planning the night before, so you can justify getting those extra hours of sleep in the morning for your next work session. Plus, you might even have some spare time for side hustles.
- Others Get a Burst of Energy After Siesta: Besides operating on the nighttime model, others get sudden bursts of energy for productivity right after their dedicated siesta time. And one way of leveraging the morning person routine is by divvying up your more difficult tasks into two parts, one for the earlier part of the day and the latter half after your rest. Of course, it’s a lot more complex than your usual morning flow, but the same principle of getting that early start after a rest remains true.
Don’t Blow It Out of the Water Until You Give It a Chance
Overall, regardless of how you’re enjoying and living your daily life right now, we think there’s a lot to learn from a morning routine than just the benefit of getting things done early. So before you brush it off as a fad you don’t see yourself doing anytime soon, we urge you to give it at least one chance to showcase the discipline and satisfaction that come with productive mornings.