A few months ago, I did a live with coach Clotilde Dusoulier on the theme of morning routine and I had so many positive feedbacks regarding it that I wanted to tell you more regarding it here ????
We too often imagine that to put a morning routine in place you have to get up at 5am and have 1h30 in front of you: fortunately this is not the case! Every morning routine is different and extremely personal. It is also necessarily scalable according to our situations (especially if we have children or not for example) and our moments of life. The idea is therefore not to compare its morning routine to that of others, because we all have our own desires, needs and constraints ????
My idea of the morning routine
Personally I don’t want my morning routine be a straitjacket in which I lock myself : on the contrary it is for me a privileged space which allows me to start the day in a calm and intentional way. In this sense, I have 2 formats of morning routines: the “plan A” routine (when I have time, when I don’t have any unexpected events, when I slept well, etc.) and the “plan B” routine (when I have less time, when I had a difficult night, when I have a tightly scheduled day ahead of me, etc.), because let’s face it, some mornings are more chaotic than others!
The idea for me is that, whatever happens, I still have time (even if it’s only a few minutes) to start my day in a conscious way, which allows me not to get caught up in the tsunami of the day.
This is really the great benefit that the morning routine has had for me since I set it up 4/5 years ago (and it has evolved a lot since then): starting my day intentionally keeps me feeling calm and in control throughout the day (well, most of the time haha) while throwing myself into my day as soon as I woke up, often on autopilot, ultimately created a lot of anxiety for me and left me feeling like I was under a steamroller at the end of the day.
Another thing: a morning routine can also be things that you don’t do (and which thus literally take 0 minutes, what good news!): in particular, in my case, not picking up my phone when you wake up! As I often tell you, I banned the phone from my room for almost 5 years and it changed my life!
NB: if you like the theme of the morning routine, I invite you to read Hal Erold’s book, Miracle Morning on this subject!
Plan A: my ideal morning routine
- I get up without taking my phone (I highly recommend investing in a traditional alarm clock if you currently use your phone to wake up, it’s life changing! Personally, I haven’t taken my phone in my room for 5 years!)
- I prepare a very hot Earl Gray tea and while it infuses I put on my sportswear
- I get moving: depending on the day, either I go for a walk (drinking my tea in a thermos), or I do Pilates, yoga or stretching for regarding 15/20 minutes.
- I drink my tea (if I haven’t already) while writing in my diary for 5 minutes while listening to this playlist that I love and which calms me down.
- I meditate or do a series of breaths for 5/10 minutes.
My ideal routine takes me regarding thirty minutes. I am lucky enough to work from home and I almost see these 30 minutes as a journey time between my personal and professional space!
I know that more and more people have the possibility of telecommuting so why not reinvest this “saved” time by not taking transport and reinvest it in a morning routine that makes you feel good if it is possible for you ?
Plan B: my alternate morning routine
Right now I’m using my replacement morning routine a lot, because this is a busy time for me…and that’s OK! I know that things are cyclical and that in a few weeks I will have more time to come back to my plan A more regularly ???? Having a plan B allows me to not lose my morning routine habit and to start each day intentionally despite everything, even if my routine is very short!
- I get up without taking my phone (that never changes!)
- I prepare a very hot Earl Gray tea and while it infuses I get moving with a few stretches followed by 3 or 4 conscious breaths (large inspirations / expirations) or 1/2 minutes of meditation with my eyes closed, in my kitchen, still in pajamas!
It takes me a maximum of 5 minutes, it’s easy and quick, but it’s still a (mini) space of calm before I throw myself into my day!
The importance of adapting your morning routine to yourself!
As Clotilde pointed out, we talk regarding morning routine but we can create this space at any time of the day too! If you have children and the morning is already busy and very timed, you can set up your morning routine when you arrive at the office for example (or during your lunch break, or whenever you want)!
Similarly, if it is easier for you to create a morning routine on weekends than during the week, it can also be a good way to set foot in the stirrup ????
And you ?
Do you have a regular morning routine? Weekdays and/or weekends? If the subject interests you, I can also tell you regarding my evening routine, because I also have a super comforting little ritual for sleeping well! What do you say? Tell me in comment!