Mornings! Some mornings we can wake up no problem and leap out of bed looking forward to the day ahead like at the weekend or on holiday. Then there are those mornings when we snooze our alarms for 30 minutes before dragging our carcass out of bed to go to that scary place called ‘work’. Those mornings, well those ones are not so fun! So to make your mornings more tranquil than terrible here are seven steps to help you have a more positive start to your day.
Going To Bed Earlier
Ok so you need to start these steps the night before but if you aren’t getting to sleep until around 1am and your alarm goes off at 6am then you are undoubtedly going to wake up grumpy. Start going to bed half an hour earlier each night to get you into a better sleep routine, hopefully you won’t dread your alarm going off once your body is getting enough sleep.
Looking Out Your Clothes The Night Before
Although now that I’m back working in a veterinary practice I know what I’m wearing every day (that would be my very attractive uniform) but when I worked in an office I would look out what I was going to wear the next day the previous night. Check what the weather is going to be like the next day as you don’t want to wear sandals for there then to be 5 inches of rainfall while you are at work. I found that it saved about 10-15 minutes searching for something to wear that day as you had already decided and looked out the outfit, shoes and accessories. Valuable minutes that could be spent sleeping!
Setting Your Alarm Earlier
If you hate the thought of rushing around every morning or you need that 30 minutes of snooze time to slowly wake up then set your alarm clock a bit earlier. I hate rushing around so I set my alarm for 5.45am, this means I can get ready, feed the cats, have breakfast and make lunch before heading out the door at 7.30am. Start gradually with 10 minutes earlier until you reach a stage where you aren’t too tired but able to walk out the door rather than fly out of it.
Good Morning Sunshine
Now that it’s getting lighter it is so much easier to get up in the mornings since the sun is starting to come up just before your alarm goes off but in winter when it’s dark until what feels like mid morning then it’s a different story. If you are someone who struggles to get out of bed when it’s still dark it might be worth investing in a clock that gradually gets lighter in your last 30 minutes of sleep to slowly wake your body up.
Getting Ready
If you have a shower in the morning using a citrus or minty scented shower gel helps to wake you up in the morning; once dried get dressed, apply your make up, do your hair and clean your teeth.
Eat A Good Breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day so start your morning right with a good one. Things like overnight oats can be made the night before (stating the obvious here!) to save some time in the morning or you could have some egg muffins if you want a protein packed breakfast on the go.
Leave On Time
Once you are all ready, fed and raring to go for the day ahead try and leave your house on time or even 5 minutes earlier if you can. Rushing out the door and then missing your bus or getting stuck in traffic will undo the calm feeling you had when you first woke up.
What are your tips for a stress free morning?
