Whats your morning routine?

[mae2014]

Basically that. Is there any habits you introduced to your day, that you feel made a significant difference to your mood/productivity?

Desperate to get myself into a really good morning routine but finding it hard to discipline myself to not turn off the alarm 🙈

I prepare my clothes, workout clothes, coffee, breakfast ands anything I need for work there night before.

I get up at 5am, put on workout gear, drive 500ml of water and eat two energy chews. then I read a book while they kick in.

530-6am I workout

6-630am I make and eat my breakfast

630-7am I get ready (shower make up etc)

7am leave house

I have always done this, even when my children were small and still going to school. If ever I wake up and think about staying in bed I concentrate on how much better my day goes if I exercise first thing and I get up. I'm a teacher with an hours commute and I tried working out in the afternoons but it didn't work for me. Instead I walk the dog for 45 minutes as soon as I get home.

@VeridicalVagabond that sounds an amazing life!

I should do this. Can you do in your pjs or do you dress in leggings first?

Alarm at 5, tea and get me and DD dressed, walk the dog, breakfast, make my lunch, nursery, work at 9 via two buses. By the time I get there I feel like I'm ready for bed again.

Absolutely in awe of people who get up at 5am to exercise. I genuinely cannot do it. Do you all go to bed very early?

I also do as much as possible the night before, including shower and wash hair. My alarm is set 20-30 mins before I need to get up, I like having that extra time in bed to read the news, check social media etc. Usually at least one of the cats joins me for a snuggle. Then get up, feed cats, get dressed, do my hair and make up, have breakfast - in that order. I prefer to have about 1 1/2 hrs between getting up and having to leave, I hate feeling rushed in the mornings.

Well it all depends on your circumstances - I’m one of those hated figures on mn / I’m a sahm with one primary / one secondary. My routine is I’m up and washed first, according to the mn bubble we are in poverty with only one family bathroom, then I wake eldest ds. Make a cup of tea. Lay out ds clothes whilst he showers. Start breakfast if want cooked - eggs, omelette, porridge, drop scones all popular. Wake ds2 and send shower / confirm breakfast. Lay out clothes. See ds1 out the door and serve ds 2 breakfast. (If it’s a good day - Wash up., Make beds and put wash on) Do hair / face - powder foundation and mascara. Walk ds 2 to school - a mile. Wake at 6 30 and leave 8 15.

I don't have one. It all depends on how I slept and if I am working or not (3 days a week I don't work). So I could be up at 7 or up at 9, 9.30.

The only thing that never wavers is I have a huge mug of tea.

Hot water with a slice of lemon first thing.

If working, everything is prepared and shower night before . First job is feeding the cats, otherwise my life wouldn't be worth living and put kettle on. Get myself ready and drink is just about cool enough to drink with breakfast before I go out.

If not working early, cat alarms start going off when DH gets up at 5.45am. I do have a lie in until 7am though, then a few brief stretches, couple of toning exercises. Feed cats, shower, do one or two jobs, walk down to shops - I'm more productive in the morning so better as I can get stuff done before going to work.

DH wakes first about 6.15. Let's the dog in the bed for a cuddle. I get up, make coffee in a flask. Take the dog for a walk, usually for 30mins. Come back shower, get ready for work. Leave for work at 8.30, drive 15 mins. Usually eat breakfast at my desk.

Days not working:
wake up at 6:00
bug dh for coffee
go in and wake up dd (after coffee)
make breakfast
get dd ready for cm
get ready
go to the gym for an hour (leaving dd at childminders)
come back home, picking dd up on the way
shower
Skincare
dd bath

days working:
wake up at 5:00
make peppermint tea (note I make it and it’s not coffee)
breakfast (overnight oats)
shower
get ready
wake Up dd
get her ready
take dd to cm
go to the gym before work (6-7)
drive to work

Oh and get coffee (latte with oat milk and one spoon of brown sugar) from starbies before gym (I know I know, I’m going to start making my own!)

Hydration first thing is a must for me. I don’t have any DC and my commute is walkable so I admittedly take time to have a solid routine in the morning, my top tips are:

Get good quality sleep

Upon waking drink 1 pint of fresh water with half of a lemon squeezed into it

Whilst lemon water is digesting make breakfast, empty the dishwasher and fold up dried washing.

Have breakfast (10-15 mins after water) with a black coffee

Catch up on news and MN for around 15/20 mins

Take multivitamins and drink a pint of fresh water

Shower, skincare, get dressed, another pint of water, go to work.

I am the same as maxelly. I will gladly sacrifice all but the bare minimum of morning routine in order to stay in bed longer. So my morning routine is shower (necessary to feel vaguely awake), dress, teeth, bit of makeup, that’s it.

Happily DH is a morning person and will get the DC their breakfast. I do all other DC prep the night before.

Same as others, if I’m going to the office I prepare everything night before, packed breakfast and lunch, towel, wash bag and clothes as I cycle and shower at office. If I’m WFH, roll out of bed at 8.45…

If I'm in the office, alarm goes off at 7.40am.
Open curtains, open window, through back duvet to air bed
Hot shower, skin care, body lotion, brush teeth
Switch Radio 2 on in my dressing room
Dry hair, simple make-up, perfume choose outfit - typically shift dress and long boots at the moment
Make the bed - cannot bear coming home to a messy bedroom
Mug of strong coffee with big scoop of Vital Proteins Collagen Creamer in it
A multi-vitamin tablet taken with a pint of water
High dose vitamin d spray on inside of cheek
Keys, work bag, coat, drive to work (only a 5 minute commute).

Alarm set for 6.30am normally up well before this.I have 2 cups of tea ,shower little make up then make my lunch.listen to radio ... clothes ready the night before dress then off to work around 8.45am 10 mins walk.

@Shannith what benefits have you had from daily YWA? I desperately want to get more flexible - is that the kind of thing you've found?

I've done a YWA every day for 13 days, which is a record for me. At the moment some days I do a video like 5 minute yoga chill or something, so I don't necessarily expect many gains just now, but hoping in January I can do her series.

@ScottishBeth I've been doing move 30 days every month from Feb. Max 28 mins a day. And I sometimes do 2 (now I've got better at it).

It's made a massive, massive difference to my mobility. I started it to help with riding but it's touched every part of my life.

I almost take my mobility for granted now!

I get everything ready the night before -

uniforms for dd’s
schoolbags packed
coats and shoes ready by the door
lunchboxes washed
my own clothes ready for work

Get up at 7.05am
Dd9 usually awake and wandering around
dd4 generally still asleep
have shower & wash hair
get dressed and wake dd4 up
help her get dressed
two kids eat breakfast in front of tv while I make lunches, dry hair & put make up on
Do kids hair while necking the coffee into myself
Repeat myself 400 times to brush teeth
Have a quick breakfast- usually a banana or toast
make my herbal tea for the car
leave at 8,30am, drop kids to school then head off to work listening to morning talk show ( love this 10 minutes in the morning 😂)

This thread is really illuminating. I am not a morning person and I didn't realise that lots of people feel the same.

Over the years I have tried and tried to commit to getting up extra early to do things like yoga, prepping dinner for slow cooker, making a todo list, having a moment of quiet sanity to myself etc..

Every effort has failed at the precise moment that my morning alarm goes off. At that point I can't make myself care about anything other than bare essentials and getting DC to school on time.

I've accepted that unless there is a fire or an angry lion in my house I just can't get up any earlier than I absolutely have to.

I am a bright eyed and bushy tailed night time person through- strangely at my best late at night and in the early hours.

I think that I'll try to put more effort into a night time routine to mitigate being so terrible in the morning.

Alarm goes 6:15: get up, put on exercise clothes and Ugg boots, make tea, unload dishwasher (and sometimes unload or load washing machine), stick any washed PE kit back in sports bags, fill water bottles. Wake up DC 6:45. Give them breakfast. Have second cup of tea. They get dressed/ do teeth etc. I have a quick tidy up, and, critically, remove ugh boots and put on gym shoes. Leave house in car 7:20. School bus stop 7:30. Gym or run 7:45. All done by 9.

Get up 8:50, grab a coffee, have a wee and log into work. Hate mornings, love wfh.

I walk most mornings.

My ds is a swimmer and we are up at 4.

He swims at 5 and I walk 5-6k whilst he swims.

Then home and work/ college.

Then home and he swims again. I either walk again 5-7k p, read, do my Asda order, sometimes watch or watch something on iPad.

The few times the weather has been dire and I've not walked I'm really itching to get out by evening time.