My Morning Self-Care Routine!

Now is a more important time than ever for us all to be taking care of ourselves, not only physically, but mentally and spiritually too. One thing I did for my family (and, okay, me too) was to get a puppy! But there are things you can do every single day to show yourself some love and self-care.

Without further ado, here is my morning self-care routine!

1. Get enough sleep, to start your morning routine!

I know, this is a pretty obvious step, but it's something that we all put on the back burner from time to time. But when you're not getting enough sleep, your health and attitude take a very fast nosedive. So in my mind, this is the most important part of self-care!

No matter what you have on your plate, take sleep from the back burner to the front! And do it tonight!

2. Wake up on the right side of the bed!

If you think I'm about to tell you that there's literally a correct side of the bed to get up each morning in order to have everything perfect and seamless, sorry, that's not it!

I just mean that I repeat positive affirmations to myself every single morning, without exception, which include thoughts, prayers, and verses. I personally keep them on my phone, but you can write them down or just remember them...as long as you don't forget!

The reason I think this is so important is not just because you’re setting the stage to have a good and happy day, but also because you're creating ROUTINE. This is an important part of morning self-care not only because it makes you feel good, but because it gives you a daily sense of direction, purpose, and structure.

3. Stretch!

Did you know that stretching helps your joints maintain flexibility? Yep, stretching is not only good for your muscles (which become short and tight without stretching), but because your muscles can't stretch out, extra stress is placed on your joints.

I think one of the most important muscles to stretch are your hamstrings. If you're sitting all day, your hamstrings become tight, which sometimes can even make it hard to walk! I do hamstring stretches, hip flexor stretches, and neck stretches, but listen to your body, and let it talk to you about what it needs!

4. Communicate and bond!

I know that for some of us, the tendency is not to want to talk to anyone until we have our morning coffee and some breakfast in our bellies. But instead of silently cooking breakfast and moping about how early you have to be up and/or get the kids ready, use it as a time to TALK to your kids about something positive or interesting. I think that's especially important during this time!

We have more time to talk to our kids and our spouse right now, so let’s make the most of it!

5. Work out!!

Move your body. It doesn’t have to be in the morning (though I love getting my workouts over with). You need to find the time in your day that works best for you and that you can be the most consistent with!

But here’s my own personal experience with my morning self-care routine: it's BETTER to do morning workouts if you're NOT a morning person!

What am I talking about??

Well, by powering through the morning workouts, you are proving to yourself that you can self-motivate and create healthy habits. You're proving to yourself that you can do hard things. It's so good for your self-esteem!

So even though sometimes I don't feel like doing my morning workouts, I feel a million times better after I do them. I feel proud of myself and energized in a way I don't think I would if I didn't do MORNING workouts specifically.

And if you think you'll hate morning workouts but you've never tried them before, please just try! You might surprise yourself.

Having a morning self-care routine is one of the best gifts you can give yourself. You're telling yourself that you're worth it, that your health is worth it, and that your well-being is worth it! And if you’re not so sure, let me say it again, “YOU ARE WORTH IT!”