We’ve all heard it a trillion times:  Having a consistent morning routine/ritual that nourishes your body, mind and soul is imperative to living a life you love. Our morning – and, in fact, even those first few moments after we wake up – shapes our entire day.

But given that so many of us have such precious little time in the mornings, how do you know what to do that will make you look + feel your best, in the shortest amount of time possible?

Well, I think it’s a matter of trial-and-error, really. Every one of us is different, and some people will find certain things next to impossible to do when they first wake up. Like for me, I can’t imagine doing a strength training session first thing out of bed (and that’s not totally because I am a caffeine addict…although that may be part of it).

Below, I’ve rounded up six morning rituals that get (+ keep) me goin’ in the a.m.!

1. Lemon water.

When life gives you lemons, squeeze that shit into your water bottle & drink it! I am SO not a huge water drinker (although my cool little filtering water bottle has sort of changed that), so this hasn’t always been easy for me. However, hydration in the a.m. has made a huge difference in the way I feel all morning. Here’s a rapid fire list of reasons lemon water is the shizz; boosts your immune system, balances your pH levels, aids weight loss AND digestion, gives you beautiful, glowing skin, replenishes your vitamin C (which you lose if you’re stressed out all the time), makes your breath smell nice AND can help coffee drinkers break the habit. Still working on that last one.

2. Fasted cardio.

OK, so the medical field can’t agree whether this one is beneficial for fat loss or not. But that aside, I do know this: Getting my cardio out of the way in the morning – aka before I even really know what’s going on – is the ONLY way I can do it. I usually jog for 25-30 minutes on the treadmill at a steady pace, and about halfway through I find myself jazzed up, feeling (semi) alive and rocking out to whatever tunes I’ve picked for the day. It’s more about mental clarity and energy for me than fat loss anyway, but if you ARE looking to shed extra weight, take note: At least some health peeps agree doing cardio in a fasted state (4 or more hours after eating) is optimal for fat loss. This isn’t because the amount of calories burned changes whether you’ve eaten or not, but because when you’re fasted, your body gets it’s energy from stored fats RATHER than the sexy pre-workout meal you smashed two hours prior.

3. Mindfulness Meditation.

Meditation has TRULY saved me in so many ways. It’s helped IMMENSELY with the following: Generalized Anxiety, Social Anxiety, Codependency and overall low self esteem. Everybody has their own preference when it comes to meditation styles, but my fave type is mindfulness. I am ALWAYS worried about something, and it’s truly amazing what 5-20 minutes of FOCUSING ON THE MOMENT can do for a girl’s sanity. For me, it’s easiest to focus on sounds. Just take a second to listen. Can you BELIEVE that many dang birds are chirping ALL THE TIME?

If you’re new to meditation, I recommend trying a GUIDED version. I’ll be releasing some of my own soon (yippee!), but a quick search on YouTube will bring up some fun results. I just DON’T recommend doing a relaxation meditation in the morning…for obvious reasons. 🙂

Also this quick 5-minute energy balancing exercise works wonders.

4. Affirmations.

I gotta be real with you. I am NOT a natural optimist. Even worse, I have TERRIBLE morning anxiety. When I first jump out of bed, my brain is on serious overload. One of the best ways to soothe my wired nerves is to force-feed ’em positive affirmations. Just like using the crowding out principle when it comes to losing weight (read: introduce more healthy foods rather than taking away the things you love – more on that later!), I have found the easiest way to stay positive is to ADD positive thoughts rather than try to battle my (automatic) negative ones.
My faves affirms?

+ “Erica, you’re doing a great job. I’m proud of you. You’re safe.”
+ “I am calm, peaceful and confident.”
+ and the uber-simple, “Today is going to be a great day.”

I have lots of these printed out, written on notecards AND programmed into my phone to go off at random times throughout the day.

Find what works for you. Affirmations are personal – they should always speak right to your soul. (That’s also the only way your brain will believe them, anyway!)

5. Morning Pages

You guys, seriously, if you don’t journal – you need to start. Like, yesterday. ‘Morning pages’ is a concept introduced in Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way. Cameron asks you to write 3, unfiltered, uncensored pages a day, preferably right when you wake up, as a way to unblock your creativity. It turns out that when we have a bunch of stuff on our minds, it keeps our creative energy stuck. I call my morning pages my “brain dump” and that’s really what I do – write down WHATEVER I’m thinking, without editing. I use the online application 750words.com. Three pages is approximately 750 words, and for me, it’s easier to type than write with paper + pen, but you should experiment and find what works for you. Even if you don’t consider yourself a writer, or aren’t “creatively blocked,” you’ll be amazed at the clarity and awareness you’ll find from a little morning journalling.

6. Green smoothies.

I love eating healthy, but getting in the amount of greens we should isn’t always easy. Green smoothies, however, are the EPITOME of EASY. I’ve finally perfected my morning smoothie recipe, and I also whip it up if I find myself experiencing hanger (yes, hunger + anger) pangs throughout the day.

My recipe includes:

+ A big ass handful of spinach
+ One banana
+ One half small cucumber, sliced
+ One cup blueberries
+ One cup raspberries
+ Coconut milk (the amount depends on how thick or “creamy” I want it to be that day)
+ Water and stevia to taste

Blend and let sit in freezer, or add ice cubes. Voila! Try it for a week and just try to tell me you don’t notice a difference. In fact, I think I’m going to go make myself one right now!

Your Turn!

I love hearing about how other people live their lives, and morning routines FASCINATE me. Do you have a routine you’d like to share? What do you HAVE to do everyday in order to function at your best? Share your morning routine with us in the comments – you might just have a genius idea that could benefit all of us!