Hi!
Today I wanted to give you some practical and realistic tips to maintain or start a morning and night routine.
We have all been there: we lay in bed binge-watching other people’s motivating morning routines to try and get ourselves to have a productive day. Until we realize that it is 10:00 AM and we have gotten NOTHING done.
And, sometimes, we can get frustrated and accept the fact that our mornings will forever be chaotic and rushed. But, no more! I have gathered a list of the most helpful tips that I have learned to stick to a routine, and that is what I will be showing you today. So buckle up, grab the tequila, and let’s get started!
Why Do I Need a Routine?
First things first, you may be asking, Why do I need a routine? Good question, and one I did not fully know the answer to until recently.
A routine is essentially a habit or collection of habits that you do consistently, whether daily, weekly, monthly, etc. It is put in place to promote order and prevent laziness and procrastination. It helps you remember important habits and makes doing them almost mindless.
A routine can be as minuscule as simply making your bed every morning or as vast as a large group of tasks throughout the day.
If you are someone who has a chaotic or rushed morning, you need a routine. If you are someone who is lazy, you need a routine. If you are someone who wants more order and better time management, you need a routine. If you are someone who wants to make more time for yourself, you need a routine. If you are someone who thinks they do not need a routine, you need a routine. Even my DOG has a routine, so do not tell me that you do not need one.
Ok, now that we have established the fact that you need a routine, let us move on.
What Are My Best Tips On How To Maintain a Routine?
Your routine has to work for YOU.
Do not copy everyone else’s routine just because theirs looks good. Focus on what works for you.
If you are the type of person who does not have a routine because of laziness, first get UNLAZY. Get your lazy ass out of bed and finally DO something profitable with your life.
Put your alarm clock further away.
If you really struggle with getting out of bed in the morning and are consistently hitting the snooze button, then this is the tip for you. Get one of those old, loud alarm clocks (or you can use your phone) and set it farther than an arm's length from your bed. When it rings, it will force you to actually get out of bed in the morning, thus preventing the desire to hit snooze and roll back under the covers.
Make time to do something for yourself.
If you think you do not have enough time to do something you want in the day, here is my solution: Write down (in hours) how long on average it takes for you to get your daily tasks done in a day. Then, whatever time you have left, dedicate it to doing something for yourself.
For example:
8 hours of sleep daily
2 hours of eating (including meal prep)
1-hour workout
1 hour miscellaneous (taking the dog out, random little things, etc.)
1 hour of social media time
3 hours of chores and cleaning
Total: 16 hours
You have eight hours left in the day (this is only an example), so use it to do something that you want to do!
Have an open schedule.
I do not like strict schedules where I have to do every single little task at an exact time with hardly any breathing room for when things come up. I mean, seriously, I have seen schedules that look like this:
Wake up at 5:00.
Make bed at 5:01
Drink water at 5:05
Kiss husband at 5:06
I understand that some people are very busy and that every second counts, but for the average person, a schedule like that is just not sustainable; you need plenty of breathing room for when unexpected things come up.
I schedule my day by basically setting a goal to do a certain number of tasks by a certain time.
For instance:
I wake up at 5:00 AM, and I set a goal to help my husband get ready for work, exercise, shower, work on my planner, and start cleaning by 10:00 AM. I leave myself plenty of room in case I need to do something extra (like 99.9% of the time). This also helps in case I sleep in.
Have a treat.
Whether it is simply making yourself a nice, healthy breakfast or enjoying a hot shower, having something enjoyable to look forward to every morning will keep you motivated and wanting to actually roll out of bed.
Make it a priority to do something for yourself.
Enjoy the little things.
Every morning I enjoy some of the seemingly smallest of things. The smell of fresh coffee grounds, the morning sunrise peaking up from behind the trees, the crisp morning air, the snoring of my dog, and any other little thing I find.
This helps me slow down in the morning and start the day off with thankfulness, which then affects the rest of my day.
Play some music.
This is something I like to do when I do not feel like doing anything. Playing some upbeat music can help wake your ass up and get you moving! It also puts you in a good mood right from the start, which then makes you look forward to sticking to a routine.
Get as much done the night before AS PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE!
This tip is very important as it will help your mindset the next morning by alleviating stress. Your night routine will affect your morning routine, so it is especially important to have a diligent and relaxing routine at night.
Plus, it is a lot easier to get stuff done when you have already been awake the whole day.
Some of the things I do every night before going to bed are as follows:
Tidy up the house (pick up any clutter, fold any blankets, do a quick wipedown of the kitchen, etc.).
Do a 2-3 minute fridge organization.
Write down your to-do list for the next day.
Take some time to take care of yourself. Wash your face, brush your hair, put on some cozy clothes, etc.
Do a general safety check of the house. Make sure the doors are locked, the alarm is on, no lights or candles are on, etc.
Get good-quality sleep.
As I mentioned previously, your night routine affects your morning routine. So, that also means that you need to get the best quality sleep you can. And, I do not mean a lot of sleep as in amount, I mean QUALITY. I can get 10-12 hours of sleep in a night, but if it is crap quality, I will feel like shit the next day.
Some things I do that help me get better sleep at night are as follows:
Turn off your phone, tablet, or other device for at least a half hour before going to bed.
Make sure the house is tidied up. A cluttered house will keep you awake and cause some stress.
Drink some calming tea, like chamomile, a half hour to an hour before bed.
Set some ambiance. Dim the lights, light a candle, use a scent diffuser, get cozy, etc. This will get your body and mind relaxed and help you fall asleep quicker.
Keep a to-do list on hand of all the things you need to get done at night. It can list anything that you might forget to do, such as checking the doors, taking the meat out, feeding your sourdough starter (hehe, only me?), and anything else that might keep you awake. The reason for this is that oftentimes while lying in bed, we can randomly remember that we forgot to do something, which inhibits good sleep, so checking off everything on your nightly to-do list will provide peace knowing that there is nothing you are forgetting.
If you are someone who thinks a lot while lying in bed and cannot fall asleep, then here is a solution: focus purposefully on ONE thing. This can be your breathing or a nice thought. I sometimes enjoy thinking about a beautiful, sunny day in a garden, which relaxes me and causes me to fall asleep quickly.
What Do I Prioritize in My Daily Routine?
I have a few things that I make a priority to do on a daily basis in my morning and night routines, which I will list for you. These are things that I enjoy, and they work for me, but I also find that most of these ideas are very easy to fit into a strict or busy schedule.
Get ready for the day.
Take a shower, brush your hair and teeth, wash your face, etc. Get yourself looking good and ready to face the day ahead. Simply putting on some nice clothes can be enough to motivate you to get all of the daily tasks done without procrastination. It is also important to take the time to take care of yourself.
Stay hydrated.
Stay hydrated throughout the day, but especially in the morning. And no, NOT with coffee. Drinking a few glasses of water throughout the morning will help to easily keep you hydrated, energized, and feeling pretty darn good.
Get some fresh air and sunlight.
I start off my day by getting some fresh air as I take my dog out, and it is a very enjoyable feeling to step outside and smell the crisp morning air. I wake up before the sun rises, so I cannot get any sunlight at that time, so I take my dog out again once the sun is out.
I do not necessarily stay outside simply to get sunlight absorbed into my skin. I stay outside because my dog likes to take his SWEET ASS TIME going to the “bathroom” every morning, which causes me to have to stand there FREEZING during this time of the year until he finally decides to relieve himself. BUT, I am thankful for the fact that I can easily get 20+ minutes of sunlight on my skin a day.
Plan your day.
I like to plan my day in the morning because I can get a better sense of how the day will be, but some may prefer to plan their day the night before. Whatever floats your boat is fine. Planning your day will motivate you to actually get the stuff done that you planned to do, hence the fact that it is a PLANNER.
Get moving.
I prefer to exercise as early in the morning as possible, and this is simply because I tend to push it off during the day and end up not getting it done at all. So, if you are like me, I suggest that you try to exercise as early as possible or set a specific time to do it every day.
This also applies to other things that you tend to push off or dislike doing; get them done and out of the way.
Start a few chores.
One of the first things I do every morning is make my bed. In my article about my best cleaning tips, I mention the importance of making your bed every day and how it motivates you to get more tasks done.
After I have gotten ready for the day and have done a few morning things such as working out, preparing breakfast, taking care of my dog, checking social media, etc., I will then start doing my daily chores.
I find that it is helpful to get everything done as early as possible in case something comes up that prevents you from finishing your daily chores.
I do hope that this article helped you in some way, shape, or form to start or maintain your daily routine. Just remember to make sure that your routine fits YOU. This article is simply here to give you some helpful tips and ideas.
Thank you, as always, for taking the time to read this. 😊
If you have any questions or feedback, do not hesitate to contact my sisters and I directly or leave a comment below.
See you next Wednesday!