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Summary: New morning, new you. Get a better start to your day by identifying 5 morning habits that might be holding you back. Get started now.
We often hear about all the things we need to add into our mornings, but what about the bad habits that are keeping us from being our best selves? While it can be a struggle to add in new habits, it can be even more difficult to get rid of old ones. You get into a routine, and it’s hard to change how you do things. Maybe instead of doing your good habit, like meditation or reading from a personal development book, you end up watching morning television again. Which of those two things is going to make you feel better in the long run, rather than just in the moment? Those are the kinds of things you need to focus on if you want to improve your overall life. Beyond things like television, here are five morning habits that you need to kick to the curb if you want to live a healthier, more energized lifestyle.
- Hitting the Snooze button and oversleeping. Yes, you can get too much sleep! A good amount of sleep (7-9 hours) is important for refreshing our minds, letting our bodies and muscles recuperate, and keeping our hormones in check.However, have you ever slept in or taken a long nap only to wake up feeling groggy rather than refreshed? That’s because oversleeping can make us feel unproductive and unmotivated, along with coinciding with other issues like depression, cognitive impairment, increased pain, and increased risk for obesity and heart disease. If you struggle to get up, try putting your alarm across the room and turning the lights on immediately!
- Not drinking enough water. Drinking water first the in the morning is vital to your brain function and physical health. Overnight, you aren’t taking in any fluids so that when you wake up, your body is dehydrated. Water helps you wake up, can boost your metabolism, and can also help combat headaches.Try keeping a 12-ounce glass of water next to your bed and chugging it first the in the morning to get started on the right foot.
- Not planning ahead. Do you usually feel rushed in the morning to put together your lunch, pick something to wear and get everything together in time to make it out the door? Well, taking the time to plan (even if that means sacrificing 15-30 minutes of evening television) can make a huge difference to your mornings. Make your lunch the night before, pack your work bag as much as you can, and set out what you’re going to wear the next day. You’ll find yourself considerably less stressed in the morning and might have a few extra minutes to just breathe into the day.
- Skipping Breakfast. Many of us learned in High School or college to skip breakfast, and it’s a habit that just won’t seem to go away. Many people claim they aren’t hungry first thing in the morning, but that’s often because you’ve learned to suppress your appetite and you end up overeating later in the day. However, eating first thing in the morning boosts your metabolism for the rest of the day as well as helps to fuel your body and your brain for the tasks ahead. Don’t worry about the extra calories because you either need them (many people eat too little without realizing it) or you’ll find yourself less hungry later in the day.
- Not fueling for your AM workouts. Many people choose to workout first thing in the morning, but fueling for those workouts can be essential. While some believe that a fasted workout is best, many find that they feel nauseous or weak if they don’t get some kind of fuel in their body first thing. Not only is it helpful to have something small before your workout, but refueling right away (within 30-60 minutes) helps muscle growth and recovery. Otherwise, you just did a lot of hard work that you may not see the benefits of because your body is eating its muscle to refuel.
