#29 Morning Routine

8 Feb

One thing I’ve learned and developed for myself over nearly a year of lockdowns, is a robust morning routine. I realised I had to remove some of the guesswork from each day, and instead of hoping good things would happen, I wanted to have more of a say over how my days unfolded.

“Win the morning, win the day!”

— Tim Ferriss

Before, I’d be shocked into waking up by my alarm which I couldn’t snooze quickly enough. Then I’d moan something negative into the ether along the lines of ‘FML’ or ‘kill me now!’, then eventually, begrudgingly get out of bed huffing and puffing.

Yep, not a great way to meet the day right? I certainly wasn’t grateful for this gift called LIFE! The problem with starting the day like this meant I was on the back foot, I was already behind on the scoreboard. Then, there’d be a rush to get ready for work, open the laptop, login, the barrage of emails, the Skype messages popping up and then wading into a sea of crap.

EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

Like a grim version of Groundhog Day, repeat ad infinitum.

Then I started reading around what super-successful people do to get where they are, and I noticed a common thread between them all.

Morning routines.

Without fail, from Richard Branson, Arnold Schwarzenegger to Oprah Winfrey, Arianna Huffington et al - they all have their own version of a morning routine which sets up their days. It’s a non-negotiable part of their lives.

Now, ‘normal’ folk like us, think we have more challenges than these super-rich celebs and business people, what with kids, work, home-schooling, chronic tiredness, money concerns and a coulda, woulda, shoulda approach to life but everyone has to start somewhere right?

I realised that I needed to stop sleep-walking into my days like a bewildered hostage, or an addict needing that first hit of coffee to feel some kind of spark.

Thankfully, I was inspired in part by Tony Robbins’ exercise that he calls ‘Priming’, he primes himself for the day ahead.

Often we’ll awake unsure of what the day holds for us, maybe there will be a heaviness in our stomachs, a feeling of dread, the mind then creates a story for us around that feeling which ends up as anxiety or a kind of fearfulness of an intangible obstacle or a perceived foe that doesn’t even exist.

So Priming is a state-changing exercise, that switches us out of the mental into the physical through simple breath work. It may seem silly, and you will probably feel odd the first time you try it but, trust me, it works. It’s based on ancient wisdom, and actually comes from a yoga practice called Bhastrika Pranayama (aka The Bellow’s Breath).

Without going deeply into Chakras or Meridians of the body (I’ll leave you to do your own research dear fellow philosopher), essentially the pumping of the arms alongside breathing in and out through your nose stimulates your physiology by oxygenating the blood increasing the vitality of the organs, strengthening and toning the abdominal system (no sit-ups required) and it energises the entire body and mind.

Do this after waking up, it takes less than 10-15 minutes, do it before looking at your phone or seeing to anyone in your house - you will need to ask your family or whoever you live with, if they can respect your need for me-time first thing. Then just do it, every day, without fail - consistency is the key.

I then stumbled across this rather charismatic, wild-eyed gentleman on YouTube called the Certified Health Nut who promotes a similar practice to that of Wim Hof in terms of rapid in and out breaths to activate your inner biological healing and health processes.

I have to admit, this video does seem a bit weird/funny upon first viewing, but don’t judge it, just give it a go. First time I did it, I felt mildly euphoric, a number of niggly aches and pains seemed to ease significantly too.

My daily morning routine now consists of:

Make my bed
Drink water
Simple stretching, lunges, back & hip release, downward dog yoga pose - 5 mins
Certified Health Nut, DMT Breathwork - 10 mins
Tony Robbins Priming/Bhastrika Breath - 10 mins
Meditation - gratitude & loving kindness - 5-10 mins
Shower (preferably a cold one, see Wim Hof Method)

The meditation is the cherry on top of the breath work, you’ll feel a real sense of stillness and calm. I think of at least 3-5 things I’m truly grateful for in my life, and draw focus to my heart centre at the same time to bring energy to the practice.

This requires very little, to no equipment - although I do it on a yoga mat and I have a meditation cushion.

Then I get up carefully, and mindfully go about my day ready for whatever may come. It wakes you up, so you can savour your morning coffee and truly enjoy it rather than downing it for the caffeine hit. It also tells your inner self that you care enough to show up everyday fortifying your resolve against anything that may unfold.

It helps deal with stress, anxiety and uncertainty because for 20 minutes every morning - you create a space for yourself that is safe, nurturing and kind. It’s there whenever you need it. It’s inside of you and no-one can take it away.

You may feel some resistance to what I’m suggesting here, I can already hear you exclaiming:

“Pah, what’s he on? Who has 20-30 minutes spare every morning?!”

Well dear reader, I thought the same too initially - but I made time. Get up 20-30 minutes earlier. Now it’s not only a habit, it’s a foundational building block of my health and my life.

There is ancient wisdom in our bodies, down to the cellular level and we just need to use the biological equipment we’ve got. There’s a reason why breath work, yoga and wellbeing has become massively popular during lockdown, because anyone can do it regardless of physical ability.

If you have breath in your lungs, you can do it.

I have asthma, so I started carefully but now I hardly need my inhaler. The body has huge healing capacity within it, sometimes we just need to get out of the way of ourselves and allow it to do its thing.

Oh, and if you haven’t guessed, you need to do all of this BEFORE you reach for your phone. Doom-scrolling social media or the news will not set your day up how you want because you’re passively absorbing other people’s messaging/agendas.

Meet the day on your own terms, not other people’s!

Please give it a go, start small - a few minutes of the above is better than none. Pick and choose what works for you. I’ve experimented with a few things and the morning routine above is what I’ve happily arrived at for now.

Ultimately, do whatever suits you, but some simple movement, stretching and breathing consciously will be hugely beneficial especially if you don’t exercise regularly. As they say, use it or lose it - prevention is always better than cure.

We all agree that we must protect the NHS, so by taking the time to look after your own health and wellness every day you are not just helping yourself, you’re actively serving others.

If you win your mornings, you’ll win your days. If you win your days, you’ll win your weeks, months, years and your life.

Successful people know that structure and good daily habits allows them to be more creative so they consistently do it. What will you do to be more successful in health, wealth and happiness?