I have big news. HUGE! There is a once-per-year opportunity coming your way in the next few weeks…an on-ramp to creating the life you desire through prioritizing self-care. Best of all, it won’t cost you anything. It’s the glorious end of Daylight Savings. Remember when that hour was ripped away from you back in March? This is our time people…time to set up a self care morning routine!
Split the Difference
Hear me out. Rather than sleeping in an hour, why not split the difference and allocate 30 minutes to glorious snoozing, and carve out the other 30 minutes to invest in self-care? Surly that’s a compromise you can thrive in, and it’s only 2% of a week’s time.
A few years ago, I picked up a copy of Hal Elrod’s book “The Miracle Morning.” I’ll be straight with you, it sounded impossible…almost cultish. Who are these self-help addicts who get up at 4am to make themselves better than the rest of us? I myself (like 95% of people I know) have never been considered a “morning person.”
Luckily, my desire to shake up change was stronger than my skepticism, so I decided to give it a go. So in early November, 2019, I took that on-ramp, taking advantage of the return of my long-lost hour.
How I Created an Achievable Morning Routine (for me)
Hal made up the acronym S.A.V.E.R.S. in his book. It feels like a bit of a stretch to me, but it works.
- Silence (or, meditation)
- Affirmations
- Visualization
- Exercise
- Reading
- Scribing
My Customized Self Care Morning Routine
While I tried to follow Hal’s checklist, I decided to alter it to better fit my life.
I carve out 30 minutes per morning for self care, but after I’ve taken care of essentials (made the bed, dressed, cared for dogs, made coffee). That takes around 30 minutes realistically. Then I’m ready to focus on ME for 30 beautiful, uninterrupted minutes. It’s like a reward.
I keep all my supplies at my command station/meditation chair (iPad or phone, journal, notepad, pencil). (Check out my post about setting up a meditation space). I’m ready to jump right into it at 6:30am with coffee in hand.
Meditation: 10 minutes of meditation (yes, while drinking my coffee). My go-to app is Headspace, but I also enjoy the meditations on the Peloton app.
Affirmation/Visualization: 5 minutes of scrolling through a Pinterest board I curated of quotes, affirmations, and photos that help me motivate myself and visualize my future. I hit two of Hal’s elements with one activity!
Journaling: 5 minutes of write a few sentences in my calendar/journal about how I’m feeling, what’s on my mind, etc. In fact, for the year 2020, I wrote a haiku after each journal entry (see them here).
Dance Walking: 5 minutes of walking on the treadmill (pro tip – play funky music and dance/walk like you’re on the catwalk) – I find my “purging closets” playlist on Spotify does the trick.
Stretching/Yoga: 5 minutes of stretching and a few yoga poses (tip – if you’re not sure what to do, get yoga flash cards and lay them at the top of your mat.
Add it up – 30 minutes. Very doable. If you were following Hal’s acronym you probably noticed I did not include reading. I save that for my bedtime routine because that works better for me. I also leave the more rigorous exercise for evening since I prefer taking my shower at night.
I was surprised how quickly I began to see a dramatic change in my mindset, abilities and energy levels. Make up whatever rules you need – this is YOUR self care journey!
Tips to Help Stick With It
- Get a little help from Alexa – I put a smart bulb in my ceiling light that starts ramping up before my alarm goes off
- Make your bed every day – pro tip, start making it while you’re still in it
- Drink a glass of lemon water before coffee
- Have everything set the night before
What Next?
Because I’ve streamlined my “get ready for the day” routine with a capsule wardrobe and minimal makeup, I can get ready for work in 30 minutes (I have a long commute).
I indulge in an extended morning routine on the weekends, because I can. I can honestly say that having this self care time every morning has made a huge difference for me.
Mindset is key to deciding to make any change in life – and has been the anchor that has enabled me to venture down this path of minimalist living, one step at a time. It’s a spectrum, and there’s no right or wrong way to make it happen.
But one thing I now know, less is beautiful.
