Relaxation Moments

Relaxation for The Mind and Body

How to Nurture Your Mind and Body Every Morning

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How to Nurture Your Mind and Body Every Morning

It’s easy to put your self-care last on the list of things you do. Then you reach the end of the day and you don’t have enough energy to do anything else. So, you skip your kickboxing class or fall asleep before you can finish your facial.

But when you start your day with self-care, you put yourself at the top of the list. You’ll feel better physically and mentally. You’ll have more energy. You’ll find it easier to focus and enjoy your day even more. Here are some simple ways you can nurture yourself each morning:

Hydrate

Start your day with a glass of water. It boosts your metabolism and flushes toxins that have built up over night out of your body. If you don’t like the taste of plain water, try adding lemon or cucumber slices into your glass. The taste will be refreshing and wake up your taste buds.

Exercise

You don’t have to jog twenty miles before breakfast to get the benefits of exercise. Even low key workouts like yoga or stretching can energize you for the day. If you’re not used to exercising in the morning, try it for just ten minutes each day. As you adjust to your new exercise routine, you’ll be able to exercise for longer periods of time.

Eat

Like exercise, breakfast boosts your metabolism. This means your body burns the calories you eat more effectively. It also gives you energy to face the rest of the day. Keep in mind breakfast can be as simple as jam on two mini bagels or banana bread with cream cheese.

Cuddle

Cuddle with a partner, with your kids, or even with your pets. This will give you a boost of endorphins which are the feel-good chemicals your brain produces when you’re happy. If you can’t cuddle, reach out. Connect with a loved one or friend. Send a text message, call, or Skype.

Inhale

Certain smells can energize you for the day ahead. Try using a diffuser designed for essential oils. Some good morning choices are lemon and orange since their citrus smell will wake up your mind and body. You can also try peppermint or spearmint, both of which improve concentration and focus.

Reward

Plan to reward yourself at the end of your day. This reward might be something simple like watching an episode of your favorite TV show on Netflix or saving a special dessert for later. When you know you have a treat waiting for you, the anticipation builds boosting your happiness level all day.

Be patient. At first, taking time for yourself every morning may feel weird or uncomfortable. That’s because you’re not use to self-care. But the more you care for yourself, the more you’ll grow to enjoy mornings.

 

Morning Routines to Center You

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Morning Routines to Center

Imagine this: you’ve been given one cup of water. Throughout the day, you’ll meet other people who are thirsty. They’re going to ask to drink from your water. Most of these people will be loved ones, like your friend who needs you to listen as she talks about her difficult day or your child who needs help with homework.

Without morning self-care, you start the day with a cup that’s only half full of water. Now, you have to carefully ration your time and attention so there will be enough for your loved ones and for you. This can make you feel grumpy and cause you to resent your friends and family.

But what if you started the day differently? If you used your mornings to fill your own cup, then you’d be able to share your water freely with others. This is why morning self-care is so powerful.

Start with Silence

When you wake up and immediately reach for a screen, you start your day with noise. This can distract you and make it difficult for you to mediate. You might try meditating afterwards but your focus would be on the headlines you just read or the Twitter debate you’ve responded to.

Instead of noise, try to begin your day with silence. Don’t pressure yourself to do anything or review your to-do list. Let yourself relax and focus on being present in this moment. Dial into your five senses and listen to what your body is telling you.

Capture Your Reflections

When you’ve quieted your mind, you’ll notice that some thoughts naturally bubble to the surface. It might be that you’re thinking of a fight you had with a loved one or the funny conversation you had with your kid after school yesterday. Whatever you’re thinking, capture it in a special reflections journal.

There’s no right or wrong way to express your thoughts. You can draw, journal, or color those thoughts. Give yourself space to explore how you feel without judgement or fear. You are safe to voice your inner emotions.

Read Something Motivational

Once you’ve expressed your inner emotions, reach for something motivational to read. Try to read a physical book, not a digital one. Reading on a device will tempt you to stop and check your email or send text messages.

If you don’t have any motivational books, you can start with one like Miracle Mornings by Hal Elrod and Robert Kiyosaki or The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. But don’t think you have to read a certain type of book or that you must read something you find dull. Any book that inspires or motivates you is a good choice.

Your morning routines should center you and bring you comfort. If you try a self-care routine and it doesn’t feel right for you, then let go of it and try something different. The important thing is that you discover what morning activities fill your cup and you focus on doing those. This will allow you to be the best version of yourself and give you extra water for friends and family.

 

Eliminating Morning Stress

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Eliminating Morning StressEveryone experiences a stressful morning occasionally. It might be that your alarm clock didn’t ring or your car wouldn’t start. Maybe you forgot the report you needed at the house or you left your grocery list on the kitchen counter.

If your mornings always feel stressful, then it’s a sign something needs to change. The good news is most morning stress can be eliminated by creating new habits. It can take a while for a habit to become routine but once it does, your morning will be so much smoother. Here’s how you can reclaim your mornings:

Prepare the night before.

A lot of morning stress can be eliminated by preparing for the morning in advance. Choose your clothes the night before so you already know what you’re going to wear. Pack your lunch and leave it in the fridge so you only have to grab it as you head out.

Skip the news.

Thanks to smartphones and tablets, you can now check the news without ever having to leave the comfort of your bed. But reading or viewing the latest new stories can cause you to experience anxiety and discouragement. Instead of looking forward to a new day, you feel overwhelmed and fearful.

This doesn’t mean you have to avoid the news all day. Staying connected to what’s happening around you is important. But pick and choose what types of news you really need to hear first thing in the morning. For example, you could look over the entertainment news or sport scores but choose to skip the main headlines until later.

Play positive tunes.

Create a morning playlist of music that makes you feel encouraged and play it as you’re starting your day. This will help you wake up and make it easier for you to focus on the positive. Music can also boost your productivity and creativity.

Don’t check your email or social media.

Most people experience their highest energy levels after waking up. Yet the first thing you may be tempted to do is check your email and social media networks. The problem with this is your inbox and networks are often filled with “urgent” messages. These urgent messages quickly crowd out the important tasks you need to get done today. The next thing you know it’s noon and all you’ve accomplished is answering your email and checking social media.

To prevent this, don’t check your email or social networks until later. After an hour or two of working, take a break to check your messages. Since you’ve already tackled the important tasks today, you can devote as much energy as needed to the urgent tasks you ignored earlier.

Morning stress can be a sign that it’s time to step back and evaluate your routines. Look at what’s causing you the most stress and seek simple solutions to fix them. By doing this, you can change your mornings from stressful to delightful!

 

 

 

Why You Should Make Meditation Part of Your Morning Routine

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morning routine

A morning routine consists of activities to help focus your intent for the day ahead. It can be comprised of things that make sense for you, and everyone’s morning routine will be different. However, one thing you should definitely think about including is meditation. The benefits of implementing an everyday habit when you first wake up are quite vast, and meditating during that time can totally boost those advantages. Let’s take a closer look at this concept to help you understand why you should make meditation part of your morning routine.

About Morning Routines

A morning routine is a habit of setting aside a regular amount of time each day for some sort of purposeful intention. It sets the tone for the rest of your day, and it can be comprised of various activities. The amount of time you spend on your morning routine is up to you. However, an hour is a significant amount that doesn’t seem to give people too much trouble to attain. You can fit a great deal of purposeful meditation and spiritual growth work into that time. Beyond meditation, you may want to consider adding some of these activities to your morning ritual:

• A glass of water with lemon for hydration and energy
• Stretching or short exercise routine to warm your body up
• Reading to open your mind and motivate you
• Journaling to flesh out the ideas from what you’ve read or to reflect on issues of interest
• Daily planning to get set for your day and to limit any surprises
• Goal setting to place focus on your intentions for the day ahead and to provide you a map

These are just some examples. Your morning routine should be meaningful and useful to you. Feel free to get creative with it. You’ll probably need to experiment a bit to figure out the best combination. But don’t worry; it will come with time.

Why Morning Meditation?

Meditation is an excellent form of self-care. You’re purposefully setting aside time to focus your thoughts and to spend a quiet moment to work toward achieving your highest self. Meditating helps you to create the calm and quiet mindset you need to start the day off right. It also helps you to develop the focus that can be carried onward as you encounter various problems or issues, making problem solving much easier. In fact, your overall state of mind will be enhanced through meditation. You’ll feel you’re more motivated to accomplish your goals, you have more persistence to push through obstacles and you’re more patience when encountering minor difficulties. All of these are good things.

How to Make It a Habit

Creating a morning routine of meditation and mindfulness might take some work. Like most new activities, it will take practice to become a habit. However, there are some things you can do to help make this a habit that sticks. One way to do this is to know your why. Write down the reasons why you’d like to make this routine a daily habit. Stick the list somewhere visible as a reminder and to motivate you. You may also want to recruit a buddy to share the experience with you. Having an accountability partner is useful because you’ll have a support system and someone to whom you must answer if you find yourself slacking. Your morning routine buddy can be a spouse or roommate within your home or a friend who doesn’t live with you. Just be sure to check in with that person at least every few days and as needed for encouragement. Don’t give up. Try to at least commit to your morning routine for a month. As you may know, repetition is the key to forming lasting habits.

Meditation is a crucial part of a strong morning routine. Hopefully, you now get a better picture of how the two go hand in hand, along with the powerful benefits they can offer. Give it a try for a month and see just how your life transforms.