My Morning Routine (And How To Create One For Yourself)

Are you a morning person?

Because if you are, I want to know your secrets.

For real. Waking up early is not fun, and if you find it fun, please tell me how you got to that point.

I’ve talked about mornings before on my blog, so if you’ve read one of those posts, you know I have a strong love/hate relationship with mornings.

However, I have to say lately I’ve been leaning on the side of “love” and it makes me question my sanity.

I blame the book Good Morning, Good Life by Amy Landino. I watch Amy on YouTube and she recently published this book all about morning routines and why they’re important. Admittedly, one of the reasons I wanted her book was because the cover is just so dang cute. But, the content is just as amazing. Seriously, highly recommend.

It made me think about morning routines in a whole new way. They don’t need to be this long drawn-out thing. When I started thinking about how I could maximize my mornings, I was sold. Why not wake up a bit earlier to have some time to myself before the rest of the day comes in full force?

So I tried it.

And I love it.

From the moment I wake up to the moment I walk out the door for work, it’s an hour and a half. Not bad, right? Let me walk you through it.

6:15 - 6:30 (usually closer to 6:30): Wake up (sigh)

6:30: Walk downstairs and immediately make a cup of coffee. While I wait for my coffee to brew, I do 50-100 squats. Not because I love squats, but because I want to involve a bit of movement when I wake up and this is the most convenient way to do it when I’m half asleep.

6:30 - 6:50(ish): Devotions and coffee. Honestly, this is one of my favorite parts of the routine. It’s when I get to sit back down (on the couch, NOT in a bed), drink my coffee, and read my new devotional, New Morning Mercies. The daily devotional is seriously incredible, and I highly recommend it.

6:50(ish) - 7:15: Read. I’m a huge reader and this year, I’m trying to finish 50 books. That’s a LOT of books, and I’ve started to realize that if I can squeeze in at least 20 minutes of reading before the rest of the day begins, I feel accomplished for making progress on my goal, little by little. (Check out the progress here.)

7:15 - 7:45: Make up, brush teeth, do hair, get ready, make bed, etc. AKA, Glow Up time. Because unlike Beyonce, I did not wake up like this. I usually do all of this while listening to a podcast since I don’t like getting ready silently.

7:45 - 8:00: Throw together lunch, make my lemon water (so boujee, I know), gather my stuff, and head out the door.

See? It’s not a lot and I know myself that if I try to exercise or do some other crazy thing in the morning, it won’t stick. I want to have a routine that’s attainable and realistic, not over-the-top just because it sounds impressive.

A good morning routine is what’s right for you, whatever that might look like.

It might not include a workout or hours of reading. That’s okay.

It might not even be more than 15 minutes before the “real world” kicks in. That’s also okay.

We need to release this idea that a morning routine is One Size Fits All. It’s not.

I wanted to share mine because it might look like yours, or it might not. And that’s okay.

As you go about your morning routine or think about trying to create one that is realistic to your life, don’t forget about the night before. It’s just as important as the actual morning itself.

Here are a few things that I suggest to make your morning routine as smooth as possible.

Pack your lunch the night before (or at least most of it)
Choose your outfit the night before (including ironing anything that needs ironed)
Shower the night before (this is a preference, but it does make mornings a bit more relaxed)
Set your coffee mug out the night before (it’s one less action between you and getting coffee when you’re a zombie in the morning)
Get your work bag and any other essentials ready to go so you can grab them and make a quick exit

What about you? Do you have a morning routine? If so, what does it look like? If not, what do you wish it could look like? I’d love to know!