Month: January 2023

Waking up in the morning isn’t always easy.

There are many reasons it can feel like you’re trying to get out of a swimming pool full of molasses.

Whether you just had to binge that entire new season of your favorite show, rank up in your favorite game to get that cool new skin, or talk for one more hour with the one you love before they call it a night or leave for work while their miles away on a working vacation, you know you have to get up to go to work or get to class once the sun comes up.

Is there something you can possibly do to make it any less excruciating?

Why, yes, there is! You can create and follow your very own morning routine. Not only can this healthy habit take much of the pain away from having to wake up whenever doing so gets harder than usual, it also helps set you up for a successful day each and every time.

To learn more about this life-changing habit, here’s our definition of what it is followed by no less than 10 morning routine benefits to prove just how good it actually is.

Morning Routine Definition

A morning routine is a set of habits that a person does every day when they wake up to make sure their day starts off on the right foot. They vary from one person to another, depending on their interests. But no matter what they choose to make a habit, the benefits are pretty much the same.

Morning Routine Benefits

Lets You Prepare Yourself for the Rest of Your Day

Having time in the morning to focus before you get on with the rest of your day puts you in a positive frame of mind, letting you easily stay focused and motivated throughout the day to do the things you need to do.

This is similar to centering, a widely practiced technique in the martial art of aikido, where deep breathing is used to remain calm, relaxed and grounded in stressful situations.

Energy Levels Boost

Any routine provides those who follow it structure and guidance in their daily life. It lets them act with purpose instead of just going about aimlessly. Doing so helps them stay active, focused and sharp.

That’s why athletes are so good at the sport they chose to excel at compared to the rest of us. By engaging in a pregame routine that involves hours and hours of training, they elevate their game by being able to get into the zone easily.

Increased Productivity

Knowing exactly what you need to do every time you wake up increases the likelihood you’ll accomplish everything on your plate. Having that sense of certainty with what to expect throughout the day keeps you from getting overwhelmed. Such efficiency leaves no room for the possibility of a task getting left unfinished. If you start your day this way, your entire day will surely be productive.

Feel More in Control

Remember the saying: control your day, don’t let it control you? It means managing your schedule in such a way that the sheer number of things you need to attend to doesn’t unravel into a chaotic mess. This doesn’t just apply to work. You can also put it to use as one of your morning habits. Organizing your mornings lets you calmly and comfortably ease into the rest of your tasks for the day, letting you handle them with hardly any issues.

Less Stress

It’s so stressful whenever you need to rush because your work or chores somehow piled up and you have to move fast to finish them all on time. That usually happens when you just let things get thrown at you instead of planning how to deal with them. Establishing a routine lets you put everything in a neat, little order. The less stressed you are, the less likely you’ll suffer from its adverse effects, which include anxiety, high blood pressure, heart disease and even depression.

Not Forget About Things Easily Anymore

Since it’s done every day, a routine is hard to forget. Even if you don’t consciously think about it. If you do it long enough, it will probably become part of your muscle memory, in that you’ll accomplish tasks without being focused on them at all. A great example of this is being able to get dressed for work even if you hardly had any sleep.

If you manage that with taking out the trash, feeding your pet or any chore you need to do in the morning, it’s highly unlikely you’ll forget the other important things you need to do later in the day, preventing it from getting ruined.

More Confidence

Creating a morning routine isn’t just all about accomplishing tasks. It also involves self-care. Whether it’s having time to fix yourself a nice breakfast, do your hair or talk to your kids before sending them off to school, making a self-care habit or habits part of your morning routine will surely lift your spirits right at the start of your day.

The better you feel, the more confident you’ll be.

Stronger Relationships

Speaking of being able to talk to your kids over breakfast before they head on off to school, you can do one better and carve time out from your schedule every morning so your entire family can just sit down and spend time together before going about with the rest of the day. Being able to bond like this every day will bring you closer together, strengthening your relationships as a family.

Become Even More Flexible

But no matter how carefully you plan out your morning routine, there’s always the possibility that something could come up and disrupt it. All you have to do to get back on track is to continue following it. Keep doing this every time something unexpected happens and you’ll get better at anticipating problems. The better you get at this, the more flexible you’ll be.

Easier to Develop More Healthy Habits

The more often you do something, whether it’s good or bad, the easier it is to keep doing it. That’s why bad habits are so hard to break and why good ones get easier and easier to keep, no matter how hard they are. You can think of succeeding at creating and following your very own morning routine as a stepping stone to having more healthy habits. If you manage to keep at it, there’s no telling how great your life could become.

References

• “Benefits of a Morning Routine—ways to start your day off on the right foot” by Anytime Fitness
• “10 Science-Backed Benefits of a Morning Routine” by Laura Holton for myva360.com

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gpointstudio on Freepik

Morning is a very important part of the day. Some might say it’s more important than the afternoon and the evening. It’s when most of us usually wake up and prepare to go to work or class or plan how we’re going to go about with the rest of our day.

That’s why we get so stressed when our mornings get messed up.

Each of us have had at least one bad morning. The alarm didn’t wake us up, effectively throwing our entire schedule out the window. We forgot we needed to do the laundry yesterday, so we don’t have any clean clothes to wear. We miraculously make it out the door looking halfway decent, only to find out we also forgot to pack ourselves lunch. And the list goes on.

Good thing there’s an effective way to avoid keeping ending up in the same situation. You can create and follow your very own healthy morning routine. As a set of healthy habits that can help start your day right, practicing it practically guarantees you won’t have stressful mornings ever again.

Ready to take control of your mornings? Here are 10 tips that make sure you’ll gain a healthy morning routine.

Prepare the Night Before

Unlike what some might think, great mornings don’t start when you wake up. They start the night before.

Pick out what you’re going to wear and lay them out so you don’t have to spend so much time choosing the next day. Place everything else you need, like your bag and dry cleaning to be dropped off, by the door where you can easily grab them on your way out. Then set the table for breakfast.

Having done all this, your morning will surely go without a hitch.

Always Have a Healthy Breakfast

With so many things you need to do later in the day, you might skip breakfast and grab some coffee at Starbucks just so you have more time to tackle everything on your plate. But it would be so much better if you sat down and had a healthy breakfast instead.

It’s called breakfast because you’re breaking your “fast,” or the length of time you didn’t eat while you were sleeping. If you skip it, your body will be forced to conserve energy. Your metabolism will slow down, leaving you with less energy throughout the day.

You don’t have to whip up a huge meal just to have a healthy breakfast, like the ones you see on TV shows. A bowl of oatmeal sprinkled with some cinnamon, nuts and slices of fruit paired with a cup of tea will do just fine.

Make a List

If you’re worried you might forget any of the things you need to do the next day, just write them down. Listing them lets you just take a look if you need to check, keeping you from forgetting anything important. Make the list the night before and leave it where you won’t miss it in the morning, like on the kitchen table or beside the coffeemaker.

Knowing exactly what you need to do first thing in the morning lets you hit the ground running as soon as you get up.

Wake Up Earlier

You won’t be able to enjoy a peaceful morning if you have to rush. Give yourself time to relax by getting up earlier than usual. You don’t have to wake up before sunrise. Just try setting your alarm 10 minutes earlier. That gives you just enough time to comfortably carry on with your morning routine without having to worry whether you can make it to work or class on time.

Slow Down

Having said it would be better if you started waking up earlier than you usually do, all that time you now have to just chill will be wasted if you still rushed yourself. For example, how fast do you brush your teeth? If you don’t even think about it, pay close attention instead. Carefully brush each tooth. Enjoy the minty freshness in your mouth. Look at yourself intently in the mirror. Doing so lets you be present, making sure you relax.

Give Meditation a Try

It’s not just to eat a healthy breakfast and mindfully brush your teeth that you can allot time for in the morning to have a healthy morning routine. You can also start practicing meditation. An age-old technique that helps calm the mind and improve overall well-being, you can practice it a few minutes after waking up to clear your mind and enjoy a sense of serenity.

Exercise

If you like being active more, you could make exercise part of your morning routine instead. Aside from weight regulation and improved strength and immunity, it boosts your brain’s health by encouraging it to release “feel good” chemicals. The better you feel in the morning, the better your mood will be throughout the day.

Do a Proper Warm-Up

Many injuries sustained during exercise were caused by not warming up properly first, so remember to do so beforehand. Aside from stretching, take a warm shower or bath to really get yourself ready. If you have time, you can also go for a jog or brisk walk. It will boost your endurance, but know that it won’t help build muscle.

Make Your Morning Playlist

You’d be surprised how good listening to music is to well-being. It has a lot of health benefits, including mood elevation, stress reduction and increased workout endurance. Listen to your favorite songs while working out or eating breakfast and scrolling your feeds to brighten up your morning even more.

Make Being Grateful a Habit

They say real happiness lies in finding joy in the little things. They can be anything, like getting texted first thing in the morning by your best friend, sipping a freshly brewed cup of coffee, or digging into a stack of warm pancakes dripping with maple syrup. Taking a moment each morning to think about the things you have that you’re grateful for lets you view your life through a positive lens, ensuring you’ll be in a great mood for the rest of the day.

References

• “Tips for a Healthy Morning Routine,” WebMD
• “Start With a Better Morning Routine,” Everyday Health

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Pavel Danilyuk on Pexels

There’s always some diet claiming to be the best way anyone can lose weight. Just hop on social media and you’re bound to see at least one celebrity, influencer or guru endorsing a new drink, super food or way of eating that will miraculously let you shed pounds easily in no time. We’re not saying none of them works, but there is one way that’s guaranteed to help you get fit without costing a lot of money or drastically changing your lifestyle:

Create and follow your very own morning routine that promotes weight loss.

Not only is it easy, it can even be fun. Just choose the habits that best suit you so that your mornings become just a bit brighter while you watch yourself slim down.

Since we know everyone’s different, here are 10 healthy morning routine habits that have been proven to be effective in losing weight. Follow them all or pick the ones you like to make the best morning routine for weight loss for you.

Get Some Sun

As soon as you wake up, open your curtains or blinds and let the sun in or step outside to soak up some rays. It turns out that sun exposure helps with weight loss.

A study revealed that sunlight helps burn fat. That’s why many people tend to gain weight during the holidays, which fall around winter, when there isn’t much sunlight.

Another study also found that the vitamin D we get from sunlight not only helps with weight loss, but even prevents weight gain.

To enjoy these benefits, expose yourself to sunlight for 10–15 minutes each morning.

Have a High-Protein Breakfast

You need to always have breakfast. Considered the most important meal of the day, it keeps you feeling full until lunch, preventing you from becoming sluggish until then. But if you also want to lose weight, you need to make it high in protein.

Whether it’s eggs, cheese, nuts or Greek yogurt, a high-protein breakfast keeps us feeling full longer. The less cravings we have, the less food we eat. The less we eat, the more weight we lose.

Drink Water

Although it doesn’t have any calories, water can make us feel full. If you drink a glass or two before breakfast, you won’t want to eat a lot, helping you lose weight.

Aside from curbing your appetite, drinking water can also stimulate your metabolism, or the chemical processes in your body that turn the food you eat into energy. The higher or faster it is, the more calories you burn.

Exercise

It goes without saying that practically anyone can lose weight if they exercise. But did you know that it will be more effective in helping you keep your weight down if you do it in the morning?

Exercise helps keep our blood sugar levels steady. If they get too low, we’ll get really hungry. We might eat too much if we’re too hungry, making us gain weight.

The best time in the morning to exercise is before breakfast. Not only will you get more from your workout if you do it on an empty stomach, http://localhost/thrivefull-wp/you’ll burn more calories when you sit down to eat.

Weigh Yourself

Weighing yourself every morning is a great motivator to keep with your morning routine.

If you see you’re losing weight on the scale, you’ll keep going even when it gets hard.

If you aren’t seeing the results you want, it will drive you to try harder or change things up with the habits that might actually work.

You’ll stay focused either way, making sure you achieve what you set out to do.

Practice Mindfulness

When you practice mindfulness, you focus on what you’re doing. It’s surprisingly effective in helping keep a proper weight.

Try it out when you eat breakfast. Turn away from your computer. Put your phone down. Chew each bite slowly. Appreciate all the tastes and smells you experience.

You’ll notice you’ll get full faster. That’s because your meal was more satisfying. The more satisfied you feel, the less you need to eat.

Pack Your Lunch

It’s hard to always eat healthy when you’re at work or in class. It’s easier to just have fast food, especially if you’re on a deadline.

Avoid this by making your own lunch. Doing so lets you choose only healthy food to eat.

Since they’re not as processed as most of the “food” we get at fast-food joints and convenience stores, home-cooked meals won’t have any excess fat, salt and sugar. The less of these unhealthy ingredients we consume, the less we’re at risk of gaining weight.

Keep a Food Diary

Many of us used to keep a diary when we were kids. We’d write in it about memorable things that happened to us or our thoughts on certain things we aren’t exactly comfortable sharing with others.

Now that we’re older, we can start another diary. Not to document our day-to-day, but to keep track of what we eat.

Doing so is great at keeping yourself accountable. If you slip up and eat something you shouldn’t, you’ll see it in your diary, showing you need to eat healthy again the next day.

Change the Way You Commute

Driving might be the easiest way to go somewhere, but it’s not great for your waistline. You’ll just end up sitting most of the day, drastically reducing your physical activity.

When it’s nice out, walk or bike instead. It’s effectively another workout session, lowering your risk of gaining weight even more.

Get Enough Sleep

There are those who are proud whenever they have to stay up all night. It’s like a badge of honor for them, proof that they’re hard workers. But it’s never really worth it.

Lack of sleep is awful for overall health. Its negative effects include increased risk of depression, hypertension, stroke, diabetes and obesity.

To make sure you always get enough shut-eye, schedule when you go to bed and stick to it.

References

• “Morning Habits to Help You Lose Weight” by Brunilda Nazario, MD for NOURISH by WebMD
• “10 Morning Habits That Help You Lose Weight” by Rachael Link, MS, RD for healthline
• Sleep Disorders and Sleep Deprivation: An Unmet Public Health Problem, National Library of Medicine, National Center for Biotechnology Information (NIH)

Image Source

khamkhor from Pixabay

What sets billionaires apart from the rest?

Is it just their immense wealth?

Sure, having such extravagant amounts of cash at their disposal lets them do, have, own and enjoy things most people can only dream of. But it’s not something they always had.

Most billionaires weren’t born rich. It’s something they gained over time through hard work and perseverance (and maybe just a bit of luck).

But we all have the capacity to work hard and persevere. So, what is it that makes them special?

If we were to guess, it’s the things they do at the start of their day that greatly affect everything else on their busy schedules.

In other words, it’s their morning routines that we believe are the secret to their success.

Curious what a billionaire morning routine looks like? Here are the morning routines of 10 of the most famous billionaires, so you can create your very own that can set you up for success.

Elon Musk

Elon Musk is currently the richest man in the world. He has an estimated net worth of over $170 billion. A business magnate, he is the CEO of SpaceX, a company that designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecrafts; Tesla, a manufacturer of electric cars; and Twitter.

Elon is said to work up to 120 hours a week. How does someone who works so much start his day? He wakes up at 7 AM and gets right to business. He spends half an hour reading and responding to important emails while drinking coffee. He says he’s too busy to eat breakfast.

Jeff Bezos

Jeff Bezos is the founder, executive chairman, and former president and CEO of Amazon, the multinational e-commerce company that’s considered the world’s largest online retailer.

As head of Amazon, you’d think Jeff would be so busy he’d hardly have any time to sleep. But, surprisingly enough, he always tries his best to sleep a full 8 hours every night. He reportedly wakes up naturally without an alarm. He likes to hold what he calls “high IQ” meetings in the morning, ideally at 10 AM before lunch.

Mark Zuckerberg

Mark Zuckerberg is known as the co-founder of Facebook and Meta, the social media giant’s parent company of which he is the chairman, CEO and controlling shareholder.

Like most kids hooked on social media, the first thing Mark does when he wakes up is check his phone. He logs into Facebook, Messenger and WhatsApp in bed.

He says he doesn’t like wasting time on “small decisions,” so he basically wears the same outfit—a grey T-shirt, jeans and sneakers—every day.

Bill Gates

Bill Gates is the co-founder of Microsoft, where he was the chairman, CEO, president, chief software architect and the largest individual shareholder. He’s mostly a philanthropist now.

Bill starts his day by doing cardio exercises. He would spend an hour on the treadmill while watching educational DVDs.

Jack Dorsey

Jack Dorsey is known as the co-founder of Twitter. He is now focused on managing his payments company Block, formerly known as Square.

Jack wakes up at 5 AM. He meditates for half an hour, then completes a 7-minute workout 3 times. Once he’s done, he has his morning coffee and checks into work.

Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey is a talk show host, television producer, actress, author and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, which was broadcast across the country and ran from 1986 to 2011. She was the richest African-American of the 20^th century, was once the world’s only black billionaire and was ranked as the most influential woman in the world.

Oprah wakes up at 7 AM, brushes her teeth, and takes her 5 dogs for a walk. While waiting for her espresso to brew, she reads a card from her 365 Gathered Truths box, then reads her daily Bowl of Saki. Afterwards, she meditates and does an hour-long workout.

Sara Blakely

Sara Blakely is a businesswoman, philanthropist and founder of Spanx, a female intimate apparel company. In 2012, she was included in TIME magazine’s “Time 100,” its annual list of the world’s 100 most influential people. In 2014, she was listed as the 93^rd most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.

Unlike most people, Sara doesn’t drink coffee in the morning. She says she’s never had a cup. Instead, she drinks a smoothie made of frozen wild berries, dark cherries, dates, cinnamon, fresh mint, lemon, spinach, cilantro, kale, water, ice, chia seeds and walnuts. She also tries to get a yoga session in at 6:30 AM before taking her kids to school.

Anastasia Soare

Anastasia Soare is a Romanian-American businesswoman. Known as the “Eyebrow Queen,” she is the founder and CEO of Anastasia Beverly Hills (ABH), a cosmetics company best known for their eyebrow products. She has been listed by Forbes as one of the wealthiest self-made women in the US.

Like Mark Zuckerberg, Anastasia checks her phone when she wakes up at 7 AM. Instagram is the first app she checks every morning. She always has 2 cups of black coffee and eats a light breakfast while replying to her emails. Her personal trainer comes to her house most days,who helps her exercise for an hour.

Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett is one of the most successful investors in the world. Dubbed the “Oracle of Omaha,” he is the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, a multinational conglomerate holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. The businesses they partially own include Kraft Heinz, Coca-Cola, American Express, Bank of America and Apple.

Warren usually sleeps a full 8 hours a night. He wakes up at 6:45 AM and starts his day by reading newspapers like The Wall Street Journal and USA Today.

Richard Branson

Richard Branson is a British entrepreneur and business magnate. He co-founded the Virgin Group, a multinational venture capital conglomerate that currently controls over 400 companies in various fields.

Richard exercises every morning without fail. He likes tennis, swimming, paddleboarding and kite surfing.

The Healthy Habits That Make Up These Billionaire Morning Routines

• Waking up early
• Doing an activity that contributes to physical health, be it working out, meditation or yoga
• Improving mental well-being by reading or listening to educational or informative material
• Eating a healthy breakfast
• Tackling the most important tasks right away

References

• “Having a set morning routine can help jump-start your day. Here’s how 9 billionaires start their mornings.” by Katya Kupelian for Business Insider
• “10 Morning Rituals That Are Common to All Billionaires”, Great Performers Academy
• “The 10 Richest People in the World” by Dan Moskowitz for Investopedia

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