Your alarm is ringing, but the only thing which you want is to stay in bed for a little longer. Perhaps you are too tired from working late last night or you are worried how you will do at an important meeting today?
The big question is how to get physical and mental energy boost in the morning and keep it throughout the day. The following nine habits will help you with this.
1. Doing Exercise
Working out in the morning has a variety of great benefits. It gets all cells in your body working optimally and this will help you to keep your energy levels optimal during the whole day.
Besides, exercising helps you to clear your thoughts and to increase your mental focus. The release of stimulating hormones in the brain will allow you to stay alert throughout the morning and the afternoon too.
You get to decide what exercise to do. Cardio workouts from jogging to swimming are a great choice.
2. Setting Goals and Prioritizing
Identify what you need to do during the day and create a clear plan and schedule. Figure out which the most important and urgent tasks are and which ones you can leave for later.
When you have precise goals for the day, this will help you to keep your concentration and be a lot more productive. At the same time, having flexibility is equally important.
If the situation changes, you should be able to get things reorganized so that you can still make the most out of the day.
3. Getting Hydrated
Since you haven’t had anything to drink for the past seven or preferably eight hours, your body is dehydrated when you wake up in the morning. Taking a shower and washing your face will not be sufficient for getting to the right level of hydration.
You need to drink water too. Just don’t do it on an empty stomach or get several glasses one after the other at breakfast. Drink a glass of water while you are at home and keep a bottle with you to sip from on your way to work and throughout the day.
Staying hydrated is essential for the functioning of your whole body including the brain.
4. Meditating for 10 to 20 Minutes
People who are not well familiar with meditation may think that it can actually make you fall asleep once again. The truth is that the exact opposite will happen with your brain.
Meditation is a great way to achieve deep mental awareness early on during the day. You will enjoy smoother transition from sleeping to peak brain activity, which is expected from you when you go to work.
No matter what time of the day it is, you will need a relaxing setting for meditating properly.
5. Having a Healthy Breakfast
What not to include? Avoid taking too much carbs and especially refined sugar found in jams and in most types of bottled juice.
Try to eat raw foods which are rich in lean protein and opt for whole-grain bread or cereal. Oatmeal is always a good choice. Include fresh fruit and veggies. The good old trick with mixing different colors works flawlessly as you will get practically all the vitamins and minerals which your body needs every day.
If you opt for juice, make sure that it is freshly squeezed or at least coming without added sugar. The idea is to enjoy slow and steady release of nutrients instead of a calorie bomb.
6. Spending Time with Your Loved Ones
This is a great way to get filled with positive emotions at the start of the day. You will discover that sitting behind the table and sharing breakfast with the people that you care for will make you feel happier and more relaxed and help you to stay optimistic throughout the day.
This is much better than grabbing a sandwich on your way to work for your digestive system as well as for your brain.
7. Switching from Coffee to Green Tea
Jasmine green tea called Dragon Tears. With bamboo tea strainer.
It is true that coffee is a great stimulant, but it is very powerful and its effect lasts for an ever shorter period of time. That is why coffee drinkers always tend to increase their daily intake.
After the short-lasting effect from your coffee is gone, your energy levels will go down and your productivity will also drop. Green tea, on the other hand, has less caffeine so you won’t experience that sharp drop.
Besides, it is packed with more antioxidants which will help to keep you fresh and alert throughout the whole day. This drink is a great energy booster with long-lasting effect.
8. Listening to Music
When you play your favorite tunes at home and/or while travelling, you will get a great mental boost. Music has been proven to have similar effects to meditation.
It helps you to relax and to get mentally alert at the same time. Besides, it brings positive emotions and possibly memories too. Listening to music is a much better alternative to checking the news (a very common habit) simply because there is nothing negative about it.
You wouldn’t want to read a heart-breaking story right before starting work simply because it’s more than distracting.
9. Making Plans for the Evening
Undoubtedly, one of the best ways to get through a tough day is to think about the great things which you will do in the evening.
That is why it makes sense to draw your plans in the morning. You can select from a huge range of different options from family dinner and a game of Scrabble to a date night with your partner and watching sports with friends. The more diverse activities you pick the better.
When you go to bed happy with your energy practically drained out, you will get a good night’s sleep and wake up fresh and ready for the day ahead the next morning.
All of these tricks for having a highly productive day are easy to follow. You will benefit greatly from turning them into habits. Remember that you are the one responsible for getting yourself into a positive mood and boosting your energy levels.
