Its not often I wake up in a bad mood even after a terrible night sleep filled with little sleep. Sometimes I’m slow off the mark my ‘roar is more a banshee yell’ but given Im usually the only one listening to myself even I find it hard to take so I pretty much get myself out of any bad mood quick smart. Nothing worse than hanging out with someone you don’t like especially when it’s yourself.
I believe how you handle the morning will affect the rest of the day. Don’t get the morning right and it has a flow on a effect to everything else and before you know it your on a down hill run chasing your own arse; all day not which is not fun when it’s as big as mine.
So I actually have a morning ritual that I follow every morning along with getting up at the unearthly hour of 5am. I get up so early so I can have this ritual because it’s important to me. It’s my me time and I do these things every morning without fail. It keeps me in my roaring good mood. I always start with tip number one first and with tip number five some mornings being a struggle. It can turn my really bad mood into something more bearable.
1. Drink some lemon water before anything else. Packed with antioxidants and other health benefits, a glass of water with the juice of half a lemon revitalises the body and mind. It also acts as a natural diuretic which makes me happy. Because the extra five kilos I shouldn’t be carrying is water and this is good right?
2. Listen to some music to move your groove. I listen along with my morning walk or on the wireless in the kitchen. It breaks the silence of the morning. Makes the house less lonely and reminds me That there is a whole world outside. According to a 2011 study published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, certain classical tunes caused folks to get the chills, which in turn led to the release of dopamine, a chemical in the brain that can help you feel jollier. To reap this mood-boosting benefit, download “Clair de Lune,” by Claude Debussy, “New World Symphony—Movement 4,” by Antonin Dvorak, and “First Breath After Coma” by Alexander Keats—they have all been scientifically proven to keep you in good cheer.
3. Do some exercise perhaps not at the ungodly hour I do but do it. Team this with tip two and it’s win win. It not only gets the endorphins flowing but exercising increases your productivity. You will be more awake and ready to tackle your day by giving yourself that extra energy boost. Working out can increase your mental clarity for four to 10 hours post-exercise.
4. Grab some sunlight. It’s not only good for the bones, for your mood but getting the right amount of sun will help you wake up and fall asleep easier. Have breakfast sitting in the sun instead of watching the gloom and doom of the news. Instead sit in the sun soak up the vitamin D and dream of that summer holiday it will get you in the right mood.
5. Turn that negative thought like the one I have so often after no sleep into a positive one.. I sit and reflect on what I have. I tried doing a gratitude journal but it didn’t work for me instead I do it all ‘internally’. Most mornings my grateful mantra is my children snored, kicked and punched all night. I. Grateful for this because it means they are alive, breathing and I’m awake to whinge about it.
Do you have a morning ritual?
xxDeb
{image with thanks to here}
