How you start your morning sets the tone for the rest of your day. A good morning tends to lead to a good day, and the opposite is usually true. 

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We all know that we should do certain things in our morning routine, yet we fall into old — and unhealthy — habits. These habits might feel as comfortable as your bed in the morning, but they do more harm than good in the long run. 

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Setting good habits is a must for every aspect of life, but moreso for your morning routine. You truly need to put your best foot forward, and we’ve got you covered.

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Here’s how you can enhance your morning routine. 

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Don’t Be Alarmed 

The morning alarm never peacefully wakes you up from your peaceful slumber. The first thing you should hear shouldn’t be incessant alarm rings. 

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Set up a more peaceful alarm ring (this reader prefers morning chimes for his alarm). Whether it’s a peaceful piano playing or the sound of ocean waves, your alarm ring should gently transition you from sleepy to awake.

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If you prefer loud sirens, more power to you. But there’s another element of the beginning of your morning that’s worth looking into. 

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You Snooze, You Lose

The invention of the snooze button initially seems like a godsend. You’re internally calculating how many times you can hit snooze before you have to get ready. The bed never feels more cozy than in the beginning of the morning. Of course you’d want to enjoy it as long as you can! 

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The unfortunate — but not so secret — truth is your snooze button does more harm than good. Sure, you’re enjoying the last precious minutes of rest and they’ve never felt better. But you’re already awake, delaying the inevitable fact that you should just get up and start getting ready. 

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Avoiding the snooze button will feel like an impossible task at first. You might wonder how those few minutes of snoozing can negatively affect your morning routine. But the science backs it up. 

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Repeatedly hitting the snooze button disrupts REM sleep, according to Reena Mehra, MD, MS, Director of Sleep Disorders Research for Cleveland Clinic. 

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Morning grogginess is an inevitable part of your morning routine, but minimize it with the (lack of) help from your snooze button. The more you resist this snoozy habit, the better your morning routine will become. 

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Check the Time, Not Your Phone 

Habits are a fickle thing. They’re easy to develop but next to impossible to break. But you need to start somewhere, especially when starting your morning. A good night of sleep restores the body and the mind, making you able to take on the day ahead. 

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You likely spend a large portion of your day staring at a screen or monitor, so give yourself a break from that bright little square in your pocket. 

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The key to a good morning routine is to give yourself time to gradually — but effectively — wake up. Checking emails or scrolling through social media instantly stimulates your brain with dopamine, jumpstarting your brain when it actually prefers a slower pace. 

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This may sound right, but putting it into action is a whole other story. As mentioned earlier, we’re beholden to our habits. Our brains know no other way unless we show them another way. 

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In the case of your morning routine, these new habits are to shape you up for the rest of your day. Because your phone plays a pivotal role in your life, it’s best to put some distance between it and you. 

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Put your phone in the opposite end of your bedroom. This will prevent you from reaching out for it first thing in the morning. 

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Using your phone as an alarm? Buy a manual one (hopefully the ringtone is a little forgiving). In this digital age, it helps to start your day from an analog point of view. 

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Fuel and Hydrate

70% of your body is made up of water, so this one is a no-brainer. The prior sections have been all about starting your day well from a mental perspective (the power of not hitting snooze!). Now it’s time to get physical. 

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Just like how checking or not checking your phone sets the tone for the rest of your day, so does what you put in your body. 

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Dehydration is no joke, whether you’re on the track or starting your morning routine. In the case of the latter, start the day (sans snooze button) with a tall, full glass of water. 

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Drinking water is a superb way to jumpstart your morning routine. Some of the benefits of drinking water first thing in the morning include: 

• Prevents kidney stones 
• Protects from colon and bladder infections 
• Improves complexion and skin radiance 
• Promotes growth of healthy hair 
• Reinforces healthy weight loss 
• Strengthens immune system 

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You’d think something with all of these benefits would be some sort of miracle drug or superfood, but it’s from the most basic but important beverage we can have. 

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Start your day with a glass of water and effortlessly start your good and healthy morning routine. 

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Conclusion 

Getting up from bed feels like a chore. But once that alarm clock rings (hopefully to the tune of wind chimes), have a morning routine that properly jumpstarts your day. 

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Some of the most complicated problems have the simplest solutions. It’s simple to put your phone away from your bedside, but it’s not easy. Our phones make it easier than ever to hit the snooze button, but all we need to do is turn the alarm off altogether. 

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Discipline and willpower are the names of the game. When it comes to your morning routine, all you need is those two and a healthy night of sleep. It’s just a matter of doing it. 

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