5 Healthy Habits to Supercharge Your Morning Routine

A good morning routine can make or break your day. These are my five non-negotiables to make sure my body is primed and ready to stay calm and collected for the day ahead.

1. Stretch Start your day with gentle movement for more energy, improved circulation and lymphatic function. Stretching first thing can help to relieve any pain/tension from the night before and prepare you for the day ahead.
   

2. Clean Your Teeth Throughout the night a build up of toxins occurs in the mouth (hello morning breath!) so it's important to clean your teeth BEFORE breakfast - this prevents you from ingesting the bacteria all over again. - Brush first with a natural, fluoride-free toothpaste. - Scrape your tongue with a metal tongue scraper, Tongue scraping is an Ayurvedic technique where a metal scraper is pulled over the surface of the tongue to remove the soft plaque from the tongues surface, helping to keep your mouth clean and your breath fresh - it also stimulates your metabolism which is why it's great to do in the morning before breaky! - BONUS POINTS for Oil Pulling, another Ayurvedic technique that strengthens the immune system by killing off toxic yeast that travels from your stomach to your mouth while you sleep. Simply swish a tablespoon of coconut or sesame oil around in your mouth, pulling it through your teeth for around 10-20 minutes before spitting into the bin and rinsing with water.
   

3. Drink Pour yourself a big glass of room temp, filtered water (about 500ml). You can add lemon/ACV if you like, but I find both too harsh on an empty stomach and prefer to drink it plain. Sip on your water slowly, no guzzling! Drinking water on an empty stomach helps to flush toxins from the body and can increase your metabolic rate. It also just sets you up for the day, putting you in a good routine so you're more likely to stay hydrated.
   

4. Sunshine & Movement Get outside and soak up some morning sunshine. I like to (read: my dog likes to, so I have no choice but to) leave the house while it's still dark so I can watch the sunrise while I'm walking and just enjoy the energy of the early morning - you'll know what I mean if you're a fellow early-riser, there's nothing like it. If you're partial to a sleep in, try to head out for the sunrise just a few days a week, it really is the best way to start the day!
   

5. Eat When you get home from your walk/exercise, EAT!! I spent so many years 'intermittent fasting' where I would wait until 11am to eat my first meal of the day, and to be honest, I got used to eating late so I was no longer hungry in the mornings.Sounds great, right? Wrong! Starting my day with a black coffee on an empty stomach (CRAZINESS, look out for more on this in next months newsletter) and then not eating for another 5 hours was wreaking havoc on my hormones and damaging my adrenals. Any studies that have been done on the 'benefits' of intermittent fasting have all been done on MEN (to my knowledge) and sure, fasting does have incredible benefits, but it's not something that should be done everyday for the rest of your life. Women need to eat, regularly and well! I now start my day with a well balanced breaky - some of my favourites are: oats soaked overnight and then cooked gently in whole milk with berries, GF sourdough with liver pate and raw cheese, or with runny eggs and sauerkraut, or a smoothie with whole milk, banana, and a cheeky raw egg yolk - YUM!

If you're finding that every morning is a rush and getting to work on time is super stressful, try creating and sticking to your own morning routine. Arriving to work (or starting work if you WFM) calm and on time is a great feeling and supports you in having a productive and satisfying day.