7 Things You Can Do to Become a Morning Person
Mornings! Ugh! Not one to pop out of bed — bright-eyed and bushy-tailed — before your alarm goes off? Obviously, good mornings start with a good night’s sleep. Beyond that, there’s still plenty you can do to make your mornings just a little better. You’ve got this whole adulting thing.
1. Set your coffee maker.
Even if you don’t have one of those programmable coffee makers that will automatically start brewing at 6:30 (or whatever too-early hour your alarm starts going off), you can at least get it ready to go. Before you go to bed, put the liner in, count out your scoops, and fill the water reservoir. This way, when you get to the kitchen, you just have to hit the “on” button. No strenuous counting (was that four or five scoops?) before you’re properly caffeinated.
Take a second cup of coffee with you:
The One Travel Mug That Actually Works
2. Lay out your clothes and all your work stuff.
Unless you wear a uniform to work, getting dressed can be one of the most time-consuming and complicated parts of any morning. Figure out your outfit the night before. Iron it if it needs it and set it out with everything you need to go with it. While you’re prepping, get your work tote in order too. Pack up any papers, afternoon snacks, gym clothes, keys, and anything else you’ll need.
3. Have your breakfast ready to go.
We’re big fans of doing as much as possible in advance, so that you have less to do in the mornings. If you can have breakfast ready and waiting for you before you even wake up, you’re more likely to actually eat it.
Some Make-Ahead Breakfast Recipes
4. Make your lunch ahead of time.
If you can also have your lunch ready to be grabbed on your way out the door, that will always be a good thing. A little work the night before means your morning will be less hectic and you’ll save money because you won’t have to buy an expensive lunch by your office.
Make-ahead lunch ideas: 20 Ideas for Make-Ahead Lunches That Last the Week
5. Drink some water.
You know how important it is to drink water all day long. And when you think about it, you clearly aren’t drinking water while you’re sleeping. Drinking a glass or two of water when you wake up is a good way to rehydrate your body before you really start your day.
6. Take a minute.
Your day is about to get chaotic. Before all that happens, take a minute for yourself — even if you have to wake up five minutes earlier to make it happen. Whether it’s listening to a podcast while you drink your coffee, meditating, or just staring out the window, you deserve a slice of time for yourself before you start firing off emails, checking social media, and sitting in hour-long meetings that were somehow scheduled during lunchtime.
In related news, don’t start scrolling through your phone while you’re still in bed. Going from slumber to Slack is way too stressful. Wait to check that stuff until you’ve been up and about for a bit.
7. Stretch.
When we started our new series called My Healthy Morning, we not surprisingly noticed a trend: Most of the women we featured had some sort of exercise or stretch in their daily routine. Even if you don’t have time (or the desire) to run or do morning yoga, stretch out, take a deep breath, and get ready to greet the day.
Get inspired: Read as real people share their healthy morning routines.
