Tea Time
April 1, 2015 | by Masumi Goldman
The Secret to Developing & Maintaining a Healthy Morning Routine

A couple of days ago, I posted a photo on my Instagram account along with a caption about morning routines. My morning routine is so important to me— it sets the tone for my day. If I wake up late, my routine is destroyed, and I never seem to fully recover from it. Everything just feels off for the remainder of the day. BUT, if I wake up on time and get through my morning tasks, I feel accomplished and ready to take on the world.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about my morning habits. I’m not sure why I’m suddenly so intrigued by my own daily routines as well as the routines of others. Maybe I find it so interesting because we are all creatures of habit, and we do so many of the same tasks over and over. Mug of Tea and Newspapers with Sunglasses on Table

Think about your own daily routine, and you’ll be shocked by how many of the same things you did yesterday. Given that there is so much repetition in our lives, doesn’t it make sense that the tasks that we repeat should bring us joy and health and a sense of accomplishment?

As you assess your own routine, ask yourself if you are happy with your habits. Do they reflect the actions of the person you want to be? If not, don’t worry. You can create new habits, starting with a morning routine that makes you feel proud and healthy. It’s not as difficult as you may think. I’ll teach you the secret to create a long-lasting, healthy morning routine.

Let’s start by taking a look at my own routine. Here is what I did this morning:

1. I opened my eyes at 5:45 am.

2. Brushed my teeth, washed my face, put my hair in a ponytail.

3. Put on exercise clothing.

4. Went to the kitchen and poured myself a glass of room temperature water and squeezed a lemon wedge into it.

5. Turned on a 30-minute exercise DVD at 6 am.

6. Lifted weights at 6:30 am.

7. At 7 am, I poured myself another glass of water and took my pre-breakfast supplements.

8. Packed a lunchbox for my son.

9. At 7:15 am, I went upstairs, woke the kids, and helped pick out my son’s clothes.

10. Headed back down to the kitchen and made pancakes with fruit for the kids.

11. Served the kids breakfast at 7:40 am.

12. While the kids ate, I steamed my kale, heated my vegetable soup, and dissolved my miso paste in a cup of water.

13. Sat down with the kids around 7:50 am to eat my own breakfast.

14. At 8:10 am, I measured all of my daughter’s medications and used the opportunity to take the rest of my supplements.

15. At 8:20 am, I sent my son off to school and told my daughter to bring her homeschooling books down to the dining room to work. As she did that, I went to my bedroom to get changed for the day.

Assessing the list
There are 15 items on today’s list. Guess how many items were on yesterday morning’s list? That’s right. 15. Sure, the kids’ breakfast might be a bit different from day to day, and the exercise DVD may change, but for the most part, I did the exact same things! Who knew I was such a creature of habit?

I found myself wondering why I do all of these things, and how I managed to convince myself to do all of these things each morning. The answer to the “why” portion of the question is quite simple. These tasks keep me feeling healthy, motivated and accomplished. And the answer to the “how” part of the question? Preparation. I cannot stress this enough. Preparation is the secret to creating such habits.

Preparation is the answer.
I cannot wake up in the morning and make pancakes (from scratch) for my kids and then also manage to make my steamed kale and a pot of fresh miso soup, too. It’s just not happening. But with a bit of preparation the night before, it’s possible.

Last night before going to bed, I mixed all of my dry pancake ingredients in one bowl and left it on my counter. I mixed all of my wet ingredients into another bowl and put that bowl into my fridge. This morning, I mixed the two bowls of ingredients together and had pancakes on the table in less than 10 minutes.

Without preparation, brown rice-flaxseed pancakes on a weekday morning would be impossible. WITH preparation, the pancakes are guaranteed. If you prepare the batter ahead of time, you will not fail to produce the pancakes. Do you see the beauty in that statement?

Preparation guarantees action, or at least increases the probability of success. This is why I take the time to make a big pot of vegetable soup on the weekends. I want to increase the probability that I will start my day with vegetables. It’s also why I wash and chop my greens as soon as I get home from the supermarket. I always have piles of kale or collards that are ready to be thrown into the steamer or into the blender for a smoothie.

You may already have a morning routine in place that you love! If so, keep on grooving. If not, start making a list of habits that you’d like to adopt. Keep in mind, your list is your own — you may have 15 items on it like mine, or perhaps seven or eight.  Embrace your list and your routine, and start generating a plan for how you will make this wish list of habits a daily reality. By planning and preparing, you will greatly increase your probability of success. Good luck!

7 Comments
  • Hi Masumi, Im looking for meal plans, advice and suggestions on becoming vegetarian in a house full of red meat/ pasta/bread and potatoes kind of people. Seriously its not even meat if it isnt red and they think Im an alien when I say I NEED veggies and because I dont eat red meat. I dont have a lot of money to spend on specialty items. Any guidelines you can share would be appreciated.

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    • Are you looking to become vegan or vegetarian? If you are open to still eating eggs, they are a delicious, nutritious and inexpensive source of protein that your whole family can enjoy. We have a great frittata recipe that you can try. You can also try the cauliflower mash instead of making mashed potatoes. Basically, I think your plan should be to take baby steps. Rather than trying to overhaul your entire way of life, start out by moving the needle an inch or two. Buy frozen fruit and make smoothies in the morning. Hide a handful of kale in the smoothie—they’ll never even know. Hide lots of vegetables in your spaghetti sauce— carrots, onions, zucchini, summer squash, mushrooms, etc. You will be happy knowing that you’re getting vegetables, and your family will never even know the difference. If you grill a lot during the summer, don’t eat the meat if you are trying to avoid it. Make a veggie patty or grill some veggies and make a balsamic sauce (which we also have a recipe for on the site!). Good luck! You can do it!

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  • Hi Masumi, I finally had a chance to read your blog before bed time :) Your such a good mom. I’m sure your kids really appreciate everything you do for them. I have to agree, preparation is key. Starting Monday, I plan on putting myself on a full 7 day vegetarian diet to get my gears going. I knew that if I didn’t PREPARE, I would set myself up for failure. So I researched a seven day meal plan that I can plan in advance. I typed up a chart and included what I will eat for breakfast, snack1, lunch, snack2, and dinner. On Sunday I will be stocking up on all ingredients necessary. I’m actually pretty excited. I will also be writing my feelings and thoughts throughout the seven days to keep me accountable. I have to thank my yoga practice for rising the truth to the surface. And of course your IG account. I’ve picked up books on macronutrients and other good stuff. I gotta say thank you for that. Without your IG it would have probably taken me a little longer to find out about that topic and making the switch to TRY incorporating a plant based diet. So thank you. Truly. I always make the time to listen to what you have to say because it makes SENSE.

    -Amar from Orlando :)

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    • Thank you so much for your kind words— I’m so happy that my Instagram account is making a difference in your life. And your comment here brought a big smile to my face. I love your enthusiasm! Get right on that wellness path, and stay on it! You will be just fine with a little bit of preparation each night.

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  • I love this! I recently discovered the benefits of morning exercise. I always considered myself not a morning person and indeed it seems that if i go to bed at the right time the night before and if I have all my exercise clothes ready by my bag I can do it. Thanks to you I am trying to add the ritual of a cup of warm water and lemon :) it makes a huge difference on how you feel about your self!

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  • Thank you so much
    helful as always

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