Your morning sets the tone for the rest of the day.

It can mean the difference between easing in to your day feeling grounded, energized and motivated or frantic, stressed and panicky.

I have always loved a good morning ritual and can attest to the fact that each season of life can mean different things for your time & energy commitments first thing in the morning.

Using the term ‘ritual’ instead of ‘routine’ helps remind me how important our mornings should be. It’s your first breath & conscious moment in a new day & should be treated as sacred time and space for all of us in some way.

Like any good season, each episode may require a slightly different variation for you. I’d love it if I had 3 hours to devote to doing all of the self care things I see online, but realistically, 15-30 minutes is my maximum (especially on a weekday!)

That’s why I created this easy-to-follow three step Holistic Morning Ritual

Addressing my mental, physical, and spiritual needs first thing in the morning helps me feel more wholly grounded than just picking one.

As busy, goal-driven humans, we are constantly emptying our cups emotionally, mentally and physically. That’s why I think it’s important to start our days off right, as the best and most grounded versions of ourselves.

Using the suggestions below, you have the freedom and flexibility to adjust your ritual for whatever you have space for or what aligns with you the best.

The Body / Physical

After sleeping our 7-9 hours (because we’re on top of it in this hypothetical world ;)), our physical bodies need a little warming up to get going for the day.

My favourite way is through movement of some kind but you can choose any of my suggestions below or think of your own.

Holistic Hot Tips

• I use Oak (iOS app) for guided breath work you can follow along with.
• Set a timer for however long you want to incorporate movement for so you don’t have to check your phone.
• Set out a glass of water before bed to keep things efficient.
• If exercise is in your cards, set your clothes & shoes out the night before to make it easier for yourself.
• Yoga with Adriene on Youtube is my favorite for morning yoga routines.

The Mind / Mental

If you’re someone who struggles with anxiety throughout your day or feel like life is happening to you, then the mental component of this morning ritual will be a game changer.

We are in our most vulnerable and most persuadable mental states first thing in the morning so it’s the best time to begin creating subtle shifts in your thought process.

Holistic Hot Tips

• Even if you choose not to go the full hour without your phone, I am a huge believer in keeping electronics out of your sleeping area as much as possible.
• A brain dump is where you pick a certain # of pages (i.e. 1 page) and just write whatever comes to mind. It can be worries, dreams, goals for the day or anything you want!
• I believe in the power of gratitude for keeping things in perspective when you’re in a particularly challenging season of life.
• My favourite podcasts for a motivational morning are the Brendon Show by Brendon Burchard and The School of Greatness by Lewis Howes

The Soul / Spiritual

Spirituality and soul food is the most underrated part of morning rituals. This part gives me the biggest sense of grounding, connection and purpose.

Even if you’re not a “spiritual” person, this part of your ritual can be the opportunity to tell someone you love them, send good vibes into the planet, or just do something that makes you happy.

Holistic Hot Tip

• My favorite morning playlist on Spotify is this Coffee + Chill one.
• I love spending time outside in the morning whenever I can. Natural sunlight helps set your circadian rhythm too.
• Doing my hair and makeup in the morning when I didn’t have a job made all the difference for my confidence & attitude going into the day with my literal best face forward.
• When things get really busy, the mornings may end up being your only uninterrupted time where you can pay attention to what matters to you the most (friends & family!) send the text and say I love you as often as you can!

Sticking to it

It can be a struggle to add something new to an already busy life. I’ll be the first to admit my morning routine falls apart if I’m not intentional about it and I know how good I feel when I do it! I’m just human, I guess.

Of course, if you have the blessing of going through a longer morning routine, pick more than one from each category that resonate with you and c r u s h it!

If you’re someone that makes decisions based on how you feel…

• Approaching your ritual with flexibility is key to longterm success.
• Write out 1-2 of your favorites from each category and stick the paper somewhere you’ll see. Pick based on waht you’re feeling like on any given day.

If you’re someone that doesn’t have time…

• Set a timer for each task and tailor it to how much time you can commit to each.
• It’s so worth waking up 15-20 mins early for a ritual! You are so important and time spent on yourself is never wasted time.

If you’re someone that does good for a week then misses a couple days then never does it again…

• Get rid of the “start tomorrow” mindset. Start right now! Even if you wake up late, even if you miss a day. The very next moment is your chance to go for it again – there’s no waiting until tomorrow.
• Accept that some days you won’t “feel like it” and give yourself 3 minutes to do whatever you can. You can’t tell me you don’t have 3 minutes?!

Hope you love this as much as I do!

Let’s commit to 10 days of a holistic morning ritual & see what kind of magic you can make in your life. How will your morning ritual trickle into other parts of your day?

Don’t forget to tag me @HolisticDPT on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter and let me know how you’re putting your morning ritual together!

Holistic DPT