My morning routine

Hocus Pocus forever!

I love reading about other people’s routines. I think that’s why I enjoy reading blogs so much. It’s fascinating to me to see what other people do in their daily lives. I especially love seeing what people eat in a day! Those are my favorite posts.

There’s a blog called My Morning Routine that posts a weekly interview with entrepreneurs and creatives on their morning schedule; highly recommend if you also love seeing how other people structure their days.

Oddly enough, I don’t really watch reality TV. It doesn’t do it for me. I guess the internet satisfies the voyeur in me.

Anyway! I thought I’d share my morning routine. I’d say this is something I instituted within the past year. I was trying to figure out how to start the day on a less rushed, less stressful note, while getting in some time to do the things I enjoy.

This is the schedule I try to stick to on weekdays, but life happens, and sometimes the time varies.

5:00 AM: Wake up. I wake up at 5 AM every day (well, every work day). I go to bed around 11 PM, so I probably definitely don’t get enough sleep! Once I get up, I feed the cats, get some water, and start making coffee. Coffee is the first thing, always. Depending on how tired I am (usually more tired as the week goes on), I tend to move really slowly.

5:30 AM: At this point, I sit down with my coffee and try to spend some time on the blog, drafting posts.

6:00 AM: Once I’ve done a little writing, I give myself some time to catch up on my favorite blogs–I’m perpetually a month behind. I use Feedly and posts disappear after 30 days, so I’m always trying to catch things before they’re gone. I read too many–but I love them all! I also eat some oatmeal at this point.

6:30 AM: I realize I should start being productive, so I get up and tackle my morning chore. I used to clean on the weekends or after work, but I’ve realized that the less I have to do at the end of the day, the less stressed I feel. I broke up our household chores into specific days–Monday meal plan, Tuesday clean the kitchen, Wednesday dust and vacuum, Thursday clean the bathroom, and Friday change the sheets. This frees up the weekend!

7:00 AM: By this point, I’m ready to work out. I work out at home in our makeshift gym–a small spare bedroom with a floor mat and some hand weights. Sometimes I do my own thing, but I mostly use YouTube videos–there are SO many good ones! (Side note: Should I do a post about my workout routine?) Lately, I’ve been following the schedule on Rebecca Louise Fitness. Her videos are freely available on YouTube, but it cost only $38 for an annual subscription, which gives you a new workout schedule each month. It makes it really easy when you don’t have to think about which workouts to do.

7:45 AM: I’m usually wrapping up my workout by this point (give or take) and ready to shower. I shower, get dressed, and start listening to some podcasts while I finish up the morning.

8:15 AM: Once I’m ready, I make my morning smoothie. I make a green smoothie every day–it feels good to get in some spinach first thing in the morning. Then no matter what else I eat that day, at least I’ve gotten something green in. I also wash any dishes from the morning and tackle any other miscellaneous chores.

8:30 AM: I try to do something inspiring while I drink my smoothie. This is the part I’m still experimenting with. Sometimes I read a motivational article–I love Shine! I was journaling for a little while. Lately, I’ve been using Grid Diary to try and do some level- and goal-setting. I’ve also been getting into tarot, so I might draw and read about a card. I’m trying to sit outside more while I do this so I can soak up a few moments of sunshine before work.

8:45 AM: When I’m done with my smoothie, I make my lunch, grab my things, and hit the road.

On a good day, I’m out the door by 9. Most days, it’s realistically 9:15 or 9:30. On bad days, I’m out the door closer to 10. It just depends.

There you go! That’s my morning routine. Anything you want to know more about? Leave a comment or shoot me an e-mail at moveoutoftheblack@gmail.com.

Tell me: Do you follow a morning routine? What is it?