Better Than Coffee: Try This Morning Routine For All-Day Energy & Clarity

By Nadya Andreeva
June 4, 2014 5:35 AM EDT

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We are all healers in a way. Each day, we make choices that can support our body in staying healthy and strong. By creating health-boosting habits and daily practices, we can promote a state of being that is beyond just feeling okay. This is how a true responsibility for our own well-being is created.
Each one of us has to choose what habits and practices are the most suitable considering the desired outcomes and current conditions. However, there are some guidelines that work for most people and help to create a happy, healthy life both physically and emotionally.
Here are nine steps that you can do every morning to ensure a positive charge, great energy, and a feeling of calm all day:
1. Set an intention.
While still in bed, set an intention for the day. Clearly visualize the way you want to feel and be during the day ahead of you. Now ask yourself: how can I make it happen? Once you choose 2-3 things that you can do today to bring your intention to life, get up!
2. Scrape your tongue.
Besides routine teeth brushing, it’s a great idea to scrape the tongue daily. Pay attention to the coating on your tongue to see to how well you digested food from the previous day. If the tongue is thickly coated, it might be a sign of an overloaded digestive system that would benefit from a few days of lighter fare.
Place the tongue scraper at the back of the tongue and gently scrape from back to front 7-10 times. Make sure to scrape the entire tongue. Do not use a toothbrush to scrape your tongue as that will have the opposite effect of pushing bacteria and toxins into the tongue.
3. Be grateful.
While you brush your teeth, don’t play with your phone or stress over your to-do list. Instead, mentally check off as many things that you are grateful for as you can find. It is much easier to establish a new habit if you attach it to a daily activity. I found that attaching my gratitude practice to teeth brushing is a really fun and completely transforms the experience.
4. Refresh.
Eyes are a big part of how we take in information from the world around us. Sharpen and refine the senses to bring greater clarity to your perceptions and your experience of life. Wash your eyes with cool water and massage the eyelids by gently rubbing them. Blink your eyes seven times and rotate them in all directions. If you spend a lot of time in front of the computer, spray some rose water on your eyelids.
5. Drink warm water.
Drinking warm water with lime or an herbal tea first thing in the morning is a great practice that gets your digestive system going before you eat any solids. Often warm water will be enough to stimulate peristalsis and encourage a bowel movement. Nothing better than starting your day feeling clean and light!
6. Breathe deeply.
Breath is life. Unfortunately, many of us have forgotten how to breathe properly and instead rely on shallow, fast breathing. Deep abdominal breathing is one of the simplest and most user-friendly relaxation techniques. It helps greatly to quiet a busy mind and calm an overly stimulated nervous system. Simply by practicing deep breathing for a few minutes, you can improve sleep, encourage a calmer emotional state, boost your thinking power and soothe your nervous system.
Focus on slowing down and deepening your breath while you make your smoothie or drink your tea. It's OK to multitask as long as it's done with awareness.
7. Move.
Even five minutes can make a big difference. Do a morning yoga sequence, dance while you make your breakfast, do 20 jumping jacks, walk your dog, but do something to improve circulation, lymph drainage, and get your metabolism going. Doing yoga or getting on the trampoline for 10 minutes are my favorite ways to get this morning movement. Our bodies are meant to move. Don’t make your body sit all day long.
8. Poop.
If warm water was not enough to encourage elimination, some movement and jumping around should do the trick. You can read more about eliminating constipation and why it is crucial to good health here.
9. Fuel.
If you move and eliminate, you will awaken a healthy, natural hunger. Choose unprocessed options with healthy sources of protein, fats, and some carbs. Eggs with avocado and veggies, chia pudding with coconut milk, a great smoothie, or even some leftovers from dinner are much better options than granolas, most cereals, bagels, or fruit parfaits.
This simple self-care routine can be done in just 25 minutes but it will set the mood for the rest of your day. If you show your body that you are committed to supporting it first thing in the morning, it will pay you back with great energy and mood for the rest of the day. Getting up and moving throughout the afternoon and evening will help, too!
Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com

About the Author

Nadya Andreeva

Nadya Andreeva is a certified wellness coach specializing in digestive health, author & modern Ayurveda girl. Professionally trained in mindful eating, yoga, and positive psychology, Nadya helps women create a pleasure and freedom based relationship with food that honors their body's unique chemistry and eliminates bloating and irregularity.
Nadya's book, Happy Belly: A woman's guide to feeling vibrant, light, and balanced is a go-to resource for women to prevent and eliminate bloating and constipation. If you want to reduce bloating, eliminate constipation, balance weight, and have higher energy, download your copy of Happy Belly Meal Plan with recipes, food shopping list, Happy Belly Approved products and brands, and other super useful tools here.
Nadya has been featured in various media including Huffington Post Live, Yoga Journal Russia, Glamour Magazine, Veria Living, and Ted Talks.