Training The Morning Bird!

Anyone who knows me, like really knows me, will know I am not a morning person.

But I want to be a morning person… because when I have morning person days – they tend to be my better days. So I’m currently retraining myself to be a better morning me! And here’s a couple of little things I am doing to help:

5,4,3,2,1 – I’ve turned the snooze button permanently OFF. The alarm goes, I 5,4,3,2,1 myself into a seated position, grumble as I blind myself with the side lamp and take a swig of water. That’s it – I’m up.

15 minutes of me myself and gratitude – instead of picking up my phone first thing I make myself a coffee and write down 3 things I am grateful for – these can be anything from grateful I didn’t wake up for a birds nest as a barnet this morning (it’s so rare I tell you) to a new career opportunity to someone in my life. Anything. Reflecting on what you have instead of what you don’t have is a sure way to fire start your day with a happier mindset.

Drinking 500ml of water…. Prior to the gym, it’s irritating because I need to take a few pee breaks but essential as when you’re sleeping the body gets dehydrated, so if going to train, especially weight train you’ve got to replenish some of those fluids before you do so. Dehydration can cause muscle fatigue and loss in co-ordination. Neither of which you want before hitting the weight bench.

The Gym – I mentioned before that my gym time was lacking due to my crazy hours between the office, commute and evening fitness coaching. So, I moved it to the mornings – this is why I am retraining myself to be a better morning person. On the days I would hit snooze, I’d fall back into a 90-minute sleep pattern only to be woken up again by the snooze alarm, to then feel groggy A F because I’ve interrupted the sleeping pattern, I miss the gym, I drag myself out of the house, get stuck in traffic, get to work full of anxiety and groggy grumbles. On the days I do this routine, get my butt out of bed, get into the gym and workout I feel awake, sharp, I’m more organised, I get to work early, and I start my day off on a win – plus I know before the days even really started, I’ve hit one of my goals which is to get 5 workouts in per week!

Plus, it’s extra me time. I choose to train alone 90% of the time, if I’m using my phone I’m recording the workout or looking up an idea I saw for a new exercise to try -  unless it’s important no one get’s replies when I’m training – it’s zone out time, to work on me.

Nutritional Nom Noms – I can’t start a good day of eating with a heavy breakfast, so unless I am really really tired I will choose to train fasted. After my training I’ll have a protein shake and if it was a heavy lifting session some fruit like a banana or some berries then when I arrive at the office its nom nom time, the best foods I have found to keep me on track in the morning is a light breakfast of eggs with salmon and seeds, or an egg scrambler with veggies and spinach. Getting my fats in early paired with the protein seems to keep me fuller for longer allowing me to hold off lunch until a little later.

Motivational speeches, huge fan of fearless motivation, when I need a little boost of energy and focus

 - Playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1FhamVtJlNqaekPnwxQpbk - Yo Welcome.

Finally, letting go of yesterday. I’ve left this til last but it really should be up there with counting your gratitude’s. What’s done is done. Honestly, if you go into your day thinking about the cr*p you had to deal with yesterday, or last week you are doing yourself an injustice by not giving today a chance. Today you could meet the man of your dreams, today you could win the lottery, today you could sell your new fitness program, or bag a new client!

Sure, there’s a chance today a bunch of sh*t cr*p you don’t want to deal with could land on your lap, but we’ll worry about that when it happens. Go into your day with the best intentions and the best hopes of a better day, and I guarantee you that you’ll have a 100% better chance that it will – purely because you’re going into the day with an attitude that’s positive and better equipped to deal with any situation that arises throughout.

So, if you’re not a morning bird, don’t worry because I’m not either, but you are welcome to join me on this journey of becoming one and I hope these tips help you a little along the way!

-          Blonde xox