It was a freezing Tuesday morning; I have already pressed the snooze button and was getting elbowed by my wife telling me to stop setting the alarm at 5 am, pressing the snooze button until it’s 7.30 am.
I have since changed my habit and now, most mornings I wake up before the alarm clock and get moving. In the past, early winter mornings were tough. It was so much easier to stay in bed than to get up and start exercising.
There were many factors that made me change my habits. Celebrity Mark Wahlberg frequently posts on Social Media about how he wakes up at 2.30 am, starts exercising, prays and by midday most of his tasks are completed. I see posts from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and even with only 4-hour sleep he is pushing the massive dumbbells or sweating on cardio equipment early in the morning.
Yes! What these two people do is impossible to replicate, as we may have shift work, a child feeling unwell, a report that needs submitting and it is on a tight schedule. It is obvious that these celebrities have an entourage to help them get by and lighten the burden so they can focus on their money-making activities, and for this example, their money-making activity is working out.
But it is the consistency and discipline that they had in the first place that brought them success so that they could afford to pay for the staff/entourage.
I am fortunate enough to have a schedule that allows me to complete my daily exercise early in the morning. I have seen the benefits of getting the exercise out of the way and also waking up early in the morning.
I have learned to enjoy the early mornings. It is so quiet; I have a routine that I follow that sets me up for the day. I have modelled these rituals from other peak performers that are producing great results and once I adopted these in my own lifestyle, I have seen tremendous benefits in how my mind works, my body recovers and how effective I am for the rest of the day.
I would like to mention that before you change your morning routine, it is best for you to check with your GP in case it may be counteractive towards what your GP has advised you.
This routine is proof that once you decide and take consistent action, the transformation will occur. So what is the morning routine that has enabled me to change from a snooze button pressing procrastinator to jump up out of bed and ready to face the world?
I have five daily routines that I do (even on weekends). I will mention 3 of the 5, and if you want to know more send me a message and I am more than happy to share what I discovered.
Pray
Once I get up, I say a prayer of gratitude. I give thanks to the great architect of the universe for granting me another day. I give thanks for my wife and kids. I give thanks for the people who are close to me. I give thanks for the lessons I have learned in the past that has shaped me to be the person that I am now. I give thanks for the opportunities that have been given to me and also the future opportunities that lay ahead.
Read
I read something inspirational for 15 minutes. I read the Bible and head towards Proverbs, which has 31 chapters. Depending on the date, that is the chapter I read. I reflect briefly and take notes if something grabs my attention. I chose the book of Proverbs because it contains short passages that won’t put me back to sleep.
Exercise
After reflecting on what I have read, my freshly brewed coffee is ready for consumption, then I make my way to the gym for my workout/meditation session. I normally do my workout while listening to an audiobook or a podcast. I am using the opportunity while I am working out as a time to also learn and spark my metabolism early in the morning.
I will leave you with three tips to jump-start your morning,
I urge you to make the first hour upon waking up to create a momentum that will set the tone for the rest of the day.
People may or may not agree with having a morning routine and I already have experienced over 14,609 mornings in my lifetime. I want to ensure that moving forward each day counts and that I am not burning the time that has been allocated to me on this planet. It takes discipline and consistency; there is no magic trick.
Do let me know how you go and send me a message if you want to know how to control your day.
Until next time, STAY FOCUSED!
Photo credit: Patrick Fore on Unsplash
