Your mentality for the day is set the way you start it.
Whilst I may be a firm believer in the lazy Sunday morning, I do love the ritual of a motivating and wellness-centred a.m. routine to get you through the work week.
There's no right or wrong way to do it, it's simply what works for you. Try something new. See what sticks. Let your morning routine change as it needs to. Your mind and body will love you for it.
To help you find your own morning rituals, you can find a peak into my workday morning routine below...
MY MORNING ROUTINE
6:14 a.m. - RISE & SHINE
Yes, you read that right - it does say 6:14 (not 6:15 or 6:30 like most normal people). I'm not sure when it became the trend to round up wakeup times to the nearest 5 or 10, so naturally, I like to set my alarm ending in my favourite numbers only; a 7, 11, or 14... Scorpios, am I right?
6:17 a.m. - YOU SNOOZE YOU LOSE
It's true! I never press snooze because the moment you let your body think it can go back to sleep, it releases all your sleep-inducing hormones and neurotransmitters again, meaning you feel even more tired when you really do have to get up. Instead, I always set another alarm 3 minutes later so that I really do just get up! In those 3 minutes I usually do a little stretching in bed just to wake my mind up.
6:20 a.m. - MAKE THAT BED
The first thing I do once I'm up out of bed is make it! That way I really can't jump back in it, plus, it makes my room feel clean and beautiful for the day ahead - something my tendency for mind clutter needs desperately. I also play some music gently over my speaker at this time, nothing makes you feel like more of a go-getter ready for the day than a good playlist. My favourite artist right now is Qveen Herby, her song SADE IN THE 90s just gets me in the girl boss MOOD.
6:25 a.m. - A SPLASH OF ACV... & COLD WATER
Once my room is tidy I put the kettle on to boil some water. I head to the bathroom to splash my face with cold water - rubbing my eyes well - whilst this heats up. I then pour some hot water into a cup with a dash of apple cider vinegar (ACV) and some cold water. This gives my gut a mini dose of probiotics to start the day, and the ACV really gets your digestion going!
6:30 a.m. - 5 MINUTES OF YOGA & SOME UPSIDE DOWN TIME
Whilst I sip on my ACV water I do my 5 minute morning flow. In the summer I do this outside as the sun helps boost your energy for the day and reduce your sleep hormone, melatonin. But seeing as its too cold and dark outside right now to do that - my bedroom floor it is! Yoga With Bird on youtube does my favourite 5 minute flows, I just pop one of these on every morning and always end with my own headstand sequence. It's a calming way to get my thoughts settled for the day, whilst energising my body at the same time.
6:35 a.m. - BEAUTY ROUTINE
ICE ICE BABY - I rub a cube of ice under my eyes and around my face - it reduces any puffiness and really wakes those tired eyes up.
TONER - next step is to apply my acv and witch hazel toner - it helps close your pores to make your makeup sit nicer, plus it cleans any excess dirt off.
SERUM - a couple of drop of my Niacinamide & Zinc serum from The Ordinary applied over my whole face.
FACIAL OIL - avoiding my t-zone, I rub my beautiful facial oil from WILD between my fingers to warm it up and then apply to my face. It has bergamont, lemon, spearmint, rosemary and other delicious ingredients that I'm sure would make the fragrance of 'relaxation' if it had one.
PRIMER & MAKEUP - I keep things fairly simple here; primer, a little dab of SPF foundation with my beauty blender, a mineral-based powder, curled eyelashes, brushed eye brows, light highlighter at the top of my cheek bones, and lip balm. Voila!
HAIR CARE - I keep things simple with a neat low bun almost every day, clipped back with my favourite hair clip.
6:45 a.m. - OUTFIT OF THE DAY
I love getting dressed up to head into the city for work or uni, picking my outfit gets me inspired and excited for the day ahead. I don't usually plan it the night before, as I like to see what mood i'm in when I wake up!
6:50 a.m. - COFFEE TIME
Ahhh, my life elixir. This really is my favourite time of the day. It's always important to have some food before your coffee otherwise it spikes your cortisol (which also increases your blood glucose levels). To avoid an energy crash later in the day, you should have some healthy fats or fibre before your caffeine hit. I usually opt for a small handful of cashews or a banana, otherwise, I blend some nut butter into my coffee! (It's my little life hack). Peanut butter lattés are honestly my ride or die - they just taste so DELICIOUS. You can find my *life changing* recipe for it here.
Other coffee additions I love are collagen (from SWIISH) for my skin health and mushroom powder (from SUPERFEAST) for my immune function.
7:00 a.m. - ESSENTIALS & OUT THE DOOR
I apply some essential oils to my wrist and neck, drop some energising flower essences under my tongue, grab my breakfast and coffee, and am off to the city! I walk to the station so comfy shoes are a necessity.
That's it! To round-up the main pointers of my morning routine, i've added a little checklist below...
BY LANI MORNING ROUTINE CHECKLIST
