Summary

The article provides seven strategies for developing a productive morning routine to overcome the challenge of getting up and moving, particularly for those who struggle with energy levels in the early hours.

Abstract

The author of the article emphasizes the importance of a morning routine for enhancing productivity, especially for individuals facing chronic health issues or general fatigue. The strategies include setting up a coffee pot the night before, using multiple alarms, visualizing the morning routine before bed, going to bed earlier, establishing a solid routine, exercising early, and eating a healthy breakfast at a consistent time. The author acknowledges the difficulty of adopting these habits but insists that they have significantly improved their own morning productivity and can do the same for others.

Opinions

The author believes that the smell of coffee can be a powerful motivator to wake up.
They stress the importance of multiple alarms not just for waking up but also for maintaining a structured daily schedule.
Visualization of the morning routine is considered a significant psychological tool to reduce the temptation to snooze.
Early bedtime is seen as a foundational element for a successful morning routine.
A solid routine is believed to become automatic after a few weeks, potentially leading to waking up before the alarm.
Regular exercise in the morning is recommended for increased energy levels after an initial adjustment period.
A consistent, healthy breakfast is suggested to complement the exercise routine and contribute to the body's wake-up cycle.
The author admits to being a night owl but has learned to appreciate the productivity of early mornings.
They share a personal anecdote about waking up before the alarm, illustrating the effectiveness of their recommended practices.
The author encourages readers to adopt their tips and references additional reading on similar topics for further motivation and guidance.

It’s Wednesday, Now What?

7 Ways to Get Moving Every Morning

It’s so easy to smash the snooze button over and over when you’re tired in the morning.

Believe me, I get it.

Whether you slept well or not, life can be draining and sometimes it can be pretty difficult to get up and moving.

I know some people that seem to be immune from ever getting tired … but that’s just not me.

Do you know anyone like that?

If I said I wasn’t jealous of them, I’d be lying. It must be nice.

For the rest of us, self improvement is hard work. We have to find a way to drag our carcasses out of bed and attack the day.

I’m by no means a sleep expert but I have discovered some helpful actions in the past three years or so and I’d like to give you some advice.

I’ve been suffering from some chronic health issues, and this has forced me to seriously up my morning routine game.

And believe me … it has not been easy.

With my writer’s life, it’s crucial to get after it early or the whole day seems to vanish in a blink. And that means little to no writing.

No bueno.

Without a solid plan, I’m way more likely to let my body rule my actions, instead of my mind. And that means wasting time sleeping in.

One thing I’ve discovered — no matter what your body is going through — you can find ways to get up and get moving.

Some of the ways I get myself going in the morning

This is not foolproof advice but these actions definitely make it easier for me:

Set the coffee pot the night before. The smell of coffee first thing in the morning will wake even a dead man. And believe me, I’m dead in the morning. If you don’t love coffee … you’re screwed on this one.
Set lots of alarms on your phone. I have 2 alarms set just to wake up and quite a few others for taking meds, time blocks, and a few other items in my daily schedule. I can’t tell you how many times that second alarm has saved me from oversleeping when I turned off my first alarm by accident. I don’t know the number but it’s a lot! Besides waking up, the alarms help me stay on track and get more done every day.
Visualize your morning the night before. OK, so technically this one happens the previous night. But that doesn’t make it any less meaningful. In fact, I’d bet it may be the biggest weapon you can employ in fighting back against the early morning weary-drearies. It has helped me tremendously. When I think ahead to what I intend my next morning to look like, it seriously cuts down on the temptation to hit the snooze button when the opportunity presents itself.
Go to bed a little earlier. All right … busted! You got me. This one happens the night before too. In my health struggles over the past 3 years, I’ve found the night before is the key to starting your days off the right way. As much as I hate it, I have to force myself to go to bed earlier than I’d like to. Way earlier than I’d like to.
Set a solid routine. Within 2 to 3 weeks, your brain will begin to crave it. Time block 30 or 60 minute sections of what you intend to accomplish that day. This is the hardest one to establish because of the multiple week timeframe. However, once you set it in motion your brain will be on autopilot. It might even wake you up raring to go at or before your wake-up time. My brain wakes me up 5 to 10 minutes before my alarm has a chance to go off nearly every morning. And boy is that a better way to wake up — not having to hear that annoying alarm squawking at you first thing in the morning!
Exercise within the first 30 minutes of your morning. This one is similar to the one above. It will take you 2 to 3 weeks to set the routine but once you do, your body will wake you up with more energy than you ever thought you could have that in the early morning.
Eat a healthy breakfast every morning and do it around the same time. This is another huge one for setting your brain to autopilot … and it fits hand-in-hand with your exercise routine.

This morning when my brain woke me up before my alarm went off, I wasn’t ready to get up. I was exhausted. But guess what? It was only a minute or two and I was up and moving. Not because I wanted to get up, but because what I wanted more than sleep was to get stuff done.

Even though I’m a night owl at heart, I’ve taught myself to love the early morning hours.

It’s in those first 2 or 3 hours in the morning that I’m the most productive. I’ve heard that from a lot of writers.

That also helps me feel better if I’m not as efficient later in the day. Not because I’m OK with being inefficient but because I feel good about what I’ve already accomplished.

It’s a matter of perspective.

So even when I wake up extremely groggy on a Wednesday morning just like today … I’m focused on what I need to get done.

And that helps me do more.

Steal my 7 tips to use as your own. I’m confident they’ll make it easier for you to start your day the right way.

After writing my story I ran across this one from Mary Ann Burris. Check out her article “How a Consistent Morning Routine Can Change Your Life.”