Three routines you need to adopt for a successful 2024

First off, I want you to STOP using the word H-A-B-I-T! A habit has a negative connotation. To me, a habit is something like picking your nose, biting your fingernails, or farting in public ????. Developing a purposeful routine is what will change the success rate of 2024 for you. By reframing your actions to ‘routine’, it overlays a positive filter. That is, a routine is something you consciously do and has purpose.

My mornings and my evenings have SIX actions that I perform to ensure my energy remains high, my intentions for the day are clear and my body is given what it needs to perform (activity or rest/sleep). However, many have no purposeful routine and instead adopt the following habits:

• Rushing in the morning to get ready, causing elevated stress levels.
• Eating food that is convenient not nourishing (breakfast or dinner).
• Checking e-mails and social media first thing in the morning.
• Watching the news as soon as they wake.
• Working on a laptop or screen late into the night.

We expect a lot from our brains and bodies each day. To meet those expectations long term (play the long game), we need to invest in a set of purposeful and rewarding routines.

Here are my THREE ROUTINES you should adopt in 2024!

1. Get outside for 5 – 10 minutes every morning, 15 – 20 minutes on an overcast day: Use this time to exercise, stretch, walk, eat breakfast if not fasting. Note….do NOT stare directly at the sun, simply view the world around you and let the sunlight hit your face and skin. This sets our circadian clock. It let’s our body know that sleep has ended, stop producing melatonin and use cortisol to fuel the tasks of the morning and day. Great for exercise. It also helps with preparing for sleep later that evening. Lastly, a morning spike in cortisol will positively influence your immune system, metabolism, and focus.
2. Drink a large glass of cold water upon waking: We are dehydrated when we wake and need to rehydrate before consuming food, exercising and especially before drinking coffee. Many wake up feeling a little dizzy or even with a mild headache if not enough water was consumed the day before. Now…..cold water is not as hydrating as room temperature water, but, I drink a very cold glass of water because the body needs to ‘fire up’ and use energy to heat the water for absorption. This in turn is a great way to reduce body fat over time, as the body taps into fat stores to execute this process.
3. Spend time with your family: Life goes by fast, and whether it’s morning or evening, we all seem to be in such a rush. By simply waking 30 minutes earlier to slow the morning madness or trying to eat dinner as a family at the dining table with no tv, we allow ourselves time to connect, share stories, play and importantly laugh. Life can be cut short and we cannot get time with our loved ones back. Spending positive fun time with our loved ones can aid in the production of dopamine, oxytocin and endorphins.

Our routines drive how we act, how we think and how we perform. QUESTION) What routines will you adopt in 2024? If you want to learn more about how I implement and track routines with my clients, simply send me a message.