In the post, Leo Babauta talks about a new, simplified morning routine he has set that makes him happy. He spends the hours after waking only doing things that make him happy, like sitting and reading. I've been thinking about changing my routine for a few weeks now, and this is the perfect trigger.
Current week day routine
(for 8-4 work hours, which are usually 8am-4.30pm), goes like this;
Wake at 5.50am
Watch the news
Shower, make up and hair 6.20-6.45am
Breakfast 6.45-7.10am
Brush my teeth
Choose an outfit
Get dressed, pack bag
Leave home at 7.30am
Get home around 5pm
Have a bite of something for energy
Get changed
Work out for 50 minutes
Shower
Start to cook dinner around 6.30pm
Eat 7-7.30pm
Potter around remainder of evening until 10pm when I slip into bed to either sleep or read for 30-60mins.
This is not a routine I am happy with.
Firstly, every part of my body except the part that wants to go back to sleep hates television as soon as I wake up, which is where I get my news from. Electronics at that time of the morning, (or this time of the night, but I'm on a roll), do not appeal to me at all. It doesn't feel natural.
Secondly, apart from 30 seconds of stretching, I get no movement into my morning. One of my favourite things, and something I do every weekend, is to get moving before breakfast. I would love to be able to walk or do pilates before work.
Another thing is the breakfast slot. I am not a fan of breakfast because it's breakfast time. I like to eat when I am very hungry, which I never am at 7am. At the moment, this breakfast time is purely a convenience thing as I answer all incoming calls at work, making it difficult to eat at the same time. It would make it especially difficult to consciously eat, which I am also big on.
Lastly, I hate decisions about boring things, (like what to wear), at that time of morning.
So what can I do? This is my idea.
Wake at 5.45am - a new alarm time.
I will stay in bed for 10 minutes, until 5.55am.
Get changed.
At 6am, I will do 30 mins of Pilates.
Shower, hair and make up from 6.30-7am
7am will be breakfast, but a lighter version, such as some fruit and herbal tea.
Brush teeth, get changed, and leave for work.
5pm arrive home.
Choose my outfit & pack my bag for the next day.
Go for a walk if I desire, but generally have the entire evening to cook, relax, do as I wish.
Sleep at 9.30pm to make up for the earlier wake time and get more sleep, which I think my body needs.
M suggested I try out a new routine for the 3 day week next week, (Melbourne Cup), and see how it goes. I am going to do this.
For now, it's 10.22pm and I need some sleep. This is not a part of any routine.
What do you think?
Do you have a similar routine to this, or is yours entirely different?
Does anyone out there have a routine that would be described as crazy by others?
Nat x
Nat x
(photo from flickr)
Posts
Do you eat late at night? I find if I stop eating at about 8/9pm, I'm quite starved in the morning for breakfast.
ReplyDeleteI have my last mouthful around 7.30pm. I like eating earlier but I never have the time - hopefully this new routine will change that.
ReplyDeleteThough admittedly, I have been munching later lately.
What time do you have breakfast?
Lovely post Nat!
ReplyDeleteMy daily routine recently has been: wake up, go for a swim, shower, hair & makeup, breakfast, study, lunch, study, write/blog, dinner, relax. Or something like that!
A daily regime gives me a lot more focus and vigor. What a coincidence - I just wrote a post about routines myself: http://bit.ly/daa4pU, which closely relates to what you have said :) Great minds!
Laura xx
Good luck with your new routine! It's fascinating the way we all do things differently, isn't it? "Getting dressed" would be the first thing on my list after a shower - for some reason, I feel weird doing things if I'm not dressed properly.
ReplyDeleteI'm very taken by the idea of starting the day by doing things I like. That's something I should work into my own routine, so thank-you for introducing me to the concept. :)
I hate the forced eating in the morning. I am lucky enough to be able to eat at my desk so I most mornings I start with a banana then have something like porridge, muesli or a wholemeal roll with vegemite or peanut butter.
ReplyDeleteI'm also not a fan of getting up early, usually because I have trouble getting to sleep early no matter what time I go to bed, so getting up at 8 is a struggle!
I forgot to add, on the mornings I do manage to get up early for spin/pilates class, I feel soooo much better for the day! it also means I can go home after work and relax, and it not be 9pm by the time I get dinner like tonight, I really dislike eating so late.
ReplyDeleteYou really have me thinking about my morning routine which I'm quite dissatisfied with. Love your dedication getting up so early, I just couldn't manage. I feel like once I'm up all I can do is rush to eat (I'm always starving) then get dressed and go. Good luck with the new routine.
ReplyDeleteHeilà!!
ReplyDeletethis idea of starting the day doing nice things is lovely, I am sure it can bring the day!
I do 20 min of treadmill and feel great all day.
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Ylenia
This is a lovely post. I think the book A Perfect Day Plan by Jost Sauer would really strike a chord with you. It's all about adjusting our schedules to work with our energy at different times of the day :)
ReplyDeleteI loved reading all your feed back guys, thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI'm interested to know if any of you are inspired to change your routines?