11 Morning Routine Mistakes You Might Be Making

Your mornings can either elevate your days and set you up for success, or they can ruin your day and leave you feeling stuck. And I know what I’d prefer . . . .

There is no point in incorporating infinite healthy habits to create your perfect morning routine if your toxic habits continue to get in the way.

Don’t worry. Here are some bad morning routine habits to avoid. Check to see if you are doing any of these things, and then do yourself a favor and stop.

1. Hitting Snooze

Most sleep experts advise us to resist hitting the snooze button. And there’s a scientific reason for this: your brain sleeps in 90-minute cycles. When you press the snooze button, your brain is signaled to enter another sleep cycle. So, when you wake up 15 minutes after hitting snooze, you are more groggy than if you had gotten up earlier.

Also, when you hit snooze, you automatically start your day with a loss by failing to do the first thing you planned for your day. The sleep cycle app can assist you in going to bed and waking up earlier.

2. Checking Your Phone

We’re all guilty of reaching for our phones first thing in the morning. The simplest way to avoid this is to keep your phone in the opposite corner of your room (or in another room altogether). Your brain needs time to slowly wake up.

When you pick up your phone to check emails, messages, or scroll through social media, your brain immediately enters panic mode. You begin to feel anxious and stressed about all the things you need to do during the day. Not to mention the long hours of scrolling through social media that can waste your entire morning.

Try to avoid using your phone for as long as possible in the morning.

3. Not Making Your Bed

Make a habit of making your bed as soon as you get out of it. Even if you only use your bed to sleep in it, decluttering your space and making your bed in the morning is a good habit.

This is yet another morning victory for you. As you stack these healthy habits on top of one another, your brain begins to release dopamine — the feel-good hormone — into your body. Remember,

The way you do one thing is the way you do everything.

– Martha Beck

4. Skipping Exercising In Morning Routine

A morning workout routine is essential. Whether you go for a run, walk your dog, practice yoga, stretch, or workout; you need to include some form of physical movement in your morning routine. This helps in regulating cortisol — your stress hormone — and makes you feel more energetic.

Working out at any time is great. However, as the day progresses, it is easy to get caught up in work and neglect your evening workouts.

5. Reading Newspapers In Morning Routine

There’s hardly any good news making to the headlines these days, so why ruin your mood? Getting indulged in negative news in the morning can spoil your entire day.

Yes, you should keep up with current world events. But why do you need to start your day knowing all the negative aspects of the world? There’s so much positivity in the world that isn’t widely publicized. Focus on that instead. Replace this with listening to podcasts, reading a book, or making a gratitude list.

Related Category: Positive Mindset And Self Care

6. Not Having A Morning Routine

In order to reap the proper benefits of your mornings, you need to have some sort of a routine. Don’t just get up and head straight out the door. Have at least an hour to yourself.

Work on yourself before you work for someone else. You can exercise, meditate, journal, read, plan your day or just sit in solitude with a cup of tea.

Related Post : How To Create Your Perfect Morning Routine

7. Wake Up At A Consistent Time

When you wake up at different times everyday, you confuse your internal circadian clock – which tells you when to sleep and when to wake up. Many people wake up at the same time every day during the week and sleep in late on weekends; this is also scientifically incorrect because it disrupts our internal clock system.

And there is no such thing as a night owl. According to recent studies, there are no night owls; it’s just the system you’ve developed by staying up late at night for an extended period of time.

8. Drinking Coffee

It’s going to be a tough one for a lot of you. But make it a habit to drink 2 glasses of water after you wake up. Our body looses over 1 pound of water overnight simply through respiration. And drinking coffee only causes dehydration. Avoid having coffee until 11 am.

You can also drink warm water with lemon and sea salt. This flushes the toxins out of our system.

9. Including Hot Shower In Morning Routine

Heat signals your body to relax. And you’re left feeling calm . . . . and sleepy. However, cold showers are beneficial; physically and mentally.

Taking cold showers is difficult. It does, however, have a significant psychological benefit. You have an inner voice telling you that no one will notice if you skip the cold shower. It’s the same voice that says, “You’re not good enough.” Taking cold showers on a daily basis allows you to silence your inner critic.

10. Getting Ready In the Dark

Our body’s internal clock is sensitive to light. Getting ready in the dark keeps your brain in ‘sleep mode’. You will feel groggy and sleepy instead of feeling alert and energized. Soak the morning sun. Or turn on the lights, if it’s dark outside.

11. Complaining

Don’t start your day with a negative mindset. Make gratitude a part of your routine. You don’t want to be the person who wakes up and starts complaining about everything that is wrong with his life.

As soon as you wake up, list three things for which you are grateful. Practice mindfulness, meditation and visualization.

Which Habit Do You Need To Get Rid Of?

Let me know in the comments which habit you need to break? I’m sure you’re guilty of at least two of the habits on the list. Eliminate these habits or replace them with new positive ones to make the most of your mornings.