The older I get, the harder it is to get out of bed. Physically and mentally. I used to struggle with laying in bed with all the things that needed to get done slowly consuming me. Luckily for me, my little one will force me to get up and scream in my ear, “Mommy, it’s not sleepytime anymore,” while pulling back my eyelids. 

My little personal alarm clock. As a mom, trust me when I tell you I make sure to keep up with my self-care. And it all starts with how I start my day.

I want to help share knowledge on how you can start your day, and maintain a healthy mindset. With everything going on in the world, we all could use it, right?

For anyone whos out there like “look, I wanna be more positive. I want to start my day off with a smile. But how?”

Here are 3 ways to start a better morning. 

Now, I don’t know about you but how my morning goes sets the tone for my entire day.
Whether I wake up 5 mins before my alarm and I’m at peace or I wake up 10 mins late and I’m in full rush mode. 

Quick question: how many alarms do you set in the morning and if it’s more than 2 join the club and if not. How?

Number 1. Listen to something positive. You have to fill your mind with positive ideas. Here right off the bat embed in your mind that “Every day is a new day”. Now, this is something I’ve been trying this year so far. Treating every day like it’s a new one. What happened yesterday, was just for yesterday. You’re not stuck there, life is moving forward. I tell people, you know what, I don’t even remember yesterday. (truth)

I like to watch inspirational videos on Instagram. For those who don’t have it, youtube!!

Honestly wholesome videos to get you through your day. I’m not even kidding if you look up all the cute videos, you’ll see 1 million+ views. People are watching. 

Number 2:  Express gratitude, you know what life is tough. But it’s also good.

You woke up today while others didn’t. You’re given two paths in the morning, you can either sink or choose to keep swimming! Choose happiness.

Check out the 5 minute morning shower gratitude exercise!

“For the five minutes I’m in the shower, I think about three things that I’m grateful for. Some mornings, it’s as simple as hot water, a cup of coffee and sleep.” – https://empowereddollar.com/gratitude-exercise/

Number 3: Stretch. Now, how many of you stretch in the morning? You know, when we go to the doctors and they ask us: How often do you exercise? I say, well I walk at my job? Does that count?

That isn’t enough.

I wake up and start stretching out those legs, my arms. Don’t wake up cranky. I hope everyone drinks water in the morning and chooses to stretch. 

I think back to high school, having p.e at 8 am and running that mile. Why did we do it? It was for a reason. And we all forget that. 

According to South Dakota State University, SDSU Extension: Stretching first thing in the morning can relieve any tension or pain from sleeping the night before. It also helps increase your blood flow and prepares your body for the day ahead. Stretching before bed relaxes your muscles and helps prevent you from waking up with more pain.

And I tell you, there are times where id goes my whole day with a crook in my neck from the way I slept. It’ll just bring me down all day. 

Stretching can take up to 3 mins. That three mins can be all the difference.

I hope that I may have got some ideas stirring in your mind, we all might need some new ways to start our days.

“Life’s not a spectator sport. If watchin’ is all you’re gonna do, then you’re gonna watch your life go by without ya.” –Laverne, The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

With love,

Aliyah