Stop being so strict with your routines
I haven’t wanted to go on my morning walks lately. Do you ever struggle with committing to a routine, morning or night?
It’s not that I don’t have the motivation or consistency, it’s just that sometimes I don’t feel like incorporating certain habits that make up those routines. I would stay consistent with a routine for a few weeks and then all of a sudden I would start feeling stuck or no longer aligned with those habits. At first, I would get down on myself because of this and have this internal battle with myself.
For example, when I first moved to my new apartment, I was dedicated to going in the cold plunge every morning and it was great! I loved it and felt so good incorporating that into my morning, but then after a while, I noticed that I was forcing myself to continue with that habit within my AM routine. I would start snoozing my alarm just so I didn’t have to get out of bed and go in the cold plunge or feel the guilt for not wanting to.
I had to take a step back and reflect. Was forcing myself to stick to something going to be helpful?? Why does this continue to happen and is it necessarily a “bad” thing?
What I came to realize was that it’s okay to drop the things that society deems “normal”, like the same morning routine every day. Instead of getting caught up in what your routine specifically looks like, it’s more important to get in touch with certain habits that you know make you feel good through certain seasons of life.
Does this make sense? Let me break it down further for you.
I love going on morning walks. It brings me joy and sets the tone for the day. What I love most about the morning walk is that I get to expose my eyes to natural daylight and allow my skin to get the red light from the sun. When I started to feel like I was forcing myself to go on my morning walk, kinda like the cold plunge, I realized there were a couple of reasons why. For one, the sun is rising much later in the morning, and waiting for the sun to rise to go walk was cutting into the time I usually sit down to get some work done. I also recognized that the weather is much cooler in the mornings, making it harder to get out.
Since I was able to reflect and make those realizations, it was easy for me to allow myself to feel okay with changing them. In this season of life, maybe a morning walk doesn’t fit. I continued to self-reflect on this and came up with something else that would allow me to feel good but still stay consistent with a routine. Like getting outside on my patio with a blanket and my journal to get the morning light and set the tone for my day.
The thing is, it’s not always about a structured routine. It’s about KNOWING yourself and allowing yourself to not only reflect but stay in the present moment. When you build up different habits and your holistic toolbox, it is much easier to incorporate a routine consistently in the morning or night, regardless of how it changes from week to week. Tapping into when you’re feeling in that present moment will help you decide what to pull from that toolbox of habits and how to move forward.
Instead of saying “my morning routine consists of x,y, and z”, it can be much easier to say “between 7-8 am, I’m incorporating 1 to 3 habits that will allow my mind and body to thrive”.
Or it can sound like “every morning I’m going to have warm lemon water and either meditate or do a yoga flow, depending on how I feel”.
It doesn't have to be extravagant and it should feel GOOD and benefit you, not forced and time-consuming.
This approach will not feel so strict and on the days that you’d rather journal instead of walk, you’re not going to guilt yourself or get down on yourself for not sticking to a specific plan.
You may find that you have the same routine for a few weeks and that is great, but when you’re starting to feel unaligned, check in with yourself and take a look at your toolbox.
Habits in my toolbox for AM and PM routines:
gua sha
read
journal
meditate
breathwork
stretch
yoga flow
facial reflexology
dry brush
walk
intention setting
gratitude reflection
epsom salt bath
cold plunge
sauna session