6 Key Ingredients for a Successful Morning Routine

Mornings can make or break your day. Revamp your routine—or implement a new one—with 6 key ingredients for a successful morning.

Moms Crushing It with CanCan Quick Steps

I have always been a firm believer that having set routines throughout busy days can help determine how smoothly my life flows.

Having a strong morning routine makes the most positive difference in my family’s day. Here are my six tips for a successful morning:

1. Feel Gratitude
2. Rise and Shine Before the Rest of the Family
3. Establish and Review “Must Do” and “Must Don’t” Lists
4. Get Up and Get Moving
5. Have Easy, Better-For-You Breakfasts Ready to Go
6. Connect in a Happy/Loving Way with Your Children and Partner

For a Good Morning!

Tip 1: Feel Gratitude

Practicing the act of being grateful for all the wonderful and basic things in your life can really change your perspective.

When you start your day by focusing on things that you feel gratitude for—a cozy home, healthy kids, a job that puts food on your table, the support of your own parents, and a loving spouse—you can literally change the tone of your day.

I have a gratitude routine I’ve been practicing for many years.

No matter the items on my gratitude list, it always helps shift my mindset from perhaps a tired, overwhelmed state to a calmer, “can do” attitude–a much better place from which to start my day.

Tip 2: Rise and Shine Before the Rest of the Family

I know we’re not all morning people (myself included!), but if there is one habit that can create massive changes in your daily lifestyle, it’s getting up before the rest of the family does.

You’ll have the peace and quiet of the early morning to just be with your thoughts and to think clearly about the day ahead without the craziness of kids waking up overtired and grumpy. Take advantage of this alone time to fuel your tank for a positive and productive day.

I get up 45 minutes before the rest of my family. I use this time to write the menu plan for the week, make grocery lists, have a hot cup of tea, and visualize what I would like the day ahead to hold for my family.

Don’t miss: 5 Important Ways Routines Will Create Balance in Your Home

Tip 3: Establish and Review “Must Do” and “Must Don’t” Lists

Your quiet time each morning is a wonderful opportunity to work on creating and reviewing the important tasks and “Must Do” items that require your attention.

As a full-time working mom of eight, plus active in our PTOs and church, I honestly couldn’t survive without organized and structured lists.

I review my lists to make sure I’m not forgetting any important tasks, appointments, bills to be paid, or anything else I feel is important.

I also keep track of my goals this way.

Just as important, I also keep a list of things I would like to avoid and review these on a near-daily basis. It only takes me a few minutes to review my “Must Don’ts” list and remind myself that I don’t want to use my valuable time to get caught up in unproductive activities.

Tip 4: Get Up and Get Moving

Exercise is truly one of the best ways to jumpstart your day, so every other day, I get up even earlier to start the day moving.

I never paid much attention to exercising in the morning until I started having kids. Even when I had sleepless newborn nights, I found that if I could get out and take a power walk for even 20 to 30 minutes, I would gather up the energy I didn’t even know I had deep inside of me.

Also, exercising in the morning helps clear your mind and enables you to have a more positive mindset. It’s great for your physical well-being, too.

Now that my kids are older, I take early morning power walks every other day within 20 minutes of waking up. These quiet morning walks through our neighborhood and nearby areas enable me to focus on the tasks I have ahead of me for the day and put an extra “kick” in my step for the rest of the day.

Tip 5: Have Easy, Better-For-You Breakfasts Ready to Go

For years, nutritionists and other healthcare professionals have touted that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

In our large household, breakfast time can be insane as we try to get out the door to school, but there are plenty of healthy and yummy ways to make sure your family gets this important meal in before they board the bus. Here are a few suggestions that we enjoy in our home:

•        Belgian Waffles with fruit. One night a week, I pull out the waffle iron and make a few batches of honey-wheat waffles. Then I freeze them in halves in individual Ziploc sandwich baggies. I also cut up and freeze strawberries and keep bags of frozen blueberries on hand for my kids to sprinkle over them, along with some low-fat frozen Cool Whip. Put the waffles, fruit, and Cool Whip in the fridge the night before. Heat waffles in the oven so everyone can eat at the same time, or put them in the toaster as each kid shows up. Then they choose their toppings.

•        Egg-Sandwiches-to-go. I always keep a package of English muffins in the freezer for our version of the infamous Egg McMuffins. We simply pull them out and throw them in the toaster as we scramble an egg in the microwave. In less than 3 minutes, we have a cooked egg and toasted muffins, and when we throw on a slice of low-fat cheddar, the sandwich is complete. Wrap in a napkin and go!

•        Yogurt and granola parfaits. If you have a tub of French Vanilla yogurt on hand, you can put some in a small bowl and sprinkle ready-made granola on top. Add sliced banana as well. Again, this takes less than a few minutes to prepare and eat.

Tip 6:  Connect in a Happy/Loving Way with your Children and Partner

When we are rushed in the morning, we often race out the door in a bad mood because we don’t have our acts together.

But if you are able to spend your energy getting organized and on top of your game every morning, you’ll have the time to do something very important each day—connect lovingly with your family. If you’re organized and calm in the morning, you can take that time you would waste being flustered or looking for “lost” items and instead sit down and eat with your family or help your child lace his shoes or tuck a love note into your partner’s pocket or whatever else you would like to do.

Change Routines When Needed

Once you develop a solid routine that works for your family, don’t be afraid to revisit how it’s working and tweak things as needed.

As school schedules or career changes take place, or when a new baby is added to the mix, take some time to re-evaluate your routines and freshen them up so they continue to work best for you and your family.

Related: 6 Simple Tips to Create Effective Daily Family Routines

What routines help your mornings run smoother? Share your thoughts and ideas in the comment selection below or email me at thecancanmom@gmail.com. You can also visit me on Instagram at CanCanMomCB or at Pinterest at theCanCanMom.