Many of us don’t realise that how we start our day creates the physical state that carries us through the rest of the day. Most people wake up to an alarm, check their phone, check the news and grab a coffee. Is it any wonder we are suffering so much anxiety? We have barely opened our eyes, and we have already plugged right into the busyness and stress of the day!

Here, I share how we can use our morning routine to programme our body and mind for the day ahead:

In traditional Chinese medicine, the lungs are understood to function at their highest before the sun rises. This means this is the perfect time to meditate and breathe properly. Most of us spend our whole days not breathing properly; we take shallow, tense breaths into the chest and never fill our lungs. Breathing not only charges the body with oxygen but also with “life force” or “qi,” meaning when we spend 5 minutes of conscious breathing, we can channel it through the body, giving us sustained energy for the day and truly waking us up!

Conscious breathing also activates our parasympathetic nervous system, which creates a calm, happy state. The best breath strategy for a busy schedule is “the sigh of relief” – an exaggerated sigh that we would do if frustrated. So, practice 10-15 rounds of deep inhales, with an even larger exhale!

The speed of life is a major factor in our motivation issues. 101 notifications, 1001 things to do. Life gets so busy that if we only leave 45 mins for ourselves later in the day, it’s typically brushed aside, and we neglect ourselves. This is why waking up an hour early is so crucial, it’s the only distraction-free, the time you get. Try this morning routine:

• 5:30 am wake (no phone)
• A glass of lemon and warm water to flush the system (your body spent all night detoxing)
• 5 minutes of conscious, deep, lung breathing followed by 5 minutes of meditation / silence.
• 10-30 minutes of stretching, yoga or exercise
• 10 minutes planning, goal setting for the day
• Now the phone goes back on

Watch how your mood, energy levels and overall state change once you do this a few days in a row. Although challenging to break into this new habit, each day you will notice you can get more grounded and centred, and you begin to enjoy it more and more!