I struggle with self care all the time. I just don't make the time to really focus on myself when I have four other children to care for- one of which has extra needs.

My friend JayDee who blogs over at Mom Blog Life has shared with us some of the best tips to help incorporate self care into our morning routines. I hope it helps you as much as it has helped me.

6 Self-Care Tips that You Should Add to Your Morning Routine

You know self-care is important for bringing your best foot forward each day, especially as a mama! Yet, how often do we get caught up in our daily routine and suddenly there is no time for those precious self-care moments? I’m totally guilty!   

This is exactly why I love to share my life changing morning routine that I started when I was pregnant with my first daughter. It helps me start my day with intention that helps me feel more balanced throughout my day, no matter what it might throw at me. 

Why the morning?

Telling someone they should start (or even improve) their morning routine is often met with a very large eye roll. I’ll admit, I initially felt very resistant to the idea of a morning routine as a self-proclaimed night owl that loved to sleep in. My husband had read an inspiring book and was insistent that we give it a try to improve our lives. And I’m so glad we did!

So let me give you a few reasons why mornings are the absolute BEST time to start building in the 6 self-care tips we are going to cover today. 

• Avoid waking up scrambling and rushing out the door each day (sound familiar?)

• Start your day with intention so that you feel significantly more organized and motivated

• Reduce your stress levels and boost an overall sense of well-being

• Consistently get the “me” time you truly need to thrive in your life 

• And on and on… the benefits are endless really 

6 Self-Care Tips

Don’t feel like you need to incorporate all six of these tips into your morning at first or feel like you need to start waking up an hour earlier. In fact, the best way to be successful is to start slow. Although, there are some great tricks out there for waking up earlier without feeling exhausted. 

Pick one self-care practice that resonates with you and start doing it for five or ten minutes in the morning before your normal routine. Then, build in other practices or increase the time as you feel comfortable and make it a habit.  After a while, you’ll find you crave this precious time each morning! 

This is your routine mama, so pick what works for you!

1. Quiet time

The first thing I like to do in the morning before I even get out of bed is to sit up and spend some time in quiet thought. This will look different for everyone and can include prayer, meditation, visualization or just quietly reviewing your day (or even past days) before getting up. Starting the morning slowly in quiet thought can really boost your mood and get you in the right mindset for the day. When I have time, I personally love putting on a guided meditation video from youtube or quietly repeating a mantra like “peace, love, and joy surround me everyday.” It helps me feel at ease and ready to go!

2. Learn something new

It’s so great for the mind to learn something new every single day, no matter how big or small it is. This might include grabbing a non-fiction book you’re interested in, reading a few magazine articles, pulling up your favorite blog, or listening to a podcast. I always have a book on my nightstand that I try to read at least one page of everyday.  Sometimes it’s more, but I find it’s a realistic goal for me. This is a great way to avoid feelings of “being in a rut” as a mom, which is super important since we often find ourselves in the same routine everyday! 

3. Get your blood moving

Hopefully you have some kind of exercise routine in place for your week. However, if you feel so busy and like you don’t have time, sneaking a few minutes in the morning is a great place to start.  And even if you do exercise later in the day, spending a few minutes moving in the morning is great for boosting your metabolism, getting blood to your brain, and just feeling good. Make a goal of doing something small (or big if you’re up for it!) like a 5-10 minute workout video, doing 50 jumping jacks or pushups, a start stretching routine. There’s no wrong way to do this as long as it feels good and you enjoy it. 

4. Keep track of your thoughts

This is arguably my most favorite self-care practice that I do through journaling. There are a lot of ways to journal and there is no right or wrong way. You can free write whatever pops into your head to help process your days and emotions or sit down to write on a specific topic that is occupying your mind. Also, you can keep a gratitude journal (my fav). Each morning, I write down 3-5 things I am thankful for from the day before. I love this practice because it immediately puts me in a positive and abundant mindset. Whatever you decide to write down, it can be as small or big as you want. I found with time that I am much more aware of all the little things in life that I can be thankful for.  

5. Encourage positive self-talk

Many of us are guilty of telling ourselves negative stories all day long. Does this sound familiar?  “I don’t have time, I’m not good enough, I should be better….”  This type of inner self talk limits our ability to thrive in our lives. So give yourself some grace and start trying to change some of those inner stories!  The first step is recognizing them. Then, one great way to change your thought patterns is to start practicing daily affirmations.  Write down two or three positive beliefs that you can repeatedly tell yourself each morning.  Don’t forget to believe them and you will notice a change in your demeanor with time! 

6. Time block your schedule 

You may not think of this as a self-care practice, but man is it ever! As moms, it seems we never have enough time. To-do lists that can range from “wash breakfast things” to “find a chiropractor near me” often feel like they are piling up.

It can leave you feeling constantly stressed and like you’re always “behind.” That’s not a great feeling to carry around all the time. One of the best ways to conquer this is with time blocking.  You simply plan and put directly into your schedule what times you will be focusing on what. This helps you stay focused on one task instead of constantly feeling overwhelmed and wondering what you should do next.  When it’s time for work, cooking, play time, cleaning, etc… you can simply focus during the time allotted and move on. Will you get everything you wanted done in that time block? Realistically, probably not. But that’s okay, there’s only so much of you and you must give yourself grace and simply do your best to maintain your sanity :) 

Give yourself grace, and the rest will in place

There you have it, 6 great ways to get started with living your best life as a mom. I think we can all agree that motherhood is a magical journey. Yet, the day to day stuff can leave us feeling over-run and stressed. If you can carve out a little “me” time in the morning, I promise it is worth its weight in gold to help you feel like supermom each and every day! 

Author Bio:

JayDee Vykoukal is the owner of MomBlogLife.com, a website dedicated to helping moms live their best life. She loves spending most of her time with her toddler. Her other interests include writing, living a healthy lifestyle, being outside, and travelling the world. You can follow JayDee on Pinterest @ pinterest.com/mombloglife.