The first thing you do in the morning often sets the tone for your entire day. It’s simple – the more you intentionally take care of yourself upon waking the better you tend to feel throughout the day. Your mindset is more open and positive. Whether you carve out two minutes or twenty, those quiet moments before the to-do list, emails, calls, or commute begin are truly precious.
Recently, I’ve been trying to find the morning ritual that makes me feel best. Right now, it’s ginger tea. Every morning, I boil water, add freshly chopped ginger, and quietly enjoy my ginger tea. It calms my mind, soothes my body and ignites my appetite for breakfast.
The way you start your day is deeply personal, there’s no template for everyone. There are seemingly endless recommendations so I thought I would turn to Artemis Yoga teachers and staff for ideas and advice. What do they do each morning to support themselves?
At a recent Artemis Yoga team gathering, I asked everyone:
What’s a morning ritual that sets the tone for your day?
The answers were sweet, sincere, and wonderfully varied. What struck me most is how personal their answers were. No two answers were the same.
Liz Padula: I absolutely have to take a shower. If I don’t put my head under water, my day won’t start. That’s why you always see me with wet hair in the morning. More recently, I’ve begun the ritual of boiling water, letting it get lukewarm and drinking it before I have my coffee.
Sue Gormley: I make a cup of coffee with frothy milk.
Jarvis Chen: I stay in bed and do the New York Times Spelling Bee while thinking that I should get up at some point.
Einat Peled-Katz: I let the dogs out and feed them. Then I make coffee and omelets for my husband and I, and we sit together and do the New York Times Connections, followed by the Spelling Bee.
JoAnne Kazis: Before I even put my feet down on the floor, I say out loud, “I’m grateful for the day before me.” This puts me in a positive mood. Then I make coffee and do the New York Times Spelling Bee and Connections.
Marysia Gensler: I walk through my garden beds with a cup of coffee, and then sit and listen to the birds and watch the chipmunks. It’s my meditation retreat each day.
Alex Medeiros: I make my partner coffee. I don’t drink coffee but they have a very specific way that they like theirs, and I enjoy making it for them each morning.
Jess Miller: I make coffee the night before (when I remember), and then in the morning I make a shaken espresso in a cocktail shaker.
Santina Carpino: I scrape my tongue and wash my face. Then I feel like I’m ready to do everything else.
Victoria Kuenerz: I take vitamins and creatine, walk my dog, and have a cup of milk with a little coffee. Then I do pranayama.
Dana Arnaboldi: I have two different kinds of mornings – the school year and the summer. During the school year, I jump in the shower and then make coffee. During the summer, I drink coffee in bed and read a novel for fifteen minutes.
Alison Caplan: I’m a big tea drinker, so I start my day with black tea. Then I read four or five newsletters. I try to do five minutes of yoga, usually cat cows and sun salutations (if I’m not running late for work).
Katherine McManus: I have some semblance of a yoga practice and then a warm beverage. Whether it’s coffee, tea, matcha or water, I’m happy about it.
Tara Rachel Jones: I scrape my tongue, brush my teeth, and use my neti pot. Then I have lukewarm water with lemon. Then I practice pranayama, meditation and asana.
Irina Sidorenko: I drink warm water with lemon and fiber. When I have time, I squeeze in a yoga practice.
Amy Hrobak: I have a cup of coffee and then I walk my son to school.
Jane Croke: I give my cats a good squeeze and a little cuddle. It makes me so happy because they’re so cute!
Mary Wixted: I do the New York Times Connections and then the Crossword. It’s the time of day that’s completely for me with no agenda, except to have a good time doing puzzles.
Liz Gawel: I read Heather Cox Richardson’s column and then I enjoy a hot cup of coffee on the couch with my husband and our pets.
Tessa Collins: I’ve recently started journaling first thing in the morning. When I work from home it’s easy to immediately go to my computer after waking up, which is not a good habit for me. Journaling before going into work mode has helped a lot. I also recently started flossing very seriously.
Kelly Michaud: I eat breakfast with my kids and we do the New York Times Wordle and Connections.
Alison Hardenbergh: I’m a big believer in RPM – rise, pee, meditate. So I meditate every morning, pull a couple cards, and then make coffee.
Rahel Wasserfall: I listen to Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer’s poem of the day and drink coffee, then go for a walk.
Alex Amorosi: I practice lovingkindness meditation and Qigong, and then I have coffee. For the last couple of years, I’ve made sure to drink a glass of water before coffee and that’s been a total game changer in boosting my energy throughout the day.
Dagny Griggs: I look forward to making the next day’s breakfast every single night before I go to sleep. I have avocado toast with two over-easy eggs. I’ve perfected it.
Sheryl Rosenberg: I scrape my tongue, then I neti pot because I cannot breathe until I do that, and then I have a cup of boiled water with lemon.
Meredith Wright: I walk my dog every morning, in all the different New England elements. It gets me away from my desk and connects me to nature.
Stacey Jackson-Flammia: I drink a mug of decaf coffee and a large glass of water. Then I neti pot. Then I either lift weights, run or practice asana.
Your morning ritual does not have to be rooted in yogic tradition or scientifically proven to improve your health. It needs to be something that makes you feel better afterwards. One single act has the power to help you feel grounded, clear and joyful for the rest of the day.
What’s your morning ritual and how does it support you for the day ahead?
