I was never a morning person.
I have vivid memories in college of wearing my clothes to sleep so I could set my alarm two minutes later.
One time I hit the snooze (a dozen) too many times, and arrived at my 90 minute midterm 45 minutes late. Nothing like a high pressure differential equations test first thing in the morning: ).
Many of you are going to ignore what I have to say next paragraph. You’re going to read it, nod, and acknowledge that this stuff is great advice. Maybe someday you’ll do it.
Believe me when I say that there has NEVER BEEN a man more resistant to getting up earlier or getting going faster than me. But when I did, it was life changing. If you do these things, you can do and be literally anything.
Step 1: Declare your Intentions.
Every morning, I physically write down what I intend for the day. We’re looking for the forest here, not the trees… so the to-do list can wait. I’m looking for declarations of gratitude. I’m looking for bucket list goals. What inspires you? Who’s life do you want to change and why? Write it down!
Or better yet, get an intention partner and call them every morning first thing. Go over your dreams and your goals every morning. This will be life changing for them too, you owe it to them. Involve them and get hoppin’!
Step 2: Meditation
whether you call it meditation or prayer, spending even ten minutes every morning just going to a quiet place is really powerful. Spend it on gratitude, or possibly read something that’s sacred to you. It can be the bible, it can be way of the peaceful warrior, or it can be anything you else you find immensely moving and inspiring. Get into your open state, because we’re about to run with it.
Step 3: Get moving!
You don’t have to do much. Even fifteen minutes is enough, but getting the blood flowing first thing is enormously powerful. You can do something active (jump-rope, pushups, situps, weights, running) or you can do something more passive (yoga, stretching) but whatever you do, pay careful attention to your mindset.
You know those intentions you wrote down and said to your intention partner? I have no idea why, but workout time is your chance to etch things straight into your soul. The whole time you’re working out, visualize. Repeat your intentions. Make them active prayers. If it seems strange at first, listen to Tony Robbins or any other speaker that you find inspiring. Learn to get into a high frequency state when you’re working out, and then do it. Before long, you’ll be able to use this time to speak new habits straight into reality.
Step 4: the cold icing on the cake.
this one’s brilliant, and I have Tim Ferris to thank. NOT ONLY is this the most galvanizing, shockingly strong kick-start to the day you can imagine, it’s also very helpful for weight loss. Using this particular technique regularly can increase fat loss by as much as 300%, and can also assist with building muscle if you happen to be doing the diet and the exercise side right.
This technique is also an incredibly strong detox. It’ll expand and contract your blood vessels, helping to force circulation through the body and getting lymph flow moving like it should.
So here’s what you do.
Crank it down to cold, hold for ten breaths, then go up to hot for ten breaths. Repeat for three sets, and end on cold.
Each time you go to cold, try and slow your breathing down, and clear your mind. Think karate kid ‘meditating under a waterfall’. Remember the intentions you set, maybe even say them out loud if you’re up for it.
I know it sounds crazy, but you’ve got the control. I’m not asking you to do two minutes or ten minutes. Just go for ten breaths, and you can take them at your own pace. You’ll gradually get down to slower and slower breaths, and soon it’ll be something you can’t imagine going without. Sometimes I’ll even do the cold cycle first, and wash up and finish while it’s cold instead of at the beginning when it’s hot.
How can anyone do all this?
One day at a time:). I’ve been working on this routing for months, and some parts I’ve got down pat. The dream setting is important and easy, and the shower… well. You’ll be surprised how it makes you feel.
I’m still working on getting up on time every morning, I tend to be a night owl. Of course, when I sleep in the exercise and meditation go by the wayside, but just make the commitment, take it one day at a time. Never worry about perfection. It’s all about constant never ending improvement. You get points just for moving even a little bit forward, that’s how intention works.
Bonus step 5: do you do cereal for breakfast? With regular milk? Or soymilk? Or maybe a scone at starbucks? I’ll be hitting diet later on, but obviously if you’re sick of feeling tired and unmotivated, this is another area with powerful potential to make your life more in line with what you know you want. Give you a hint: the best breakfast is thick and green and comes out of a blender.
So which of these do you already do? Or are you one of those people running to get to the midterm on time:)?
Leave your questions and comments in the box below.
Much peace and love my friends, namaste.
James