5 Tips for a Healthy Morning

5 Tips for a Healthy Morning include why to choose a nutritious breakfast, take your vitamins, drink lots of water, exercise first thing in the morning and prepare the night before for a healthy and productive day.
I feel lucky that I've always been a morning person. I pretty much wake up and am ready to start my day. Some days, when I don't sleep well at the end of my pregnancy and I'm sure when I have a newborn, it will be harder to get going in the morning after a rough night's sleep. I always feel better when I start my day in a healthy way so I wanted to share some of my best tips for a healthy morning.

5 Tips for a Healthy Morning

1. Exercise first thing in the morning

I know that some people like to start their day with reading or meditation or something but what works for me to feel energized and healthy through the day is to get my exercise in first thing. Since the weather has gotten nice, I have been mostly exercising later in the day with the kids such as going on a walk late morning. I didn't realize how much I was missing my solo early morning walks until I went on one one morning recently.

I like going around 6-6:30 AM on a walk for 1-2 miles by myself and just enjoying the cool morning air, seeing the birds and bunnies and having some quiet time to myself before my day gets crazy with the kids. I find that I have such a better mindset when I exercise first thing like that than skipping it and I have more energy from the get-go.

If you wait until later in the day to exercise, you are more likely to skip it. The day gets busy, you get tired, it ends up raining, etc. I never regret getting in some exercise first thing in the AM. I couple of days per week, I also try to add in some hand weights for strength.

2. Take your vitamins

I try hard to remember to take my vitamins daily to help meet my nutrient needs. I think that it is important for women especially to have calcium and vitamin D for strong bones. It is common to be deficient in vitamin D, especially in Michigan where we have long winters and not a lot of sunlight so I make sure to supplement my diet with vitamin D. I'm also passionate about omega-3 fatty acids for brain health. To remember to take my vitamins each day, I keep my vitamins and supplements in a spot that I will remember to take them. When they are out of sight, they can be out of mind when life gets busy. If you really have trouble remembering to take vitamins and want to make sure you remember, you can schedule a daily reminder in your phone to take them. 

3. Start your day with a big glass of water

I always wake up a little dehydrated like most people and feel the best when I drink a bunch of water first thing in the morning. Start your day with a big glass of water to fight any dehydration and to help get you going for the day.

4. Eat a nutritious breakfast

Trust me when I tell you that having something like a doughnut for breakfast is not going to have you feeling your best. I recommend choosing a breakfast that has whole-grains, protein, healthy fats and fiber. Limit added sugar as well. Some favorites in our home are Greek yogurt with chia seeds and some kind of whole-grain cereal, oatmeal with chia seeds and protein powder topped with cereal, overnight oats or on the weekend, some kind of loaded eggs dish that my husband makes.

By choosing a breakfast that has fiber and protein, you will feel full for longer and in my opinion, will feel more on track to eat healthily all day compared to starting your day with less healthy options.

5. Prepare for the next day the night before