If you are looking to slow down, reduce the stress in your life, and focus more on what will make you happiest, then a slow morning routine is a great thing to start with. Enjoy the quiet solitude of early mornings, without interruptions and deadlines.

What is a Slow Morning Routine?

A slow morning routine is a routine that helps you simplify your mornings, prioritize the habits you choose to include, and make slowing down and staying in a calm space your main goal.

Morning routines have gotten far too complex. It has gone from simply trying to fit in a few healthy habits in the morning to have a productive day, to suddenly needing an hour and a half every morning to make green smoothies, do a full workout, clean your entire house, journal, read, listen to a podcast, do self-care, and dozens of other things.

It is time to take a step back, slow down, and think about what really matters to you. If you have been living with a lot of stress and chaos lately, then a slow morning routine is the perfect thing to add to your life.

Benefits of Starting Your Morning Slow

Why introduce a slow morning routine? Not only will it be shorter and simpler, and therefore take less time, but this style of morning routine also comes with so many benefits that improve your mind, body, and happiness overall.

Here are some of the top benefits of starting your morning slow:

You Will Experience Less Stress and Anxiety

The first change you will notice almost immediately is a major improvement in your stress and anxiety overall. Whether you wake up with anxiety, or you have just had a lot of stress lately, starting your morning slow keeps you in that calm space and reduces a lot of anxiety.

Don’t forget that anxiety and stress tend to follow you around for most of the day, even if you don’t realize it, so by starting your morning off calmly, you have a much higher chance of remaining relaxed and peaceful for the rest of the day.

You Have More Energy When You Wake Up Slower

You will also have a lot more energy when you wake up slower, as you have more time to stay in that relaxed state and gradually begin waking up, as opposed to jumping out of bed from hitting snooze one too many times, and running around chaotically trying to get ready in time.

With a slow morning routine, you do everything with intention, including waking up when your alarm first goes off. You typically get up earlier, so that you have a little more time to go at your own pace. The heightened energy helps you get more done as you go through your day.

You Can Better Prioritize Your Habits

One area of daily routines that people go wrong is trying to fit it all in, whether they really want to do those habits or not. You watch a YouTube video or Instagram reel about the top 10 habits for a morning routine and assume you have to do them all if you want to benefit in the same way.

But everyone is different, with different schedules and lifestyles and priorities. By having a slow morning routine, you are narrowing down your habits to just a few of the most important ones to you.

You Increase Your Productivity

With less stress, more energy, and a better balance of habits, you will also notice that you are more productive throughout the day. Don’t let your slow and simple morning give you the wrong idea; you will actually end up getting more done each day, not less.

You Boost Your Mood

Who doesn’t want to be a little happier? The more relaxed your morning is, the happier you tend to be for the rest of the day. When your mood is lifted, you want to get more done, you are more interested in self-care and creative activities, and you simply enjoy your life more. All by slowing down your morning

Habits for Your Slow Morning Routine

The big question about slow morning routines is: what habits should you include? Your slow morning is the same as any other morning, where you should prioritize habits and choose ones that fit your lifestyle and personal intentions.

However, there are some that are ideal for a slower morning routine, since they will keep you in a relaxed state and won’t take a lot of time.

Stretch in Bed Before You Get Up

An easy transition into a slower morning routine is by going slowly within the first few seconds after waking up. Whether you wake up with an alarm, or naturally, try not to jump out of bed right away. Sit up in bed, and just take a few minutes in the stillness to stretch your body and gradually wake your mind up. Don’t check your phone notifications at this time. Think of it as a mini meditation.

Hydrate With Water First

If you plan to include coffee or breakfast as part of this morning routine, just make sure you drink water first. You should always hydrate after waking up, especially before drinking any caffeine. Your body will thank you!

Enjoy Your Morning Drink or Breakfast in Peace

If you can manage it, find a quiet space for your breakfast if you plan to include it in your slow morning. Have a cup of coffee or tea at your table while you write in a journal, or enjoy your breakfast on your patio or balcony as you watch the sunrise. It is such a simple thing that makes a huge difference.

Gentle Hygiene Practices

Hygiene is likely part of your morning routine, but go gentle and keep it simple. Save your complex skincare routines for later in the day or before bed. Be brief in the morning.

Go For a Walk

If you want to add exercise to your morning routine, a quick walk around your neighbourhood is a great option. Some people save this for the very end of their routine, as the final habit before starting the rest of their day.

Sit Outside in the Sunlight

Don’t worry if you aren’t able to fit in a wait by sitting outside for a few minutes in the sunlight.

Read or Write in a Journal

This is a great habit for any morning routine, but especially a slow morning since you can read or write as much or as little as you want. It doesn’t matter if you have 5 or 20 minutes, you can fit it in.

Make Your Bed

A simple habit that everyone should be doing in the morning is making their bed. Just by making your bed, which only takes a few minutes, can make you feel more energized and ready to take on the day.

Set Intentions

Lastly, consider setting some intentions for the day. This is not the same thing as setting goals, but rather how you want your day to go. Whether you intended to get things done, be in a better mood, remain positive, be confident, commit to your schedule that day, whatever it is.

How to Start a Slow Morning Routine

Starting a new routine of any kind can feel a little intimidating, but don’t worry, there really isn’t much you need to do ahead of time for a slower morning routine. If anything, it should be a lot easier and less stressful than a full-blown “productive” morning routine.

Choose Your Habits

Decide what habits you want to incorporate into your slow morning, keeping in mind this morning routine does not fit as many habits as others. It is totally okay to have a slow morning where the only part of your routine is a little stretching and meditation, enjoying the quiet and stillness of the first few minutes of your day.

If you plan to make most mornings a slow morning, that is when you may want to incorporate a few habits, but make sure they are things that make you happy and help you stay relaxed and grounded in the morning.

Prepare the Night Before

Take a few minutes to prepare anything you need for the night before a slow morning routine. The last thing you want to do is wake up and be stressed because you can’t find your book or journal, or you are going through drawers trying to find your workout clothes for a walk.

Think about anything you can set out or plan ahead of time to make it easy to just wake up slowly and go at a leisurely pace throughout your routine.

Wake Up Earlier

If you can, try waking up a little earlier so that you have time to go through your morning routine a little slower. You don’t want to feel stressed because you have the desire to experience a slow morning but don’t think you really have time for it. If you need to be ready to go to work or head out the door at a certain time, it might be a good idea to adjust your sleeping and waking schedule.

Reduce Distractions

Try to remove unnecessary distractions during your morning routine, such as shutting off notifications on our phone, and choosing an area of your home where you won’t be disturbed. Sometimes this requires sitting outside on your patio just to get a few minutes of peace, or waking up earlier than everyone else in the house.

Prioritize What You Want to Include

With a slow morning routine, prioritizing habits is going to be the most important thing you do. You won’t be able to fit it all in, so think of just a few habits that you want to include. From stretching and making your bed, to writing in a journal or just enjoying your morning cup of coffee on the patio, it can be as simple as you want it.

The point is not to be as productive as possible with a slow morning, but just wake up gradually and go at a leisurely pace as you slowly wake up and get ready for the day.

How Often to Do Your Slow Morning Routine

Some people have a more flexible schedule, so they can do the slow morning routine every day. But that just isn’t possible or practical for the mass majority of people.

Whether you have kids or pets to tend to, or you simply can’t wake up early enough every single day to accomplish it, don’t worry! You can still benefit from your slow mornings, even if they aren’t done daily.

Start Your Day With Intention

Before you get started with your slow morning routine, remember that it all comes down to your intentions. What do you want to get out of this routine? Why do you want to slow down in the mornings? How do you want your life to change?

By setting intentions for the new routines, you are able to focus, prioritize, and make slow mornings a regular part of your lifestyle.

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Calm Your Chaotic Life With a Slow Morning Routine