Speaker 1: 0:03

Hey there, welcome to the Hot Mess Mom Health Podcast. Do you wish you could find a sustainable way to get healthy and not feel overwhelmed in the process? Do you find yourself up late at night scouring Pinterest for meal prep ideas and quick workouts? Do you wake up with big, ambitious goals only to feel stressed out and disappointed when you fall back in your old habits? Drive to the Chick-fil-A drive-thru for the second time this week, all while the fresh produce you just bought goes bad? Hey, I'm Rebecca.

Speaker 1: 0:31

I too am a working mom of two littles and self-proclaimed hot mess mom. All my life I've struggled with trying to maintain a healthy weight and feel good in my skin. I could add yo-yo dieter to my resume. After I packed on 50 plus pounds with two pregnancies, I decided to change for good. I wanted to stop obsessing about food, stay consistent and set a good, healthy example for my kids, but I kept telling myself that I didn't have the time, the energy or accountability to stay on track until I changed my mindset and created one healthy habit at a time. In this podcast, you will find simple, actionable steps so you can create a healthy lifestyle and get relief from the overwhelm. Spray that dry shampoo. Grab your iced coffee, turn up the volume and let's get healthy. Hey there, happy Monday and welcome back to another episode of Hot Mess Mom Health.

Speaker 1: 1:21

I cannot believe that we are in the week of Thanksgiving already. It's so crazy and it is super freezing in New Jersey. In South Jersey it has gone from last Saturday wearing a t-shirt and jeans outside to this Sunday being at my son's soccer game in a full parka, winter coat, scarves, hand warmers in my gloves, freezing my butt off. So I don't know where you are in the world listening to this, but if it's cold, I feel you, it stinks. I do not like being cold and especially the drastic changes of weather. I'm just not really down for that. There's no seasons anymore here in New Jersey. It seems like it goes right from summer straight into winter and it stinks.

Speaker 1: 2:00

So anyway, we're in to Thanksgiving week and something that I've been thinking about lately is the morning routine that I've kind of created and it kind of had me thinking about, you know, about a year ago, when I would just wake up, work out, not really have a strict routine, and how I was feeling at that time versus how I feel today, and also during my journey of 75 Hour with my husband. That really was kind of what made my morning routine what it is now and all of the benefits that I've got from that I want to share with you today. And also just five little quick ways that I think you can kind of you know, put a morning routine together or a way you can strategize creating one for yourself to really make yourself feel better throughout the day. I think it's a really good foundation having some type of morning routine and I'm not saying your morning routine is going to look like mine, but maybe you can take some tips or tricks from what I do. Or you can say you know what. That's definitely not what I want to do, but I would like to do this.

Speaker 1: 3:00

But I think there's value to, as a busy working mom who is probably not, probably doesn't have much time for herself, if you're listening to this and you're trying to figure out what on earth you're going to even have five minutes for yourself, it may become the morning is your only option, right? And obviously I love sleep, like I value sleep so much. But I also value my sanity and having my morning routine be my kids waking me up and me rushing them, rushing myself in the shower, rushing out the door wasn't serving me at all. It was actually really affecting my mental health and my stress levels and just how my whole day was going. And I acknowledge that a long time ago. But, like I said, 75 hard really forced me up against a wall to say these are the things I have to do before I leave. And I really was able to say I enjoy these things way more than I thought I ever would and it was kind of eye opening to me about just the beauty of a morning routine and how it sets that foundation for your entire day and how it does that in a really positive way. Now I'm definitely going to tell you I'm not a morning person, but I have come to really appreciate that time in the morning that I have to myself or that I have to just have free space to think or speak to my husband or just without the interruption of the workday and children, because, let's face it, those things combined and those things individually are stressful enough. Just trying to hear your own thoughts during the day sometimes are difficult. So if you're anything like me and you've been thinking about a morning routine, or maybe you've dabbled in doing some things and you're really looking to elevate your morning routine. I hope this episode helps you.

Speaker 1: 4:37

So just to give you a little bit of idea what my morning routine looks like most days, I would say six out of seven days I would say five to six out of seven days. Before I go to bed the night before I put my workout clothes on, I literally call out my workout. I say what I'm doing for the morning, I say what time I'm going to wake up, and sometimes I'll say this to my husband because I want to know whether he's waking up with me or not, because having that accountability in the morning is pretty nice. But if he's not working out, I still put my workout clothes out the night before and I mentally either look on my apps and pick my workouts or I call out my workouts. I know exactly what I'm doing. I already have everything set to go. I decide whether I'm having tea or coffee, hot or iced All these things that are kind of playing out in my head and I wake up at 5 am. That's my wake up time. I try my hardest not to hit snooze, because I try to Mel Robbins my 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 way out of my bed if I'm feeling tired and I go right into my bathroom, put my contacts in, go to the bathroom and put my workout clothes on and head right to the basement. That's something that, like I said, five to six days of the week, that's definitely what happens.

Speaker 1: 5:47

I try to give myself one day a week to sleep in on the weekends, depending upon the craziness of our life. But even the day I'm recording this Sunday, the night before this goes out, because I don't have my whole life together, I'm still last minute on this podcast and I did set my alarm for six this morning instead of five. I was like, okay, that's a great compromise. Our life is going to be crazy today, with soccer and just trying to put Christmas decorations out and knowing that I still had to record this podcast, so I wasn't gonna be able to work out at night. I basically said to myself all right, I'm going to sacrifice sleeping in like I normally would and I'm going to wake up at six, give myself an extra hour, but I'm still going to have that hour from six to seven to do my workout, get a shower and all that stuff, before the kids go in full force and before we had to like kind of get going on our day. So you know that's pretty much my morning routine. Then I get in the shower, work out, get in the shower, then I have my tea or coffee.

Speaker 1: 6:39

So my reward for getting up, I guess, and working out is having my morning tea or coffee, and then I try to make it so that I have about 10 to 15 minutes to read while I'm drinking my tea or coffee. Doesn't always happen, but I really do value reading in the morning and that's something that was a big takeaway from me from 75 hard, because typically what I did was I tried to read before I went to bed and I still do but I only get through like a page before the books hit me right in the head because I'm just tired and I need to go to sleep. So if you're anything like me, where you really like to read but it's not working for you at night, try reading in the morning, even if working out's not going to happen in the morning, you have no desire to do that and you really just want 10 minutes to yourself. Say, maybe I'm going to try to read with a cup of coffee, just so you can have that mental time to do something that you want to do that's a calming space. Maybe it's meditation, maybe it's just sitting in front of a red light, maybe it's walking, whatever it could be for, whatever it looks like for you, but something that brings your mind into just a calm space.

Speaker 1: 7:45

I try my hardest during this whole morning to not look at my phone too much, because you can get really roped into the day that way and you can really get that high stress kicked off right away. It's hard, don't get me wrong, but if I'm able to, I try my hardest not to look at my phone unless it's to set my Peloton app for like a walk outside or something or something to do with my workout or my aura ring from the night before. But I try not to open up social media, not to open up work emails, not to check my regular emails, just to kind of stay in the zone of like this is my time, I'm going to own it and this is like sacred to me, you know. So, with all that being said, by the time five o'clock I'm waking up. By the time we get the kids up, it's between seven and 715. So I have like a good two hours almost where the world's not requiring me to do something for them, right Like there's two hours where I can get a shower in peace, I can blow dry my hair, I can read, I can have a cup of tea or coffee, I can work out if I want, I can meditate if I want. So I just value that time so much.

Speaker 1: 8:47

And, like I said, with 75 hard, it forces you to do stuff before you leave the door because there's almost no time you can do it all in your day, so if you don't do some of it beforehand, so you know, a morning routine such as walking with my husband in the morning was something that we did every day for 75 days and I didn't you know at the time it was like, oh my gosh, like we have to work out then then we have to work out again and it seemed like such a tedious thing. But we actually really thoroughly enjoyed our morning workouts together, our morning walks, because it was always just a walk. We did our 75 hard through the summer month. So it was nice weather, it was super, like there's a good low humidity. The sun was like not really up yet, so it's pretty dark, the world's quiet at that time and it allowed us time to actually talk to each other without kids interrupting, without the day to day chaos and without us both being exhausted, because it really was a great way to wake up, hit the day with whatever thoughts you're thinking, whatever happened the day before, being able to talk to your significant other without just the pressure of all the other stuff going on at the same time.

Speaker 1: 9:48

And, honestly, I really miss that. I cannot wait till the summer or the spring so we can start doing it again, because there's one thing that I'm not, and it's I'm not a lover of cold weather and I'm not going to be at 5am bundling up in a park and a scarf and all this jazz to go outside. It's just not going to happen. Um, as much as I love that walk, it's just not going to happen. So, um, something that I'm looking forward to doing in the warmer months, for sure. But so you know all that to say. You know, waking up early is not easy, but there's no pressure on you, don't have to wake up two hours before you have to walk out the door. You don't have to wake up an hour. Even if it's just something as small as 10 minutes, it could really help you. And again, I'm all about starting things small. So if you know that right now all you're capable of doing is waking up 10 minutes early, then set your alarm tomorrow for 10 minutes early. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, your way. As Mel Robbins would say up 10 minutes early and give yourself that time, even if it's just the 10 minutes to sit there and read a book, even if it's just 10 minutes to sit in silence in a room with a cup of warm tea.

Speaker 1: 10:53

Maybe you want to journal, like I said. Maybe you want to meditate, whatever that looks like for you. Start somewhere with a good morning routine, take one to two things and then build upon it. Maybe eventually you do want to work out, but right now you're like let me see if I can tackle the 10 minutes, let me see if I can do that consistently and prove to myself that I'm going to do this and that I feel better when I do this, and then add on another 10 minutes and see what you can do in those 10 minutes. Maybe it's that you want to add a gratitude journal to it. Maybe you want to meditate. Maybe you want to take a 10 minute walk. Maybe that's all you can do right now. Try that and then take notice to how you feel.

Speaker 1: 11:31

So I kind of put together five things that, if you know, I was starting out with a morning routine kind of where I would go with all of this. So first off, I would say, figure out what works for you. Like I said, maybe it's not working out. Maybe you know you'd like to work out in the afternoon or you'd like to work out at night. Maybe it's simply just having that cup of coffee or tea and just having a moment of silence before all hell breaks loose in your house. I totally get it. Maybe it's adding the reading to it, maybe it's adding listening to a podcast, whatever it is that you could own that time. Figure out what works for you, like what would give you that space in the morning to feel like you had something of your own today, you know, because I totally get that feeling where it feels like everyone's constantly taking all of your time every second of the day. So figure out what might work for you, whether it's walking, reading, meditating, journaling, whatever it is. Try to figure it out.

Speaker 1: 12:26

Number two be willing to try different things and get out of the mindset that you're not a morning person. So if you constantly are telling yourself you're not a morning person and you're telling other people you're not a morning person, well guess what Waking up in the morning is going to suck. What if you just stop saying that? What if you just got out of the mindset of saying it and just started believing that you can be a morning person or you may actually enjoy waking up before the rest of the world, because there's so much value to having that time to yourself when everyone else is sleeping. And, like I said, I don't necessarily enjoy thinking about getting up early, but I know and it's so powerful knowing how I feel the rest of the day when I do wake up early that that's how I get myself out of bed, because I've done it enough and I've proven to myself that it's better, I feel better, I can tackle my day better when I wake up early. So there's not a lot of pressure around it, but be willing to try different things and get out of that mindset that you're not a morning person, because what you consistently tell yourself becomes reality. Honestly, all right.

Speaker 1: 13:28

Number three start small, even if it's five or 10 minutes before everyone in your house wakes up. So, like I said so many times in so many other episodes, starting small is key. If you know that waking up early is just not your thing, or you definitely don't believe it's your thing at this very moment, try five minutes, try 10 minutes. Wherever you think you can do, wherever you think you can start, start there and figure out something that makes you happy. Maybe it is simply just taking a shower, without little tiny humans knocking on the shower door or calling mom, because that can be your sacred time too, just letting more water roll down your body and having no other tiny humans trying to get your attention, because I get it. Or even just going to the bathroom. I mean seriously just going to the potty without somebody saying mom, mom, or trying to come in the bathroom, like what is with these kids these days, I don't know. I digress.

Speaker 1: 14:21

Number four don't be afraid to ask your spouse to do it with you, because I cannot tell you, like I mentioned a few minutes ago, that time in the morning was so valuable to us, being able to walk and talk and actually have that 45 minutes of a routine together. It was just like life-changing, honestly, and being able to talk about our dreams and things that we're looking forward to, and just having that time to kind of talk about the day before, kind of things that are going on in our lives that we may not necessarily have been able to either talk about, because we would have forgotten them by the time we got together again. But just having that time alone with somebody else, even if it's just 10 minutes without interruption, can be so valuable. And how do you know that? Maybe your spouse isn't craving something like that too. So it doesn't hurt to ask.

Speaker 1: 15:09

If you're having a hard time getting up in the morning or even thinking about the morning routine, mention it to your significant other and see if they'd be game to doing it with you. Whether it's, like I said, a walk, maybe it's just significant other, and see if they'd be game to doing it with you. Whether it's, you know, like I said, a walk, maybe it's just brewing coffee and watching birds outside, I don't know. Whatever it is that you guys can do together. That is a valuable time. Maybe it's reading in silence. You know, taking that time for yourselves and the quiet and the stillness in the day so that you can really just have such a healthy, good mental health start to your day is amazing. Also, you can bond better bond with your partner If that's something that maybe you're struggling with, if your relationship is struggling because kids and life is just hectic and chaos, this can definitely bring you guys closer. I know me and my husband just not having a lot of time to connect on a regular day. It really gave us that time to do so.

Speaker 1: 15:59

Or maybe your spouse is craving some accountability on working out and they don't know how to express it to you. Maybe you can be the lead in that. Maybe you do go for a walk, maybe you challenge each other with doing, like, some push-ups and burpees and high knees or something for 10 minutes or five minutes. You can find creative ways to keep each other motivated too during that time, which I love. Ways to keep each other motivated too during that time, which I love. All right.

Speaker 1: 16:23

And number five use the time that you have wisely, where you are not scrolling Facebook or Instagram right, you're not putting those, like all that social media stuff, into your brain early in the morning. Maybe not even watch the news, because the news can be flooded with negativity too. Really, using the time for yourself, for your own space, for a space to build on something that's going to either benefit you emotionally, your mental health, educational, whether you're going to be reading something that you really have been interested in for a long time. You know, really taking that time so that you are benefiting yourself in a positive way, so that you are starting your day in a really great place rather than before. So the fifth and final thing, kind of to recap, that is, just take note how you're waking up now, how your day is starting now and then how your day feels versus if you take some time in the morning for yourself, and how the rest of your day, to the end, feels, how it looks like. Are you starting to feel like less stress during the day? Are you starting to make better overall health choices? Are you starting to just have a little extra pep in your step? You know, really take note to the things that you're doing and hopefully you're seeing a positive change.

Speaker 1: 17:33

I'm really thinking that you will, because a morning routine can really be life-changing. I truly believe that, and this is coming from someone who really worked against themselves for a really long time before admitting that I needed a routine in the morning and now that I do it, I could not imagine my life without it, and even the days that are kind of thrown off because of life, I don't feel as good. I feel kind of off it's the best way I can describe it is just feeling off. You get so used to your routine and not that you know when you go on vacation and there's times in your life where you're just going to be off your routine. But when there's something that like I don't wake up and I kind of knew I should have, or the kids wake up abnormally, you do feel off because your whole routine got thrown off. So anytime you can take that time for yourself in the morning and having that real structured morning routine that's consistent to you, whatever that looks like, I think it could be completely life-changing to you and it can really help motivate all the other health goals that you have.

Speaker 1: 18:30

So because I know this helps me so much, I really hope that it helps you and if you have any questions or you need any help with this, please reach out to me. I would love to hear from my audience and my email is hotmessmomhealth at gmailcom. Thank you so much and have a happy Thanksgiving. Thank you so much for tuning in and listening to this episode of Hot Mess Mom Health. If you love this episode, please leave me an iTunes review. It would mean the world to me and it would help me get the word out about helping other moms reclaim their health. Thank you so much.