10 New Rituals For Your Morning Routine
The art of ritual is the act of creating sacred routine of self-care. The intention of Yoga & Ayurveda is to bring us back into wholeness, by incorporating insights and practices for the body to naturally return to a place of balance.
Morning routines are proven to boost your mood and gives you more energy to face any challenge the day brings.
Here is a list of some of my favourite morning rituals to incorporate into your routine at home.
1) Become A Morning Person
Make sure that you go to bed early enough so that you can (try) to get up with the sunrise. It is so easy to sleep in (and yes sometimes our bodies need it) but waking up a little earlier with the sun helps to balance our natural circadian rhythm and ensures that you can enjoy your morning in a calm and relaxed matter rather than rushing out the door.
2) Tongue Scrapping
As soon as I wake up, I make my way to the bathroom to scrape my tongue with my Copper Tongue Scrapper. This Ayurvedic oral care remedy, eliminates bacteria and toxin’s that have built over the night that contribute to poor oral hygiene, while additionally waking up our digestion. It also helps to take away that terrible morning breath!
How To: Gently scrape across the surface of the tongue back to front 7 times. Each pass, observe the color and texture of the bacteria build up, rinsing the residue collected between each scape. Make sure to cover the entire surface of the tongue.
Special Note: Please do not drink water, or coffee before scrapping. You will be ingesting the toxins that your body has been working all night to eliminate! Don’t have a metal scrapper? You can also use a spoon! This does not replace brushing and flossing your teeth!
3) Drink Lemon Water
This one will have a huge impact on your health and your skin. Lemon juice is a great source of vitamin C and helps to maintain the overall pH balance of the body, encouraging digestive health (great morning poops!). Lemon juice with warm water can flush toxins, clearing the skin, decreasing wrinkles and blemishes. Not yet convinced? Lemon water naturally strengthen the body’s immune system, hydrates the muscles and joints and makes you feel clear and calm.
4) Breathwork
The morning is also a great time to wake up our energy body. I typically work on one or two breathwork practices to either stimulate the body or to calm the mind. My favourite daily breathing practices are Kapalabhati and Alternate Nostril breath (Nadi Shodhana).
Kapalabhati wakes up and strengthens our sympathetic nervous system while alternate nostril breathing stimulates the parasympathetic. One is invigorating and clearing and one is calming and relaxing.
5) Move Your Body
Yes, a morning yoga practice is a must. It does not need to be long, just move in ways that feel amazing. Exercise, releases endorphins into your blood stream, waking you up and enhancing your mood. If there is a mental struggle or blockage to get up and move, I like to start with 5-10 Sun Salutations and that helps me open into my own self practice.
6) Clear Your Mind
After waking up the body and breath I find it easier to move into my meditation practice. This practice changes depending on what is rising within me. If I need grounding, I grab my mala beads for its tactile sensation helping keep focus on a mantra or breath. If I need insight I rest in silent awareness and open the aperture of what is flowing within my mind/ thoughts without judgement or attachment.
7) Develop an Attitude of Gratitude
Starting (and ending) your day with gratitude is a wonderful practice to incorporate into your morning ritual. Gratitude helps to improve emotional regulation and motivation, increase mental and emotional resilience, improve communication, enhance compassion and encourage collaboration. Taking a moment in the morning of appreciation to write in your journal three things that you have to be grateful for and I promise you it will help change the outlook of your day.
8) Dry Brushing
This is something that I have recently added to my routine. Dry brushing helps increase the blood circulation, and exfoliates the skin.
How To: Use a natural-bristle brush to gently but firmly brush the skin over the length of bones (towards the heart) and circular motions around the joints, spending a little more time around the fatty tissues that accumulate more toxins like the thighs or bum. Bonus, it has a great energizing effect to waking the body up in the morning!
9) Abhyasa Oil Massage + Gua Sha
After Brushing-give yourself some love, massaging your body head to toe with oil. This not only feels incredibly nourishing for the skin but can help stimulate the lymphatic system and improves blood flow and relaxation.
I then oil my face with Jojoba Oil and use my Rose quartz Gua Sha tool or facial roller. This is used to massage in upward strokes releasing muscular tension and promote tissue drainage and circulation. How To: Check out how to use Gua Sha Video link here
Recommended Massage Oils for Doshas:
Vata: Sesame, Almond, Avocado
Pitta: Coconut, Olive, Sunflower
Kapha: Mustard Oil, Canola, Flaxseed Oil
10) Take a hot bath or infused shower
If you have the time, 5-10 minutes after you have massaged your body with oil jump into a nice warm bath. I prefer spending some time in the bath, infused with an essential oil of choice. I personally love sweet orange or eucalyptus in the morning.
If time does not permit you to have a bath hop into a hot shower. Set up your diffuser with an oil of choice to add to the steam. The aroma will awaken your senses and the oil from your massage will continue to be absorbed into your body feeling luxurious, relaxed and refreshed.
