Directly after my wedding, I didn’t feel so good. The stress of wedding planning and changing jobs all at once really caught up with me and wrestled my body into a state of compromised immunity. I woke up the morning after the nuptials with a scratchy throat, headache, and general fatigue.
I brushed this off as partying too hard, too much joy and fun, that my body just couldn’t handle it all.
The following days turned my light symptoms into a fever and my scratchy throat into a full blown head cold, and I began my new job feeling less than stellar.
Even after my illness went away, I felt tired, achy, and always one step behind. I couldn’t figure out why until I started examining my routine and what I was doing differently from the months before.
I started correcting those tiny lifestyle changes that I didn’t even know I’d made. After a lot of trial and error, here are a few things that were incredibly helpful in making me feel amazing each morning.
Drink Water When You Wake Up
I’m a huge coffee drinker and it’s part of my morning ritual to wake up and pour myself a cup of joe to sip on while I tend to some administrative functions of Add Vodka. Especially since it’s the summer and it’s been quite hot out, I was waking up with headaches which I found out were actually from dehydration.
I began to drink two glasses of water prior to pouring my coffee each morning and it has made me feel so much better. Drinking water first thing hydrates you, and makes you feel more alert which is a huge bonus.
Breathe
I’m a huge fan of yoga breathing, especially at work when I am in between tasks. I’ve never been much of a deep breather (or a water drinker for that matter) until recently, when I realized just how refreshing a huge dose of oxygen can be.
When I take deep breaths, I picture the oxygen getting in to my brain and clearing the fog. Kind of like a squeegee or a fan. It energizes me and gets me in the zone, and it makes me feel so much better.
Not many people stop to take a breath, and it’s surprising just how helpful that one small action can be.
Exercise
Most people won’t want to hear this, but what they say is true: exercising improves your life considerably. After all, there are numerous studies that prove that exercise can fight depression, combat disease, and make you live longer, happier, healthier lives.
Even so, most people don’t exercise each day.
Most of us spend an alarming amount of time staring at screens, between work and our leisure activities, and not enough time moving. Working out can be a great stress reliever and can also clear your mind. It’s an important part to ensuring you wake up feeling ready for the day, even if you can only fit in a short walk.
A bonus is that regular exercisers often have stronger immune systems.
Nutrition
One thing that I notice when it comes to feeling good, is that if I have been eating a poor diet or if I don’t have enough fresh produce in my diet, I can immediately notice in my body.
I tend to have less energy and feel headaches, aches, and even notice small changes in my skin.
A green smoothie or a big salad will usually help that within the next couple of days. Nutrition has a lot to do with how we feel and how our bodies function so it’s important to nourish them properly for optimum mental and physical performance.
I would rather wake up feeling great every day than feeling mediocre, so I pay attention to these things so I can live the best life possible.
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Making Sure You Feel Great For Each Day — 15 Comments
Great tips! I jog and drink 1 L of water before heading out for work each morning. It helps so much! (P.S. I got really sick after my wedding too! I agree, it must be all the body trying to recoup after all that stress and adrenaline.)
Yes, yes and yes! The most important thing to me is getting a few glasses of water in first thing in the morning. I drink coffee too, but like you said, water first. Also, exercise is a big deal for me, because every morning after I do it, I feel fully awake and usually pretty awesome. I’m doing all of these and I think it’s a great list! Practical stuff that works!
This is so true, especially the nutrition part: I watched FED UP yesterday (a documentary about how the food industry has us addicted to sugar) and it’s frightening how we pay so little attention to the importance of the fuel we put into our bodies.
Sometimes we just need reminders like these to be more conscious of our health. A few years ago I read about the benefits of chewing a clove of raw garlic every day. I know it sounds awful and it is a bit sting-y, but you get used to the taste, it eventually even tastes good, and it seems to keep colds away. Just remember, if you do this, mints and Listerine are your friends. 🙂
Ha ha! I don’t know that I would do that since I try to get enough nutrition from a whole foods diet and I don’t think I need it but hey if you think it helps, keep on it!
I need to drink more water too. I feel like I wake up consistently dehydrated, so lately I have just been keeping water by the bed. It really does help. I should make sure I have two glasses before I touch coffee as well. These things seem obvious, but we take it for granted!
Great tips Sarah and ones that can do doubt benefit anyone who chooses to follow your recommendations!
I do most of these – and need to do more daily – but the one thing that I found that helps out in the morning is, along with your glass of water, the juice of a half squeezed lemon in your first cup of water. The water should be warm – not hot – and then you can go about your day drinking whatever temperature water you want!
I’ve been doing this regularly and the feel very good because of it. If you haven’t done so already, give it a go 🙂
I have done the lemon water trick but find that the citrus on an empty stomach is a bit much for me and leaves me feeling not so hot. Big great tip for later on in the day!
Directly after my wedding, I didn’t feel so good. The stress of wedding planning and changing jobs all at once really caught up with me and wrestled my body into a state of compromised immunity. I woke up the morning after the nuptials with a scratchy throat, headache, and general fatigue.
Great tips! I jog and drink 1 L of water before heading out for work each morning. It helps so much! (P.S. I got really sick after my wedding too! I agree, it must be all the body trying to recoup after all that stress and adrenaline.)
Interesting! I am glad I am not the only one 🙂
I definitely need to drink more water. I am awful about it! I have started drinking water with meals to make sure I am getting enough.
Yes, yes and yes! The most important thing to me is getting a few glasses of water in first thing in the morning. I drink coffee too, but like you said, water first. Also, exercise is a big deal for me, because every morning after I do it, I feel fully awake and usually pretty awesome. I’m doing all of these and I think it’s a great list! Practical stuff that works!
It’s amazing what a little hydration will do for your body!
Exercise is HUGE for me…even when I’m a bit under the weather I still go an workout…everything feels better after a great workout. 🙂
It is so helpful, isn’t it?
This is so true, especially the nutrition part: I watched FED UP yesterday (a documentary about how the food industry has us addicted to sugar) and it’s frightening how we pay so little attention to the importance of the fuel we put into our bodies.
I really liked Fed Up and there are some others that I enjoyed too. Nutrition is the most important.
Sometimes we just need reminders like these to be more conscious of our health. A few years ago I read about the benefits of chewing a clove of raw garlic every day. I know it sounds awful and it is a bit sting-y, but you get used to the taste, it eventually even tastes good, and it seems to keep colds away. Just remember, if you do this, mints and Listerine are your friends. 🙂
Ha ha! I don’t know that I would do that since I try to get enough nutrition from a whole foods diet and I don’t think I need it but hey if you think it helps, keep on it!
I need to drink more water too. I feel like I wake up consistently dehydrated, so lately I have just been keeping water by the bed. It really does help. I should make sure I have two glasses before I touch coffee as well. These things seem obvious, but we take it for granted!
Definitely try to incorporate more water into your day to day!
Great tips Sarah and ones that can do doubt benefit anyone who chooses to follow your recommendations!
I do most of these – and need to do more daily – but the one thing that I found that helps out in the morning is, along with your glass of water, the juice of a half squeezed lemon in your first cup of water. The water should be warm – not hot – and then you can go about your day drinking whatever temperature water you want!
I’ve been doing this regularly and the feel very good because of it. If you haven’t done so already, give it a go 🙂
Take care and all the best.
Lyle
I have done the lemon water trick but find that the citrus on an empty stomach is a bit much for me and leaves me feeling not so hot. Big great tip for later on in the day!