A Life Edit: Routines

The fast and furious days of summer are slowly giving way to the more structured days of fall. Children are heading back to school—and with that, a certain predictability returns to our lives. Can we toast to that?? While I love the fullness and spontaneity of summer, I find the change in seasons to be the perfect time to pause and reflect on how I am living my life and spending my time. Routines are a perfect way to bring me back to myself. They also happen to be a wonderful way to live a more intentional life. I find that my needs change with the seasons. Do your needs change too? Depending on the season, I may sleep more or less, crave different foods, or want to exercise my body differently. Reflecting on my current routines (or lack of routines) and editing accordingly is an essential part of me showing up for myself.

Do you incorporate routines into your days? What routines do you appreciate?

MY CURRENT ROUTINES INCLUDE—

1. A morning routine

2. An exercise routine

3. A bedtime routine

REFLECT AND EDIT

While I still value having a morning routine, an exercise routine, and a bedtime routine—summer has disrupted these routines quite a bit. It is time to take stock and make some changes. Here we go!

1. My morning routine update. I have changed my wake up time to 6:20 am. I still meditate while in bed but have added creating an intention for my day. John and I will often take a few minutes to connect before getting up to make Winston’s breakfast and his home lunch. That is a new addition too. After returning from taking Winston to school, I like to move a little. My daily exercise is done within an hour. From there, I settle in for a quick breakfast, hot coffee, and The New York Times Daily Crossword. I also update our Mint account at this time. After that, my day has officially begun! I am usually finished by 9 am (at the latest). To be clear, my components are meditation, morning connection time with J, breakfast and lunch preparation for Winston, getting Winston to school, exercise, breakfast with a brief look at the puzzle and our money. I am really appreciating the recent additions to my routine!

2. My workout routine update. While the components of my workout routine have remained the same (cardio for my heart, strength for muscle development, and flexibility for overall muscle integrity), my body has struggled with a lower back injury for several months. This has impacted my routine considerably. I have discontinued Bar Method for the time being, in order to heal up (insert heartbreak here)—and I remain tentative with regard to my workouts as my back can still flare up from time to time. My current components are HIIT, hiking, and I hope to add one yoga session to the mix each week. HIIT workouts happen a few days each week with John. Our HIIT routine includes one minute each of five exercises—and we do three sets of them. In total, we do fifteen minutes of strength work each HIIT session. We follow that up with hill cardio (running and walking) outside our home for fifteen minutes. In total, that is thirty minutes of a harder workout. For the other day or two, I will usually walk for an hour or so in our neighborhood or in a nearby canyon. My flexibility component has been lacking lately. I am looking to add a shorter yoga session into the mix of things (most likely on a weekend).

3. My nighttime routine update. Sleep remains important to me. The early mornings have provided motivation for an earlier bedtime! My components look quite similar to the outlined routine in the link above. A bath may occur with reading. Cozy clothes are crucial. I take time to care for my skin at night. Brush my teeth. At that point, I either continue reading or John and I may enjoy a show in bed, all snuggled up and cozy. This happens a few times each week. Now that school has started, we try to have lights out by 10:30 pm or 11 pm at the latest.

Reflecting and editing is a concept that works for many areas in life (think—friendships, personal style, books we read, podcasts we listen to, etc…) but for this post, I knew that I needed to look at my routines. The changes that I made to my routines were not particularly earth shattering. Still, I have noticed a difference in the way I feel. My days feel a bit kinder. More grounded. Now, who doesn’t want that?

DO YOU HAVE ROUTINES THAT ARE AN IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR DAY? ARE THERE ANY EDITS YOU COULD MAKE THAT WOULD ALLOW FOR YOUR ROUTINES TO WORK BETTER? ARE THERE ROUTINES YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADD? I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU!