What do you do first thing in the morning? Here's some suggestions....

What do you do when you first wake up in the morning? I notice what I do when I first get up can affect my whole day! We don't always wake up feeling great (I don't), but here are 3 easy things that I do, and suggest for first thing in the morning, that are self-caring and can help us get off on the right foot.

1. Drink a large glass (or two) of lemon (or lime) water as soon as you get up. Adding a squeeze of lemon, or the juice of half a lemon or lime, to a large glass of pure water, first thing in the morning, kick starts the liver and wakes it up, stimulating its detoxification processes, and helps to flush out toxins and get the bowels ready to move. Adding lemon to water activates the water and makes it alive, which helps the body to recognise it, making it far more hydrating than plain water. Lemon water is alkalising, and most of us tend toward being too acidic. It is full of minerals and vitamins. You can add honey and/or ginger if you like.

2. Go outside and connect with the morning sun, when you can. This may seem a bit esoteric, but studies are showing that morning sunlight in the eyes (not staring) and on the skin helps with melatonin production in the evening, and therefore promotes healthy sleep patterns. Basically, it lets the body know its daytime, time to produce those daytime hormones, so that come night, the body will naturally switch over to those nighttime hormones. It is also a beautiful way to get outside, put your bare feet on the earth, and connect with the beauty of nature for a minute or more, which is wonderful for the nervous system.

3. Have some breakfast. Skipping breakfast is one way to stress out the body, and imbalance our blood sugar. While intermittent fasting can be good when done well, if you have any sort of adrenal fatigue, it is not so appropriate (because the adrenals have to kick in to balance blood sugar), and it can also mess with women's hormones. I recommend IF only for 12 hours overnight for most stressed out, anxious or fatigued women. Having a healthy breakfast for most of us, is a self-caring nurturing thing to do, that sets us up for the day in many ways.

I do these 3 things every morning, along with some movement (yoga, walking) and meditation. It is my favourite time of day, but if you are not a morning person and struggle to get going, just these 3 things might help you get off to a better start, and lay foundations for good health as well.

It is the little things we do daily that matter most in the long term, not the occasional big things like detoxes and major diet changes.

Do you have a morning routine that you love?