Routine is essential (What I’ve learned the hard way!)
How to avoid the mistakes and personal struggles I went through
Lately I let my own daily routine fall apart a little. Actually truth be told I let it fall apart A LOT.
You see, I love a good list. I can't get enough of them. Every day I'm ticking things off lists, but the lists never end. Things are always added as fast as they're ticked off.
I can sometimes get overwhelmed by these never ending lists, and this is when my own routine goes out of whack. I'm sure you can relate in some way.
This happened to me very recently. And my fitness, eating habits, and mental health took a beating because of it.
My workouts were half-assed, I was under eating on calories and protein, and I started to feel more stress. I lost a lot of lean muscle, 10kg to be exact!
In all honesty looking back there were also some signs of mild depression there.
It took me around three months of being in this constant cycle to realise the problem. But hopefully if you're in a rut right now you'll recognise the problem sooner than I did.
The problem was largely down to not having a set routine.
A set routine allows your day to flow. It gives you realistic expectations of yourself for that day. And most importantly for me it limits excuses of poor performance, both physically and mentally.
I was expecting too much of myself. I was also working hard but not smart.
I did something about it as soon as I took the time to step back and realise there was actually problem.
My routine starts first thing in the morning, and I'd encourage this be the first thing you look at yourself when ensuring your routine is serving you.
As soon as I'd wake up I would instantly be on my phone replying to messages from clients and other people. I'd then think about everything else I needed to do. How much did I have on my list for that day. Bad idea.
Now instead, the first thing I do every morning is NOT to touch my phone and open the floodgates, it's to sit and have breakfast . I take my time with it, have a few green teas, or a hot lemon water to wash I down as well. I then either do a bit of reading, or use a guided meditation app on my phone (okay I'm starting to sound a bit hippie here, hot lemon tea and meditation who am I!? But it works).
I do all of this before I even look at my phone or consult my list.
This simple act allows me to wake up and not feel overwhelmed in an instant with messages from clients, or people that are seeking my help.
Doing this simple act allows me to clear my head a little, or at least start the day in a more routine-like way, and actually be able to help people even better.
After a few hours of super productive ninja-style work, It's then gym time. The mobile phone goes in to flight mode. I'll make a strong coffee, and begin my pre-workout routine.
Now, I won't go in to the routine for the rest of my day, as that won't really help you out. Everyone's different, I just wanted to share part of my morning routine as an example to you about how important it is to begin in a way you intend to go on.
Because of this simple routine change, I'm in a better place.
My workouts are taking up the same time as they were before, but they're much more effective, and focused when scheduled. My food is scheduled in to my day also. And my head is in a much better space.
By segmenting my day and creating a schedule I'm also finding I'm getting through my list quicker. MUCH quicker.
Before I was trying to tame the monkey brain... it was darting about between different tasks, whereas now I'm focusing on just one thing at a time.
Despite no two days being the same for me (I have a business to run, two websites, content to create, clients that I care very much about, and much more) I can still create and stick to a schedule.
The point id like to make is by creating a set routine and segmenting my day, I'm able to maximise my time better, wether that's time spent pursuing my own health and fitness goals, time spent with friends or family, or time spent on my job list obsession.
If you're not doing something like this right now, then give it a shot.
And if you want to maximise any particular areas of your life that I can help you with personally (health, fitness, food) just give me a shout.
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