You can turn your summer into the most productive time of your year by creating a summer morning routine to keep you healthy, energized and on track for the long hot days ahead! Want to know how? Well keep reading, because Iv’e got the best tips for you!
Can you just picture those summer days where the sun is shining, the air is warm and there’s a certain feeling of joy in the air as everyone is getting ready for their beach day vacations? Because same! It’s the best time of the year!
But this doesn’t mean productivity should go out the window! In fact, the summer can become your most productive time of the year if you set your days up right from the start. This is where a summer morning routine comes in!
By creating a strong foundation for your days, it sets you up to feel your best, start off your day with a strong purpose and keep you on track so that you can maximize enjoying the long hot summer days.
These tips for creating the perfect summer routine will set you up for success all season! And they will help you feel like ‘that girl’ who has it all together and looks like she’s absolutely glowing from the inside out all summer long!
This post is all about the perfect summer morning routine!
The Ultimate 'That Girl' Summer Morning Routine
What are the benefits of having a summer morning routine?
With the long days, warm weather, and all of the fun summer activities it can be tricky to maintain a healthy routine and stay productive and on top of everything. So creating a strong morning routine is by far the best way to set yourself up for success in order to keep in line with your goals!
Transitioning your morning routine from winter to summer can be really fun too, and it will help you make the most out of the season! A strong, yet doable routine will help you get the most out of your daylight hours, it will keep you on track with your goals, it will increase your energy and purpose, and can do wonders for your mental health.
No two people’s morning routines will be the same, which is important to remember. You need to make sure you are finding what works for you. If waking up at 5 am and running for an hour isn’t something that sounds sustainable for you, then it probably won’t work.
Remember, the key is consistency. Set doable goals for yourself and don’t beat yourself up for missing a day when building new routines. It will take time, and that’s okay!
What are the key components of a strong summer morning routine?
Make it a habit to wake up 30 minutes earlier.
The summer is the best time to start a habit of waking up earlier. The days are longer, the sun rises earlier and most importantly its not cold getting out of bed!
Getting up just 30 minutes before you usually do will give you extra time to take care of yourself in the mornings and set your day up for success. How you start your day often translates into how the rest of it goes. If you’re waking up late and in a panic trying to gather yourself, you will most likely feel disoriented all day.
Giving yourself some extra time to yourself calms you down, allows you to set your intentions for the day and have some much needed alone time. Try taking that extra time to listen to a morning meditation, or a podcast. Or you can sit down and write out your intentions and goals for the day. Or just have some peace and quiet all to yourself.
By allowing yourself to set a manageable goal of waking up just 30 minutes earlier, no matter if you wake up at 6 am or noon, you allow yourself to build a long-term habit. The key is deciding what will work for you long term, and the summer is the best time to start forming this habit. Because trust me, it will be a whole lot easier to do when it’s light out early and you aren’t freezing to death!
Get Direct Sunlight
Exposing yourself to direct sunlight first thing in the morning has enormous health benefits. Not to mention, how nice does it sound to walk outside in the mornings, take a deep breath and enjoy your morning cup of coffee? Sounds like a dream to me!
Sunlight in the morning boosts your mood and energy levels, as well as provides your body with vitamin D. It can also help you with your sleep by regulating your circadian rhythm. Additionally, sunlight exposure in the morning can help reduce symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD for short… and if that’s not the perfect abbreviation, idk what is lol)
And let’s not forget the benefits for our skin! While it’s important to protect your skin from too much sun exposure, a little bit of sunlight especially early in the morning has tons of benefits. Sunlight triggers the production of melanin, which actually helps protect our skin from UV rays and other harmful environmental factors!
So, there you have it. Getting some direct sunlight in the morning can help regulate our circadian rhythm, boost our mood and energy levels, and even give us an excuse to wear our favorite shades. So, next time you wake up to a sunny morning, don’t be afraid to step outside and soak up some rays. Your body (and your sunglasses) will thank you!
Use seasonal produce to make your breakfast.
Picture this: it’s a hot summer day, you’re standing in the produce aisle of your local grocery store, staring at an array of beautiful vegetables, unsure of what to buy. Do you go for the broccoli that’s been shipped from across the country or the locally grown squash that’s in season?
First and foremost, seasonal vegetables just taste WAY better. When vegetables are in season, they’re harvested at their peak ripeness, which means they’re bursting with flavors. Have you ever tasted a tomato in the dead of winter? It’s like eating a flavorless rubber ball… maybe im being a little dramatic but its low key kind of true. But when tomatoes are in season during the summer, they’re sweet, juicy, and oh-so-delish!
Plus, using seasonal veggies in your cooking allows you to switch up your recipes and try new flavors, keeping your meals exciting. Also, incorporating a variety of colorful vegetables into your diet helps reduce your risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancer. And im sure we all know that buying local and in season also reduces your carbon footprint. See, benefits all around!
So, the next time you’re in the produce aisle, or the farmers market, take some time to pick out some in-season fruits and veggies. It’s a great way to start being conscious of where your food comes from!
Experiment with creating fresh juices or smoothies.
This tip kind of goes hand in hand with buying in season produce. The summer is a great time to buy some local berries, citrus and greens and creating some insanely beautiful juices! Its healthy, its cute, its personalized and unique… its literally everything you could possibly want!
Also, the flavor options are endless and you can make a fresh batch and keep it in the fridge for a refreshing and healthy option. You can add in greens and make a green juice, you can add ginger for illness and inflammation reducing elements, or you can add a jalapeno pepper for a little kick (just trust me on this, it goes surprisingly AMAZING with a pineapple-strawberry juice)!
Just take a look at all of these colorful fruits and veggies! This screams summer, and makes for a delicious and healthy snack. All of these fruits make endless combinations so you can mix and match your favorite flavors! (These are the fruits and veggies I recently juiced and let me tell you… not only did it make TONS of juice, it was so fun and so delish! Plus all of the vibrant and unique colors make for some super cute pics)
Incorporate movement into your morning.
For the first few years after I started my work from home journey after the 2020 pandemic, I spent the first 2 hours of my work day in bed with my work laptop open, scrolling on tiktok. However, since then I’ve made some serious discoveries that they wernt kidding about there being some serious benefits to starting your day with some movement… who would have thought lol!
First off, working out gets your blood pumping and wakes up your body. This is especially helpful if you’re the type of person who feels groggy and sluggish in the morning (me). Plus, it’s a great way to kickstart your metabolism and get your digestive system working. And getting in some movement in the morning can also improve your mood and reduce stress levels.
Now, let’s be absolutely clear, I am NOT saying you have to hop out of bed and go to the gym at 5 am. That is not practical for all of us. Movement can be anything you love, a walk, some yoga, or dancing around your living room to your favorite music. Whatever gets you excited and grounded for the day. Personally, my preference is stretching, or a walk outside on a good day. It helps me get grounded, get in the zone, and check in with myself before a busy day. And it feels pretty good to move around after 8 hours of laying down.
So, if you’re not already a morning mover, I encourage you to give it a try. Your body and mind will thank you, and who knows? You might even become a morning person (although I’m not making any promises).
Experiment with your skincare routine.
As the weather heats up you might notice that your skin needs a different kind of attention than it did in the winter.
Summer is a great time to try out a new skin routine. It’s also fun to experiment with different makeup. I personally love transitioning out of my thicker, heavier coverage makeup in the winter and transitioning to minimal makeup, and a much glowier, dewier look.
Just make sure to incorporate hyaluronic acid to keep your skin moisturized, and find a good mineral-based sunscreen to wear every day!
Add Journaling To Your Summer Morning Routine
Just picture it, it’s an early summer day and you’re sitting outside just before it starts to get hot out, the air is warm the birds are chirping, the day feels new and limitless and you take some time to journal and reflect on your life… that’s literally goals, talk about romanticizing your life!
But in all seriousness, the summer is such a great time to start journaling. You can sit outside and journal, or go to the beach or take yourself on a coffee date and sit down, just you, and a pen and paper. It’s a fantastic way to clear your mind and work through your stress and anxiety. It’s also a great way to get to know yourself.
Something about slowing down and putting pen to paper, thinking through your thoughts and emotions, and writing about them almost makes the answers to any of your questions come to you. Journaling doesn’t have to be that serious either though, you can use journaling as a time to get creative, write stories, or just keep track of your days or your progress.
You can also use journaling as a motivational tool. It can be a way of keeping yourself accountable to your goals. For example if you set a new work out goal this summer, journaling about your progress, and your struggles will motivate you to keep going. It’s much harder to skip that workout or order in Doordash when you spent time writing your plans for your healthy day, it will keep you accountable.
Also trust me on this, but its SO incredible to open up a journal from years ago and reread your thoughts and emotions and see how far you have come. You will never regret having journals to look back on. It’s really like a little time capsule of your mind during a specific and unique time in your life.
Remember, not all of these might work for you. A morning routine should make you feel refreshed, excited, and ready for the day. It’s not supposed to exhaust you or make you feel unmotivated from the get-go. Find things to add to your routine that will work uniquely for you!
