We are all busy these days. Most of us wake up and it's a mad dash to get ready before our day officially starts. But when we rush out the door it can impact our entire day. To start your day right the most important thing you can do is slow down. Take a breath, stop, take stock, plan, and focus on slowing your roll.
Yes we know setting time aside in the morning isn't easy, there are kids to feed and showers to take, not to mention grooming, dressing, coffee, etc. and all this before your day officially starts. But our scrappy team at Imperium Shaving want you to start your day right so we've done our homework and put together a well researched list of 5 ways to make sure you are energizing your day from the beginning.
STRETCH BEFORE YOU GET OUT OF BED
No need to do a full yoga routine at the start of each day, simple stretches will help to take away the slight aches that come with getting out of bed. You can stretch right in bed by flexing your feet back towards your body and hold for 25 seconds. Next cross your arms, one at a time, across your body. These simple movements will help wake you up and give you a low impact way to get your muscles moving. Once you are out of bed, put your hands straight up towards the ceiling and gently arch your back for a full body stretch, and that's it. It is simple, fast and easy but if you do these stretches for a week you will notice an extra spring in you step.
DON'T LOOK AT YOUR PHONE
We know this is a hard one, but if you can wait to check your phone until you've finished your initial morning routine it will have a profound effect on your day. Our personal rule is to not look at our phone until we have dressed, groomed, and seen the sunshine. With today's smart phones giving you endless notifications, and alerts it's important to keep this flood from intervening with your daily start. Sure looking at your phone while drinking your coffee is fine but don't make looking at your phone the first thing you do, set this boundary so that looking at your phone won't become routine and will give you space to think about and plan your day.
MAKE SHAVING A RITUAL
Each morning we have certain things we have to do, and for most men this includes shaving. But we have good news, shaving doesn't have to be a chore and you don't have to rush through shaving it as quickly as possible. Shaving was once a long process; before the safety razor was invented about a hundred years ago people had to use straight razors that required skill and careful attention for a close shave. These razors also had to be sharpened and meticulously cleaned every day. Needless to say this took some time, thankfully today we can shave a lot faster but we should slow down. Shaving is the perfect time to turn a normal, daily habit into a vital self-care ritual. When you slow down and shave with care the process becomes a connection to our past, when the things we did took a little more time and thought. We are not suggesting you go back to the straight razor days! Our version of shaving with care includes using a good shave oil, a good heavy razor preferably a double edge safety razor (just don't use a plastic razor), and a good aftershave. You can go further and use a brush and shave soap to make it a truly enjoyable experience, but we will leave those details to you. The point is to consider what you are doing, and surround yourself with good tools. Most of us have to shave so we might as well celebrate it as a human ritual to be enjoyed.
PICK OUT YOU CLOTHES THE NIGHT BEFORE
In the morning you are normally rushed, you can do yourself a favor by picking our your clothes the night before. We have all been there, late, groggy, and looking in our closet for something to wear... and finding nothing. Why not take something off your plate in the morning and pick out your outfit the night before? This way you are ummm, awake and if you don't have any clean socks left you have time to do laundry!
DRINK A FULL GLASS OF WATER IN THE MORNING
Each morning you should drink a full glass of water, at least 8 oz. When we sleep we can become dehydrated from our 8 hour fast and if it's warm this will happen much more quickly. Most of us start our day with a warm cup of coffee but before this (even before you eat anything) drink some water, the more the better. Drinking water first thing in the morning will immediately re-hydrate your body and increase your alertness. Dehydration is strongly linked to decreased mental performance, research shows that even mild dehydration corresponding to 1–2% of body weight can negatively affect alertness, concentration, short-term memory, and physical performance.
Every one of these tips are simple, quick and easy and will give you your best start each day. These are the rules we have been living by each morning and we have seen the benefits. So try them for two weeks and see if you notice any positive changes in you day.
Feel free to use this blog post on your website just give us credit and a link to our homepage.