The perfect morning routine?
If you haven’t mastered your morning rituals and starting your days feels kinda crazy, I gotcha.
I am sharing with you today my top tips picked up over the years to having peaceful mornings and setting the tone for super productive days.
They have helped me tremendously.
And I know they can help YOU too!
This is a simple yet powerful Ayurvedic Morning Routine that you can start doing tomorrow.
Do this every day for a month and see what happens. Let’s start!
Changing your morning routine doesn’t only change your mornings. It changes your life.
WHY TO HAVE AN AYURVEDIC MORNING ROUTINE?
I was not a morning person.
In fact, before practicing Ayurveda, I used to sleep in almost every day.
My mornings were hectic to say the least, and always felt I was in a rush. Some days, I missed breakfast. Most days, I was late for work. The thing is that it became my “normal” to be stressed and in a hurry. That same tone obviously transferred to my entire days.
Insanity is doing something that doesn’t work over and over again, right?
Well, changing the way you start your days literally can change your life.
But, why? – you might ask.
- First, setting rituals at the beginning of each day relaxes your nervous system. It’s actually a message to your brain to know what to expect everyday. No surprises means less stress.
- Second, it allows you to do things slowly and mindfully. How many times have you brushed your teeth while doing 10 more things at the same time? Multitasking and rushing diffuses your prana energy and diminishes your focus and attention. Psychology Today mentions that -even though it is considered a “trait” – multitasking can lead to harming the brain, memory issues, and increased distractibility. You want to be present every step of your morning routine.
- Also, we are beings that are ruled by nature. With all the overstimulation brought by technology, we are disconnecting our bodies from mother nature cycles. To balance your biological clock you should have a pre-established ayurvedic morning routine.
One of the most important principles of Ayurveda is having a dinacharya or morning routine.
MY PERSONAL CASE
You know? I was very sick before finding Ayurveda and using its principles to heal myself. One of the symptoms I had was the absence of a period for months! My hormones were completely out of whack and traditional medicine did nothing to help.
One of the things that helped regulate my period was to establish and follow an Ayurvedic morning routine that pacified my Vata/Pitta constitution. After a month of doing the rituals – among other Ayurvedic treatments – my period returned.
I was shocked to see how well my body responded when I aligned it with nature’s rhythms.
I now have a regular period. Every single month.
THE BUTS
I’ve heard all types of excuses from my own clients when I prescribe them with a routine for their dosha and current state of health. After a while, all of them have happily adopted their new morning rituals as part of their new lifestyles. Even after their ayurvedic treatment is finished, they keep doing their ayurvedic morning routine.
These are some of the buts I often hear:
- “I have kids so I can’t have a morning routine”
- “Waking up early is not for me”
- “Checking my email as soon as I wake up is something I must do”
- “I have to walk my dog before doing anything else”
- “What? Is elimination part of my morning routine?”
- “But, does it really work?”
Of course, changing old, stubborn habits will take some willpower and disciple from your part. But, the rewards of having better mornings do translate into having better and happier days, synchronizing your biological clock, balancing your hormones, regulating your elimination, and just being healthier overall.
If you are like me, those benefits sound worthy of waking up a little earlier and being a little more strict with yourself.
Don’t panic though.
You don’t have to do all the steps at once.
Start gradually.
Take one of them and practice it for a few days before you add another ritual. Before you know it, you will have a complete Ayurvedic morning routine that feels right for YOU.
Oh! and feel free to change the order of the rituals to accommodate your unique schedule.
“The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you. Don’t go back to sleep! You must ask for what you really want. Don’t go back to sleep! People are going back and forth across the doorsill where the two words touch, the door is round and open. Don’t go back to sleep!”
-Rumi
BEFORE WE EVEN BEGIN: WAKE UP EARLY
I can’t stress this one enough: wake up early everyday.
This is the most important step in changing your mornings – and your life! Waking up early, in Ayurveda, is seen as a healthy habit because the Vata dosha time happens around 4-6 in the morning.
Vata dosha, one of the Ayurvedic constitutions, controls movement in your body.
This means that by waking up early, you are making sure your internal organs have a proper functioning and that your digestive system starts moving. This fosters regularity in your elimination and other processes in your body.
However, if you wake up later, at a Kapha — another Ayurvedic constitution —time, you will likely feel slow and heavy, and your bowel movements will be sluggish, if they happen at all.
When you wake up before the sun rises, not only will your elimination be better, but the early hours will bring a sense of peace and serenity that is hardly found later in the day. This is the best time to set intentions, pray and meditate.
Anything from 4-6 is fine.
I believe is a matter of getting used to.
So start small, like 30 minutes earlier from the time you are doing now. And take it from there. Until you wake up at a time that feels right for you.
Obviously, you need to go to bed early too.
With that being said, let’s dive in these powerful Ayurvedic Morning Routines.
“Every morning starts a new page in your story. Make it a great one today.”
— Doe Zantamata
AYURVEDIC MORNING ROUTINE
1. CLEANSING
Wash your face, scrap your tongue, and brush your teeth.
Ayurveda teaches that we all produce a waste product overnight called Ama which is found, among other parts in your body, on your tongue. It’s that thick plaque you see every morning.
Use a tongue scraper and clean your tongue with it before brushing your teeth (if you don’t have a tongue scraper, use a stainless steel spoon).
The benefits of doing it every day – I even do it at nights – is that it removes toxins from your mouth and cleanses your taste buds. That is important to enhance your food experience with simpler flavors and reduce cravings.
Also, to refresh your eyes, clean them with organic rose water.
I have discovered that putting some rose water on a cotton ball is a wonderful way to clean your eyes from the waste product they might produce overnight.
Because we are all spending more time in front of screens, our eyes tend to have a Pitta aggravation which makes them reddish and inflamed. Try this tip to clean your eyes, and that will heal them from excessive screen exposure.
2. ELIMINATION
Now, drink warm water with lemon.
This is an extraordinary way to get your bowels moving and ensure proper elimination in the morning.
Other benefits are:
- Waking up your digestive system so it can start preparing itself for the next meal.
- Increasing your energy levels.
- Detoxifying your body from the inside out by flushing out toxins.
- Boosting your immune system due to the The Vitamin C found in the lemon.
- Keeping infections away.
- Balancing the PH of your body.
Ideally, after that you will eliminate. Making time for elimination is part of a healthy dinacharya.
In fact, according to Ayurveda, we should have one to three bowel movements every day. If you are not pooping daily that is a problem that could lead to serious diseases in the future. The thing is that people get used to feeling bad, but this is not normal.
If you are suffering from constipation, consider adding Triphala to make sure you are getting rid of the toxins your body accumulates on a daily basis.
3. APPLICATION OF OILS
Oil is an integral part of Ayurveda. These are the most appropriate oils for each dosha:
- Vata: sesame, almond, avocado, or bhringaraj oils
- Pitta: olive, sunflower, ghee, coconut oils
- Kapha: mustard, flaxseed, corn, canola, safflower oils
In the mornings, I suggest you use the oil that best suits you in the following ways:
Oil pulling:
Although this step is not included in ancient Ayurveda scriptures, the benefits are too good to miss. It eliminates bad bacteria from your mouth, promotes oral health, reduces bad breath, decreases gum inflammation, and overall releases all that toxic waste you don’t want in your mouth. It can even reduce CRP levels that lead to inflammation in the body.
How to do it? It is just switching oil in your mouth for a few seconds and then spitting it out. I spit it in a paper towel so I don’t clog my sink.
Gum massage:
Massaging your gums with oil can reduce oral counts of streptococcus mutans and lactobacillus bacteria, both responsible for tooth decay and plaque. Also, circulation to the gum tissue is improved, which alleviates several oral issues, like receding gums.
Ear and nose oil:
Ayurveda recommends to lubricate all our body passages.
To maintain health and longevity of your hearing, apply a little bit of oil inside the ears.
This is also great to reduce Vata, which tends to accumulate here, especially in cold and windy weather, or when travelling.
In addition, apply oil inside your nose. Prana, our vital force, is strengthened when we breathe deeply. To enhance absorption of Prana and have a smooth practice of Pranayama (breathing exercises), apply a few drops of your oil inside the nose and massage the channels with the little finger.
Limbs:
Exercising, a fundamental part of dinacharya, increases Vata dosha. That means our tissues, organs, and bones tend to get depleted. Ayurveda recommends, therefore, to nourish your body before working out.
But, not in the traditional sense of eating something. Our skin is a wonderful way to absorb nutrients too, so apply a little bit of oil to your limbs to decrease the natural Vata aggravation that occurs with activity.
Download the Ayurvedic Morning Routine Guide!
Spanish below 🙂
4. SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
Following the spiritual path that is truest to your nature is vital to heal.
We must first heal our souls to heal our bodies, therefore, dedicating a time for praying, meditating, engaging in inspirational reading, journaling, or practicing mantras must be a part of your morning routine.
The essence of healing is integration. Integration of body, mind, and spirit. This space, that you can make as short as 5 minutes, can help you grow and open your heart to the potent and divine cosmic energy.
This is the moment that adds meaning to our lives.
The moment that can help us answer the profound questions of why we are here and who we are.
I suggest you establish a specific time and place to do your spiritual practice. Decorate an altar with the images or objects that resonate with your soul. I have mine decorated with natural flowers, incense, candles, and stones.
Pranayama can be added in this step of your dinacharya. Pranayama is the sanskrit word for breathing exercises and are a potent way to increase our Prana, awaken the mind and the senses, be more mindful, and cultivate emotional and physical balance.
5. EXERCISE
Exercise is a huge part of health maintenance and disease prevention at all ages.
It helps you move your Prana throughout the body, encourages proper blood flow, increases vitality, and strengthens your Agni, or digestive power.
However, make sure you are working out in ways that serve your body type.
Under-exercising promotes the Prana to stagnate. When that happens, you will tend to suffer from depression, stiff muscles, irritability, poor elimination, and weight gain.
Over-exercising will deplete your Prana and Ojas. You’ll have less vitality, age faster, and starve your bones, organs, and tissues from the nourishment they need.
6. GETTING READY
It’s time to get ready.
Before taking a shower, do Abhyanga, a self Ayurvedic massage with warm oil that has outstanding benefits for our health. It can take about 10-15 minutes.
When doing it, consistently, at least three times per week, you will notice the following benefits:
- Nourished and hydrated skin
- Toned body
- Healthy nervous system
- Natural detoxification of the lymphatic system
- Better sleep
- Aging gracefully
- Rejuvenation
- Better circulation
- Better digestion
- Healthy elimination
Next, take a hot shower (Vata), a warm shower (Kapha) or a cool shower (Pitta).
Dress with colors that pacify your dosha, use essential oils as perfume, and nourish your skin.
Now, you can have breakfast! Try my warm ayurvedic spiced apples with a cup of fennel tea.
This 6-step Ayurvedic morning routine will help you start your day feeling balanced, clean, energetic, loving yourself, and grateful! And that my friend will surely permeate in your other activities throughout your day.
P.S. You will have lots of energy for the day ahead without having to drink a cup of coffee!!
