Crafting the Perfect Morning: The Science Unveiled
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Mornings often come with a dose of bad news: caffeine, contrary to popular belief, might not be your best ally right after waking. Drinking coffee immediately can actually be detrimental to your health.
We'll delve into this topic shortly.
During quarantine, I aimed to establish not just a morning schedule but a meaningful morning ritual. My first step? A quick internet search.
"Top Tips for a Better Morning"
"Morning Habits That Will Transform Your Life"
Numerous articles shared similar advice, each promising, "This is the ultimate morning routine. Follow these steps for a stress-free start, an easy day, and a joyful life!"
I endeavored to create a morning routine that mirrored these suggestions. I set my alarm for 5:30 am daily, engaged in a brief stretching session, enjoyed breakfast, soaked up some sunlight, and read a few pages.
As I tried to incorporate these habits into my life, I sensed something was off.
I found myself questioning the necessity of each task. Deep down, I wondered, "Must I do this every single day? Is it worth it? Does this routine even yield results?"
I’ve always felt that when people are instructed to perform actions without understanding their purpose, it feels like meaningless labor. This can be especially daunting if the tasks seem overwhelming.
This is where many of these articles fall short. When they prescribe various activities, mornings can feel like just another checklist. Instead of searching for what morning habits are effective, I shifted my focus to why they work.
This change in mindset allowed my morning routine to transform into something I genuinely look forward to. I now take pride in understanding its benefits—knowing it actively enhances my performance.
Thus, from my enthusiasm for mornings, I wish to present a fresh perspective on crafting a morning ritual. Rather than blindly adopting popular habits endorsed by various sources or successful figures, it’s far more beneficial (and engaging!) to grasp the underlying reasons these habits are recommended.
There’s no one-size-fits-all morning formula. The true essence of a successful morning lies in the science behind it.
Whether you're a morning enthusiast seeking more structure or someone indifferent to early hours, I respect your stance. However, you might still discover valuable insights to enhance your well-being, irrespective of your wake-up time.
Hacking Your Way into a Great Morning
In my experience, an effective morning ritual should meet two main criteria: (1) It should enhance your performance, and (2) It shouldn't make you dread the start of your day.
This narrative focuses on the first criterion. It's crucial to recognize that peak performance can only be achieved when our bodies are primed for it.
Certain morning habits are recommended because they stimulate hormones and neurotransmitters, ensuring our internal systems function optimally and allowing us to navigate our day smoothly.
In a detailed article, Professor Benjamin Hardy elucidates:
>Your body operates as a chemical entity—releasing chemicals that shape emotions… Essentially, your physical self is your subconscious mind, which governs approximately 95% of your actions.
The fundamental concept is this: Chemical X influences specific bodily or mental functions. This, in turn, impacts us—our energy, mood, emotions, cognitive abilities, etc.—which ultimately drives our behavior. Thus, consistently supporting or regulating chemical X enhances well-being and performance.
So, the key to a successful morning lies in hormonal balance.
Your primary players are dopamine, serotonin, and cortisol.
Unlike the fleeting energy boost from caffeine, these hormones can genuinely sustain you throughout the day.
When treated well, understood, and harmonized with each other and your body's other functions, they can significantly enhance your well-being. They uplift your mood, maintain your energy, support your health, and optimize your performance.
However, a word of caution: The interplay of various chemicals and factors influences our emotions and behaviors. While we can't control everything, we can certainly take actionable steps toward improvement.
Your 3 Chemical Allies
Consider this: A common piece of advice is to exercise early in the morning—be it a 45-minute HIIT workout, a 30-minute run, or a 15-minute yoga session. However, the emphasis shouldn't be on the duration or intensity of the workout, but rather on the fact that simply moving in the morning activates the right chemicals in your body.
In this section, I'll introduce your three best allies. I won’t list specific actions; instead, I've outlined principles to help you effectively "connect" with them. It's your choice how to weave these into your morning routine.
Dopamine to Ignite Your Motivation
Dopamine is so crucial that a diet has been established around it—yes, the Dopamine Diet.
This hormone is essential for our motivation, productivity, and focus.
Imagine waking up each day filled with excitement and eagerness to tackle your tasks! While motivation is often seen as a resource to be replenished, science suggests otherwise.
Motivation is merely a response to stimuli. We feel "motivated" when dopamine activates a specific brain region, predicting potential rewards or punishments, prompting us to take action.
Motivation can be either intrinsic or extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation stems from the joy, challenge, and novelty of an activity—without any external prompts. Conversely, extrinsic motivation is reliant on external factors like recognition or rewards.
Both forms of motivation have their advantages, but intrinsic motivation is typically linked to sustained engagement, meaningful work, and happiness derived from entering a "flow" state.
Therefore, your morning routine should aim to (1) regulate dopamine levels and (2) create space for intrinsic motivators.
Here are ways to nurture your dopamine levels:
- Complete a task (even something as simple as making your bed)
- Engage in an enjoyable activity for at least 10 minutes
- Consume tyrosine-rich foods (since tyrosine is a precursor to dopamine)
- Recognize small victories and blessings (Bonus tip: Here's an interesting idea from The Forge)
Serotonin for Emotional Stability
Known as the "feel-good" hormone, serotonin is just as vital as dopamine. Beyond just boosting our mood, it influences social behavior, appetite, digestion, sleep patterns, memory, sex drive, motor skills, and cognitive function. An imbalance in serotonin can lead to mood disorders, poor memory, cravings, sleep issues, aggression, and anxiety.
Upon waking, we desire to feel good, calm, and focused, with a stable mood throughout the day. Serotonin helps achieve this, provided levels are maintained.
This hormone is produced by converting the amino acid tryptophan. It's important to note that serotonin cannot cross the blood-brain barrier, meaning we need sufficient tryptophan for our brains to produce serotonin.
Thus, your morning rituals should assist in (1) balancing overall serotonin levels and (2) increasing brain serotonin.
Here are ways to support serotonin production:
- Expose yourself to bright light
- Exercise (any aerobic activity boosts serotonin)
- Consume tryptophan-rich foods with complex carbohydrates (carbs facilitate tryptophan's access to the brain)
- Prioritize quality sleep
- Practice gratitude or maintain a positive outlook
Regulating Cortisol to Manage Stress
Cortisol is key when it comes to managing stress. This "stress hormone" activates the body's fight-or-flight mechanism in response to threats.
The natural rhythm of cortisol production is as follows: upon waking, the body begins to generate cortisol, peaking within the first hour—a phenomenon known as the Cortisol Awakening Response. This spike grants us a morning energy boost. Throughout the day, levels remain steady but may fluctuate in response to stressors, tapering off by nightfall.
Healthy cortisol levels stabilize mood. However, in today's world, various factors can easily disrupt this balance. Work pressures, personal issues, social media, relationships, and the complexities introduced by the pandemic can all elevate cortisol levels, often for prolonged periods if we aren’t careful.
Excess cortisol can hinder our ability to handle stress and inadvertently suppress dopamine and serotonin levels!
Therefore, your morning routine should aim to (1) manage cortisol levels and (2) minimize stress.
Here are ways to keep cortisol levels in check:
- Stay hydrated
- Delay your coffee intake (as caffeine can spike cortisol, compounding the issue if consumed in the morning)
- Seek sunlight (simply opening your curtains helps!)
- Avoid unnecessary stressors (as Jay Z said, "You got 99 problems," so don’t let your morning be one)
- Engage in a relaxing activity
Now that you have a better understanding of your new allies, it’s time to welcome them into your routine.
Experiment without overwhelming yourself by trying to incorporate too many changes at once. My research didn’t indicate that doing more in the morning guarantees a better day. Moreover, personalize these habits in ways that resonate with you!
Start small. Test one or two habits for a week and observe any changes in your mood and energy. Did you feel less sluggish? Did your energy levels last longer? Were you more focused or driven?
Creating an effective morning ritual empowers you to take control of your mind and body. By adopting smart habits, you can think more clearly, feel balanced, and enhance your performance.
So, understand these habits, take ownership of them, and make your body work for you.