12 Most Decaffeinated Ways to Start Your Day with a Boom, Boom, POW!!

Stumbled upon this post by Hope Bertram.  It is a different take on the usual morning routine and how to get going…..showing 12 unique ways to starting your day and getting going without the usual influx of caffeine and energy drinks!! I might just try this……..one day!!

Taken from: The 12 Most…

    It’s 6:00 AM.  The alarm goes off, shocking you awake long enough to hit the snooze button.  You roll over, grab your phone, half awake, scroll through any pressing tweets or emails you may have missed while you were sleeping.  You get out of bed and grab coffee.   If you work from home, you walk a few steps and plop down at your computer and start your day.  If you work in an office, you head to the shower, get ready, leave the house and make your way to the office via train, car or bus.  You get to work, grab some coffee, take a minute to check-in and hear about the office gossip and then plop yourself down in front of your computer.

By 10 AM you’re ready for a nap, so you grab some more coffee and on the way back to your desk grab a few fun size candy bars that are strategically placed within viewing distance of your desk.

Here are a few ways you can start your day that don’t involve caffeine or extra calories and will give you longer lasting energy than a caffeine buzz.

1. Unplug!!

I learned this tip thanks to Tim Sanders.  In his latest book, “Today we are Rich”, he recommends, taking the first hour of your day to wake-up and treat yourself right.  Wait before you check your email, send a tweet or answer a text.  This gives your body time to wake up naturally and also gives you some “me” time before the rush of information comes at you.

2. Take a hike!

Or a bike ride, or jog or anything else that gets your heart pumping.  It will get your body moving, clear your head and get your brain cells firing! If you’re totally out of shape, just go 10 minutes to start with and build up from there.  It will get easier and you’ll be able to go further every time.  When I started out this season, I walk/jogged about 30 minutes, mostly walking.  I used a great running program called Couch to 5K and I’m up to jog/walking 1 hour and 20 minutes.  Don’t worry if you’re SUPER SLOW like me (about a 13 minute mile)  Just take it at your own pace and make sure you are getting your heart rate up enough to get a workout.  I use a Polar heart rate monitor and completely recommend one.

3. Happy dance

This one sounds a little goofy, but it is effective.  Just play some music and start to move.  Need inspiration?  Check out the Stride Gum guy.  He’s got the happy dance down.

4. Write down five things you are thankful for

It’s so easy to think about what you don’t have, what someone else has that you want, how you messed up that last conversation or proposal, etc.  Well we are all truly blessed and lucky.  My guess is that everyone reading this has far more than 5 things to be thankful for.  Write at least five of them down.  It will help to frame the day and put you in a positive mood.

5. Thank five people who’ve helped you in the past week

At least of few of the things you are thankful for have special people behind them who helped make them happen.  Give ‘em a ring, text them or pick up the phone and tell them you appreciate them.  You’ll make their day and perk yourself up in the process.

6. Healthy green drink

If you are what you eat, a healthy green drink will leave you feeling a lot better than a doughnut or French toast with a side of bacon.  There are lots of variations to the green drink.  Some involve kale, spinach or other greens.  My favorite is frozen pineapple chunks, banana, apple, green grapes and spinach.   You need a powerful blender for this power drink.  I have a Vitamix, which I love, but there are others.  I recommend a Vitamix type blender over a juicer, which strips away all the fiber.

7. Take a Walk to the EL and Back

If you work from home and don’t have an actual commute, pretend you do.  Walk to the el, train or bus and back.

8. Listen to happy  music

This one is pretty self explanatory.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Plain White T’s – Rhythm of Love:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yIoOixW9dw

Jason Marz – I’m Yours:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYhrYHmUPn0

And Ironically:

Bruno Mars – The Lazy Song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLexgOxsZu0

9. Check out Boo, the cutest dog in the world

He has 1.4MM FaceBook Fans. He’s perky and adorable.  Definitely an instant pick me up

10. Read something inspirational

A quote a day calendar, Chicken Soup for the Soul, etc…  There are hundreds of options out there.  Find one that works for you and take a sec to think about it.  Want to spread the inspiration?  Tweet it or post it on your Facebook wall.

11. Touch base with a buddy

Schedule a call with a friend to talk about goals for the day and how you will achieve them.  Listen to them and see what they up to.  Set deadlines for tasks and hold each other accountable.  Like a nice workout, talking to someone will get your brain firing and the thoughts flowing.

12. POWER LIST!!

Write down everything you need to do for the day, a complete brain dump of everything you can think of.  If you want to get fancy, categorize by project and add an A/B/ C to indicate which is most important/least.  Credit to that last tip goes to Franklin Covey or one of the many training classes I took while in the corporate world.  Cross off items as you complete them.  There’s a nice feeling that comes with crossing things off a list.

So try a few of these out each day and see how it impacts your productivity and energy level.  Is there something that’s not on the list that helps you to wake-up and get moving?  Do you have a list of favorite – “get the day moving” songs?  Would love to hear what you all do to get a kick-start.

Photo credit courtesy of via Creative Commons.