Is It Time For A Change?

At this challenging time in our lives, it is now more important than ever to create and maintain a routine.

It does not matter what that routine is, or what it looks like, but by establishing some form of regularity in our lives, means it can go a long way to helping our overall mood, mental health and well-being.

Having no routine or structure within our lives is so much more draining mentally, physically, and emotionally than any routine could ever be!

Why Create a Routine?

Establishing a positive daily routine is both a self-investment and a way to do your best for the rest of the world, especially as our modern world can often be hectic and unbalanced at times.

It also provides many additional benefits to your lives, such as giving you much-needed structure and building good habits, that allow us to move forward in a positive way, thus creating opportunities for you to develop a momentum that will carry you on the days when you feel you want to give up.

Following a daily routine can help you to establish essential priorities in your life. It limits the possibilities of you procrastinating too much, and it helps you to keep track of personal goals, and a positive routine can even make you healthier. 

A good routine can lower your reliance on willpower and helps motivate you to not slip back into bad habits now and then.

Build On Experiences

By establishing and then following a daily routine, it is clear that I have more drive, motivation, and passion, to complete activities, which makes reaching my daily goals easier and it makes the small things in life even more fulfilling. 

In my case, I choose to cycle daily to work. I run and walk as much as I can, and I have a day job that continues to inspire me, motivates me, and leaves me wanting to do more and more, even though I find it tiring.

As a result of these positive additions to my life, I have more physical and mental energy to make it through the day, even on those tough days. I generally feel happier and more satisfied with the overall quality and direction my life.

Without these regular routines, I know I would easily slip into back bad habits. I think most of us would! So, by integrating this new mode of thinking, it reminds me that I am adding something good and worthwhile.

So What Can You Do?

There are so many things you can do to establish a positive daily routine, but the most important thing to remember is to stop talking about it and get on with the task in hand.

We are very good at talking the talk, but when it comes down to the nitty-gritty, we tend to shy away from what is our reality and attempt to feel better by thinking up an excuse not to do things. 

Therefore, I feel the critical starting point for you to build on is to priorities and focus on something that you enjoy, something achievable, and then give it a go!

With that in mind, I have made one or two positive suggestions you could choose to do today.

On Your Bike

Cycling is my go-to sport. It is a fantastic form of exercise, but it is also an excellent mode of transport, that allows you to establish a positive daily routine. 

Around five years ago, I decided to ditch the car and means of public transport. Subsequently, I decided my routine would involve my love of cycling and the ride to work. 

At first this was new and felt quite alien to me, but I soon got into the new routine it created. Of course, it can be challenging at times, especially when the weather is cold, the mornings are dark and the rain is lashing down. By adopting this new way of life, it has brought many positives and these tend to far outweigh anything else.

Through this blog and from what I continue to read fresh air is exceptionally good for the mind, body and soul. Daily exercise through this popular low impact form of exercise is good for the muscles and joints. It keeps you moving and hopefully allow us to remain youthful for longer.

Cycling continues to save you money, and it undoubtedly has a positive impact on the natural environment. All you need to do is find the benefits yourself and encourage others to do the same.

Walking

Regular walking is an exercise so easy to do, yet it is something many of us don't do enough of, as we have become so used to reaching for the car keys or opting to use using other modes of transport. 

I have always felt going for a regular walk is a part of life, and by integrating into your daily routine, you will undoubtedly reap the benefits.

It is free, and it is an exercise you can do right outside your front door. Of course, it is fair to suggest that we would all love to walk daily along the beach, in an alpine mountain range or through glorious coniferous woodland. 

These are dream locations, but they need not deter you from doing it, as once again, the benefits of undertaking such actions will far outweigh the negatives. 

If you look, the world is awash with walking challenges that encourage us to take on a new challenge or if that is not for you, you could easily integrate it into the things you do every day, like walking to work or taking the children to school. 

It would help if you motivated yourself to do it and managed your time wisely so that it becomes part of your routine.

Write A Daily To-Do List

Moving away from exercise, but equally, something that has many great benefits for yourself and your everyday life is a daily to do list. 

It helps you to focus on your day and be motivated for what lies ahead. Making this list personal to you is essential as it can allow you to establish a clear routine in your life that can often be overlooked by ourselves.

At work, I maintain an ongoing task list on my Google Keep app. It integrates nicely between my phone and computer, and it not only has work tasks for me to complete but it reminders me of things I should be doing for myself.  

In Google Keep, I put the essential jobs in my planner and then focus on them throughout the day. I tick them off once completed and usually add something new.

It is simple, and I find it helps me plan my day in a way that allows me to get the most out of it and not meander through random tasks. 

Creating a to-do list always keeps me on task. It allows me to understand all the essential points that I need to do. As a result, it makes it more likely that I will complete my tasks on time and to my satisfaction.

Eat Healthy Food

Above I have highlighted several forms of exercise and tasks that will bring structure to your day and make it more productive, but did you know that the foods you choose to eat can help with this too? 

Yes, that's right! Food is fundamental to us and the items we choose to consume every day can affect how well our brain functions, ultimately making it easier or more difficult for us to achieve our daily goals.

Science research has found that our brain operates at its maximum when we consume a particular amount of glucose (25 grams, to be exact) in the form that is released slowly over time. 

Foods that fall into this category begin to have an overall positive effect on our body and mind—keeping our mind sharp and healthy throughout the day. 

Many foods can have the desired effect on our health and well-being; those include:

• Fish

• Nuts

• Seeds

• Grains

• Avocado

• Blueberries

• Vegetables

• Dark chocolate

By consuming these foods and adding them to your daily diet will undoubtedly produce benefits in the long term .

Drink More Water

Water is so vital to our bodies, yet nearly all of us will probably fall foul to not drinking enough water daily. Do you fall into this group? I know I often do!

If so, not drinking enough water can mean your body is not hydrated enough and this can quickly leave you feeling tired, result in frequent headaches, and also lowers your strength and stamina making any routine challenging to maintain, let alone keep.

One way to overcome this all-too-common occurrence is to carry water with you at all times and have it as your go-to drink. Carry it in a water bottle or have a larger jug placed near your work space.

Establish a routine and drink a full glass of water first thing in the morning. Drinking water not only starts the hydration process but also gets rid of any unwanted toxins your body will have stored overnight.

Make sure you drink during and after exercise and ensure that you have water with each meal. Furthermore, eliminate other drinks that tend to be full of sugar or unwanted additives. These are not good for you and will undoubtedly harm your body and how it functions. 

The science tells us that we should be sipping water throughout the day and establishing a recommended intake of the following:

For men, their daily requirement of two litres of water is equivalent to just over three and a half pints. 

For women, their recommended intake of 1.6 litres of water is the equivalent of just under three pints.

Learn Something New (every day!)

Learning something new is always very welcoming, and maintaining a focused and open mind to things will make you happier in the long run.

People are apprehensive about learning new things as they often feel it causes them stress in the short-term. Once you reach your level of comfort, the result is a higher level of life satisfaction, making it more than worth the initial uneasiness.

There are many things you could learn and for myself, I have recently rekindled my love of art. I decided one day to buy myself a sketchbook, together with pencils and also watercolour paints.

I then find time during the evening, when all goes quiet to open up a project and complete something new. Of course, I'm a novice but have a desire to keep on learning, so teaching yourself is often a great way.

Likewise maintaining a blog keeps you busy too! Finding time to write and develop ideas is not always easy, but through interest and determination, anything is possible.

I Might Not Have All The Answers

Life has many questions, but through the things that I read and what I learn I can offer suggestions that will hopefully encourage you to make subtle changes and improve your life. Of course, like I have mentioned many times before, there are no set rules and no particular way of doing things. All you really need to do is stop planning, stop talking and do something about it.

Thanks for reading and for more information or to collaborate please say hello@garethmate.com

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Linked Blog Post: Do More Of What Makes You Happy.