Your morning routine impacts the performance of your brain a lot more than you can imagine. Read on for tips and tricks that will help you optimize your brain and its performance.

Why Have a Morning Routine?

In a world filled with so many distractions, it gets hard to maintain focus. After you’re sidetracked all day, you stay up late in order to accomplish everything you want to accomplish. That can lead to a vicious cycle of exhausting yourself at night, then spending the next day tired and unfocused. It can lead to a lot of frustration.

Developing a morning routine can help you break the cycle by priming your brain for optimal performance, first thing. Here are some changes that you can incorporate into your morning routine to specifically wake up your mind power.

Start Your Day With Electrolytes

An imbalance of electrolytes can to mental fatigue, lethargy, confusion, headaches, and diarrhea.^[1]https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27939861/ That’s because your brain operates on electricity, and your electrolyte balance can affect how well your brain cells communicate with each other.

When your electrolyte balance is off, it can lead to harmful neurological manifestations.^[2]https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28190443/

Hyponatremia is a condition in which sodium levels are found to be depleted; this condition leads to headache, confusion, and neurological impairment.^[3]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5762960/

Hypokalemia is a condition in which potassium levels are lowered. It is associated with mental fatigue and dysfunction of the sensory nerves in the brain.^[4]https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10399749/

Hypomagnesemia is a condition characterized by low serum magnesium levels. Balanced magnesium levels are crucial for cerebral performance.^[5]https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9374202/

It’s not likely that you’ll slip into any of these states without an underlying cause. But, because these conditions are so serious, your body will let you know when things are off. You may experience fatigue or headaches, and you may not feel as sharp as you know you could be.

It’s best to adequately hydrate before your body has time to notice a lack. Hydration should be an essential part of your morning routine, and electrolytes can ensure that your body efficiently uses the water you’re drinking.

Hydration also helps keep the brain alert and active.

Electrolyte water contains a wide array of minerals, such as magnesium, calcium, potassium, and sodium. These minerals replenish the nutrient reserve and balance the pH levels of your body.

Sodium is one of the key electrolytes that affects brain function. It determines the functionality of neurotransmitter receptors.^[6]https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130820113931.htm

Brain-targeted Supplements

You may be new to supplements, or you may be in the habit of taking supplements for your bones or for immune support. Did you know you can give your brain extra support, too?

Adding a moring routine of brain-targeted supplements, or nootropics, can help boost your mood, help you focus, sharpen your memory, and help you maintain mental energy for longer. The key is to find the right nootropics for your goals and your biology.

You can spend time and money trying different supplements, or you can take this quiz to zero in on the right nootropics formula for you.

Movement to Increase Circulation to Your Brain

Exercising is an excellent morning routine to make sure that your brain is in top form. Getting exercise can help improve the blood flow in your brain, which is essential to get your brain working at its max. If you exercise early in the day, you may notice that your brain feels more awake throughout the day.

What kind of exercise is best for your brain?

The best type of morning exercise for your brain is the one you’ll do consistently. Anything that gets you moving for a period early in the day will do the trick.

There is an undoubtedly strong correlation between exercise and brain health. Avoiding a sedentary lifestyle and incorporating regular physical activity instead may reduce the occurrence of degenerative and aging diseases of the brain, such as Alzheimer’s disease.^[7]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6770965/ Exercise is a method of brain training that has as much of an impact on the brain as it does on the body. It effectively addresses age-related cognitive decline while enhancing brain function.^[8]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7230405/

Rather than opting for regular stretching exercises, try brain-stimulating workouts like the downward dog pose, planks, and push-ups.

Downward Dog

The downward dog is a modern yoga exercise that not only helps to straighten posture, but also helps strengthen the upper body. It positively affects the brain by enhancing blood flow, which in turn helps to distribute nutrients in the brain.

Planks

The plank workout is another great exercise that helps make the shoulder and abdominal muscles stronger. Planks make the nerves traversing the inner core muscles work more efficiently, while promoting a calmer state of mind.

Push-ups

Lastly, push-ups are a great form of exercise to promote mental health and vitality. Physically, push-ups target the upper body muscles that include the pectoralis, triceps, and shoulder muscles. It is often foreseen that push-ups may boost mental health as well, and may enhance focus while decreasing anxiety.

Free-write

First thing in the morning, take out a pen and paper and write whatever comes to you. There’s something about your thoughts flowing from your mind to your pen that flexes your mental muscles in the morning.

If you’re struggling at first, do a quick search for “journal prompts” or “writing prompts” and pick one that speaks to you.

Morning Meditation

While many of us still find meditation to be an unfamiliar concept, it is an amazing way of optimizing your brain that actually provides good results. Once you start using meditation, you will notice a few changes in the way you view the world and also your overall mindset.

By this, we do not mean that you will suddenly be a kinder person that’s extremely happy all the time, but you will be able to reduce your stress levels and actually get a better work ethic out of it. Taking out a piece of paper and writing down a few things that you want to do during the day is also an effective way of staying focused on what you want to do.

Fewer Brain Blips. More Brain Power.

If you’re like most people, you don’t want one more thing to do in the morning before it’s time to start your work day. However, taking a few minutes to prime yourself for a productive day can make you feel more focused and ready for optimal brain activity.