Today Started Yesterday

If you've read much of anything or know me in person, you know that I talk a lot about living one day at a time.  I really believe that and have been working for years to learn to be present in today, not losing time lamenting about the past or over-anticipating tomorrow.  So, what's up with today's post?   Well, in a very real way, today started yesterday.  You see, how you ended yesterday has a huge impact on how you started today.  Good habits at the end of each day will help set you up for success the following day.

As a sleep deprived mom of an infant, I'm a work in progress, but these are habits I incorporated before becoming a mom.  I don't do these things every day, but many days I do - and when I do, my morning goes much smoother, setting the tone for the day.  Here are some of the things I try to do at the end of each day to help tomorrow be better:

• Select and lay out clothes and shoes for the next day. This is a simple one, but it keeps me from wasting time staring at the closet half asleep trying to decide what to wear.
• Prepare and pack breakfast, snacks, and lunch for myself and my sweetheart.  If I'm sending my hubs to work with leftovers, I go ahead and pack them in separate containers for him when I'm putting away dinner and put out his lunchbox so I remember to fill it up before he heads out.  I sometimes make overnight oats or boil eggs for early morning eats.
• Use the delay settings for coffee, so it's ready when I am.  Even if you don't have an automatic setting, go ahead and do everything except hit brew and you're ahead of the game.
• Get ready for my workout.  I put shoes, workout clothes and my gear out and ready for me.  You might put them in your bag in the car, beside the bed, etc. so you remove one barrier/excuse (I forgot my shoes/shorts/yoga mat) by making it easy for yourself.
• Write and/or review my to-do list for the next day.   I keep a running to do list on my smart phone so that I can just refer to it as needed.  (See this post about the app I use for this.)  Before turning in, I take a moment to review what's coming up the next day.  I have less surprises, forget fewer important things, and feel better prepared to take on whatever it is when I do this.
• Practice active gratitude.  I take time to think about and thank God for the gifts of the day.  When I'm off - not quite myself emotionally and spiritually - I write them down to remind myself of how blessed my life is, but usually I just mentally review the list of amazing blessings in my life.  This brings a calm sense of peace to the end of my day.

All of these are small things and they only take 15 minutes or so to do the night before when I've got plenty of time and am in no hurry.  Fifteen minutes leisurely spent preparing for the next day is easy the night before.  Fifteen minutes in the morning is sometimes hard to come by.  Plus, I hate to start my day feeling like I'm running behind - I never quite feel like I've caught up.

The last thing I try to do is go to bed early enough.  Getting the right quantity and quality of sleep is essential to good health.  Being sleep deprived has been linked to overweight and obesity, heart disease, depression, and a variety of other health conditions.  Give yourself the gift of a better start tomorrow by starting tonight.  Prepare for tomorrow and sleep well tonight.  Be healthy!