The Power of Routine (With or Without the Kale Smoothie)
Routine gets a bad rap sometimes. All too often, the first things that come to mind when someone says ‘routine’ are the shrill sounds of a much-too-early morning alarm, a sun salutation yoga flow long before your bones should have to be awake, and a kale power smoothie because someone somewhere swore it would help you shed a few pounds. I mean, ‘routine’ sounds like a nightmare at this point, doesn’t it?
Wrong! Sure, there’s something to be said for going with the flow. I have to hand it to them; The Big Bang Theory was doing something right with Anything-Can-Happen-Thursdays, where the main characters debunk their own regular schedules every third Thursday of the month and do whatever happens naturally. The power of c’est la vie often leads to freeing and exciting adventures, serving as a reminder that good things can happen when you surrender a little bit of control.
But it’s important to note that routine is also a key player in mental health. Go ahead; gripe and groan at the thought of your alarm clock all you want, but research indicates that routine has far-reaching psycho-logical benefits beyond just feeling good about your accomplishments any given day. In fact, routine can be a combatant against addiction, insomnia, bipolar disorder, and ADHD.
You might be wondering: “How in the world can my kale power smoothie do that?!”
First of all, routine can alleviate the significant anxiety that often comes with change. There is consolation in knowing that no matter how your day plays out in regard to the things you don’t have control over, the things that you do have control over remain the same. Especially as of late, when the world seems to have a new curveball around every corner: Relying on your dinner around 6pm or your two-mile run first thing every morning brings your mind accessible comfort and immediately helps dissipate anxiety.
Routine is a catalyst for creativity. If you do something with enough regularity, eventually your mind stops thinking about how it’s done, so to speak. When your mind goes on autopilot and cooks your omelet without a second thought, it is instead leaving room for other things, like finally getting around to planning your new work-from-home office space or brainstorming ideas for your next blog post, for example. Even famous creative minds like Beethoven and Freud were known for optimizing their own daily routines and taking advantage of the creativity that can come from the deep dive into unconscious thought. So even if composing the next world-renowned piano concerto isn’t in your near future, increased creativity sure is.
Routine reminds you that you’re a powerhouse in at least one thing every single day, encouraging confidence and stress relief. I already know you’re a powerhouse in a lot of things— Maybe you can consistently run a fifteen-minute 5K. Maybe you’re the top-performing accountant at your firm or a heck of a kindergarten teacher. You’re probably a great parent and an accomplished part of the work force, to boot. Goodness, maybe you’re even Michael Phelps himself! But unfortunately, we simply can’t be good at what we do every single day, hence the term “off days.” But it turns out that a routine has less off days once you commit to it and get it down to a science. Before you know it, you’ll be a routine powerhouse. That kale smoothie you’ve been dreading? It’s about to be Michelin-star level.
“Maybe I DO want to write a world-renowned concerto! Where do I start?”
First of all, keep in mind that creating (and sticking to) a routine is not something you can necessarily achieve overnight. It takes an estimated 66 days to turn a behavior to a habit, so if you put a number of habits together in consecutive order, it may require a little bit of patience. Start small, and pick one thing every week to implement, rather than overwhelming yourself with a massive overhaul of your daily schedule.
Start by sitting down with a pen and paper. List all of the things you typically achieve in a day (your job, eating breakfast, going for a walk, what-have-you) and all of the things you hope to achieve in a day (painting a watercolor because it brings you joy, clocking a mile jog as you work towards running that half marathon, etc.). Then deduce it to a realistic amount, prioritizing the necessary things (for example, I would still encourage you to go to work) and the things that you anticipate will bring you the most joy.
Leave room for adjustments. As with anything new that you might integrate into your life, it may take some tweaking to get into a rhythm. It could be the case that journaling an hour a day isn’t serving you as much as biking an hour a day is. In that case: Goodbye journaling! Or perhaps you really enjoy sitting down to breakfast with a book, but you didn’t originally allot enough time for it— Go ahead and tack an-other fifteen minutes on! All in all, be patient with the process and keep the end goal in mind: A healthier being in the long run.
“So what you’re saying is: Yoga and painting should be in my routine schedule?”
Perhaps, but not necessarily! These are just a couple of activities that you might consider adding to your routine if they bring you joy and/or have a beneficial outcome to your personal growth. Here is a list of further additions you might dream up for your new routine: • Open the curtains as soon as you wake up and let that sunshine in!
- Drink a glass of water first thing in the morning to jump start your metabolic processes. Your body will thank you later.
- Enjoy your work-from-home lunch break on the front porch swing while you catch up on the latest book club pick.
- Make a to do list of the out-of-the-ordinary tasks that you need to get done that day.
- Listen to a podcast while you make breakfast. Not only are you doing something practical and necessary by preparing nourishment, but you are learning something new while you’re at it!
- Read good news. It is all well and good to absorb a healthy amount of social media a day, but studies show that just five minutes of negative news can impact your entire day. Try following accounts like @upworthy and @goodnews_movement for a little dose of happy news to get your day off to a great start.
- Work through ten minutes of emails to kick start your productivity. This is especially helpful if you tend to identify as a Type A personality and need to feel accomplished right off the bat.
- Make your bed. This also seems like a no-brainer, but it is often overlooked and is visual proof that you have your life together, even if only in your bedroom.
- Take care of your plants as soon as you get off work.
- Take your dog for a walk around the block and say hello to all of the neighbors out on their front porch-es. A little reminder of community, especially in these isolating times, goes a long way.
- Put your phone away an hour before bedtime, instead spending that time journaling the events of your day to promote a better night’s sleep.
Ultimately, a routine will be beneficial to your mental health in the long run by eliminating stress and anxiety. Be patient with yourself and the changes in your lifestyle as you go, and please let me know how I can help you as you work towards a healthier and happier mindset.
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Resources:
The Secret Benefit of Routines: It Won’t Surprise You
Northwestern Medicine: Health Benefits Of Having A Routine
