My ultimate morning routine to feel balanced, boost happiness, increase efficiency and reduce stress starts at 6:40AM. I like to wake up before my husband and the kids. This way I can focus ONLY on myself!

The first thing I do is to have a cup of warm water and a slice of lemon. This helps my metabolism to wake up as well.

Actually, my morning routine starts the evening before when I make a list of the things I need to do and achieve on the following day. I have set a system at home where everyone prepares their clothes for the next day before they go to bed. This includes also clothes to any activity the kids or I may have (horse back ridding, parkour, gym, swimming, etc). The kids need to prepare their own clothes based on the weather. My husband and I just supervise. This removes any potential drama and stress in the morning as they decided what to wear.

After drinking my lemon water, I put on some relaxing music and do 10-15 minutes yoga followed by 5 minutes meditation. My favorite place to train is by the glass door that leads to our deck as it has a lot of natural light. Depending on the weather I open the door to get fresh air during my exercising. During summer I train outdoors at the deck.

Then I change the music to a more upbeat and do 7 minutes workout of core and HIT (high intensity training) before jumping into a cold shower. Yes! Cold shower! It’s amazing to activate circulation, improve immune response, reduce stress, increase alertness.  Check out the techniques from Wim Hof- The Iceman.

I then get ready: clothes, serum and creams, make-up. At this time, my kids start to wake up. I always dedicate few minutes to hug and cuddle with the kids in the morning. They are so calm and huggable….It’s so cozy! And it fills me with joy!

While the kids get ready, my husband or I make breakfast. We normally eat oatmeal with jam or honey, berries and fruits. If we are still hungry, then we have also a toast or Swedish crispbread.