No matter what your commute to work is like, it can get boring and make you even more tired in the morning. Routine can get monotonous, especially if you drive every day in traffic and don’t have the option to take a different route to work. Getting tired behind the wheel is dangerous, for yourself and other drivers, so don’t take the risk and instead get energized during your morning routine.
To get more energy in the morning, you don’t need to drink an extra cup of coffee. That will only lead to an inevitable caffeine crash mid-morning that will ruin your afternoon. Instead, try some of the following ideas to feel more like yourself in the morning and be mentally prepared when you arrive at work.
Wake up earlier
It sounds backward since you’d think that sleeping later would give you more energy, but waking up earlier than you usually do might be just what you need to get that extra boost in the morning. You’ll naturally feel more relaxed with more time to get things done around the house or leave a little early to beat the traffic and not have to sit in your car for as long. You’ll also have the chance to change up your morning routine a bit to give you energy in other ways.
Eat new foods
What you eat for breakfast — and you should be eating breakfast every day — impacts how you start your day. By eating foods that give you a boost, you’ll feel better on those stressful commutes and throughout your day. Try to plan time into your morning to eat at home in a relaxed environment, as opposed to hastily scarfing something down in the car on the way to work.
Fit in a workout
Some people can wake up early and eat all the right foods and still feel like they could take a nap at any point during the day. If you find that you’re one of those people, try fitting in a quick and easy morning workout. Getting your blood pumping and body moving will help wake you up, which means your drive will be safer and your day will be more productive.
Or at least take a walk
Not everyone has the drive to do a full workout in the morning. Taking a walk around your neighborhood or apartment complex will still get your body moving without the intensity. This way, you don’t start your day off just sitting in the car. Getting into the driver’s seat after a workout or a walk will begin to feel less routine and boring when your body is already energized.
Make a new playlist
It’s all too easy to zone out while you’re driving, especially if you’re listening to the quiet voices of talk radio shows or songs that don’t have a lively beat.
This common driving struggle is one of the things that inspired a study that proved that music choices actually affect your driving. Don’t let yourself sleep behind the wheel.
Create a specific morning playlist that has your favorite tunes, but be careful to choose songs that won’t distract you from having a safe commute!
According to the study, music with 60-80 beats per minute is best for driving because it typically matches the resting heart rate and doesn’t spike adrenaline in the listener.
Don’t stress out in traffic
Being stressed is a big waste of energy because people usually stress about things they can’t change. Traffic can be the most prominent stressor on the road, especially if you think it’ll make you late for work.
For those people who live in an area where traffic is a daily occurrence, try a stress-relieving breathing exercise to help you conserve your energy and feel more relaxed.
Play a brain teaser
Without getting too distracted, you can always try to play a brain teaser with yourself while you’re driving to work.
An easy one is to look at the license plates in front of you or that pass you and make acronyms out of the letters you see.
You can also find the letters of the alphabet in the signs that you pass and challenge yourself to get all the way to Z before you reach your workplace.
You may think that getting more energy in the morning and having a pleasant commute are two unrelated things, but that simply isn’t true! There are many interesting techniques that people use to boost their energy levels.
Trying new things like listening to the right music or exercising when you wake up could turn your whole morning around. All it takes is the determination to try, and you might find yourself having better days in the weeks to come.
