- Mar 29, 2019

How to Crush Your Morning Routine!!

Crushing your morning routine is easy... you just need to find the right equation for you, then repeat it until it becomes a habit!

If there’s one question I get more than anything in my DMs, it’s about my morning routine….

More specifically: “how the hell do you get up so early and get to the gym every day?!” I wanted to break it down, including what I eat for breakfast, because it’s all inter-related.

Truth is, there’s a very specific reason I go to the gym as early as I do:

The less time I have to think about it, the more likely I am to go.

Also, once my tummy is super full, I have a harder time motivating myself to jump around - that’s why my breakfast choices are super important. Pregnant or not, I usually wake up a little nauseous (anyone else??) and need to “anchor” my stomach with a bit of food, but not too much to bog me down. Then, post-workout I’ll have a little something else.

Breaking up my breakfast into two small portions helps me achieve my morning goals and sustains me through to lunchtime. I’m a huge fan of Health Warrior products, so I’m going to show you my brekkie go-tos using their products, because I love how they fuel my day.

Here's what a typical morning looks like at NYCfitfam HQ:

4:30am - WAKE UP

Wake up time is usually between 4:30 and 4:45am. George and I cherish a little together time in the morning to chat, meditate, and enjoy each other’s company before the day gets going.

5:00am - BREAKFAST #1

I favor oatmeal, but this is all about portion control. A standard serving size for oatmeal is ½ cup of dry oats mixed with 1 cup of water. No need for sugar if you add a scoop of Health Warrior’s yummy Superfood Protein Powder. It’s plant-based with superfoods & probiotics, and each serving has 20g of protein and only 1-2 grams of sugar.

First I microwave the oats & water, then stir in the protein and a handful of blueberries. Finally, I splash the whole mixture with almond milk and let it sit for a few minutes while I get dressed in my gym clothes. By the time I get to it, it’s the perfect consistency.

Oatmeal with protein starts my day right

If I wake up too late for oatmeal (hey, it happens), then I’ll grab a bar. Again, the key is portion control, and Health Warrior bars are perfect for this, because they’re only 100 calories with 3g of sugar. My favorite flavors are Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Vanilla Almond, and Mango.

We all know that Chia seeds are the bomb dot com - if you want to know more about them, read the book Born to Run by Christopher McDougall… fun fact, it inspired the inception of Health Warrior as a brand!

6AM - WORKOUT:

I try to book a 6am workout at least 3 days a week. George and I switch off Mason wake-up duties in the morning, but he usually allows me to “take” the extra weekday because he’s a gem and a sweetheart!

My go-to workouts in the morning are:

Barry’s Bootcamp

SoulCycle

Barre or Yoga (at Equinox, the gym we belong to)

I switch it up depending on what my body needs.

7:30am - HOME & MOMMY DUTY

By the time I get back home, George has Mason up and moving, and I get to spend a bit of quality time with him at the breakfast table. There's nothing better then having a little nibble & hang time before we start our day.

Mommy time in the morning is a precious gift

8:30am - BREAKFAST #2:

My second breakfast is determined by two things:

1. How much I ate during my first breakfast

2. How hard I worked out

First, I make sure to drink a lot of water too so I’m not “tricked” into thinking I need more than I really do. Then, I intuitively assess what my body is truly craving.

I love things that help me with portion control, so Health Warrior’s Protein Mug Muffins are a huge winner for me. You pop the top, add water, microwave for a minute, and the whole thing fluffs up into a spoonable muffin with 12g of plant based protein and only 6 grams of sugar. I like to add almond milk, and the whole thing gets gooey like bread pudding… it’s truly heaven, and has only 260 calories, plus the almond milk.

Health Warrior Protein Mug Muffins

My other post-workout staple is a smoothie… George and I came up with this concoction that literally tastes like Birthday Cake using Health Warrior’s plant-based protein powder. We swapped out the typical smoothie base of banana for cauliflower, which greatly reduces carbs.

We simply combine:

- Health Warrior’s Vanilla Protein Powder

- Almond Milk

- Cauliflower

- Strawberries

- Agave

...and it’s HEAVENLY!!