Right now, there are many professionals that are burning out because of remote work and not having boundaries between work/life balance. Meal prepping and batch cooking have always been a big part of my healthy lifestyle but working from home during the pandemic I realized I needed more. As a business owner there is no off switch and being stuck at home I just worked. I didn’t create healthy boundaries at first. It started to lead me to be
less creative and have a hard time making the smallest decisions. I was on the road to burnout. That is when I realized I needed to do something more substantial than just exercising and eating healthy. The mind and the gut work together and when one isn’t harmony the other is off. That is when I decided to embrace a new way of thinking and create a morning routine and create harmony again in my life once again.

My morning routine is everything to me. It is what sets me up for success each and every day. Not only is having a morning routine good for your mental health but your physical health benefits as well. You may be asking yourself why is she going on about a morning routine and what does this have to do with food? Well, fueling your mind and body properly not only as women and people in business can help you reduce stress, give you more energy and help you avoid burnout in the future. As busy professionals and women we always have a lot of stressors coming at us in our daily lives. Taking that time each day helps you start your days on a positive note and get yourself in the proper headspace. If you aren’t in the proper headspace to start the day, what happens? A chain reaction of events that starts with chaos and ends with chaos. Because you didn’t take the time to prep healthy food you skipped breakfast or grabbed something unhealthy at a coffee shop. Chaos theory is real people.

The biggest part of my routine is the meal prepping portion which I do on Sundays and Wednesdays, this is how we avoid the chaos. I find prepping food to be a meditative act. I know we all know that meal prepping is good and we should all do it. What I usually hear from people is that they are too busy and don’t have the time.

By helping yourself get ahead you are performing an act of self-care and love for yourself. If you don’t have a lot of time to prep food for the whole week, I always suggest overnight oats, smoothie packs or chia pudding. You just need to measure out the ingredients and put them into mason jar
or another resalable container. The refrigerator does the rest for you with the overnight oats and chia seed pudding. It usually only takes about 10-15 minutes. For the smoothie packs, you would just portion out the fruit and vegetables you wanted in my smoothie and freeze it . In the morning I blend it with my chosen liquid and I am ready to go. It is even a great way for kids to start learning to make their own breakfasts. I leave a container of nuts and seeds on the counter to top the overnight oats. I also like keeping prepped containers of fresh fruit in the fridge to top the oats and pudding as well. Meal prep done for breakfast. You are on your way to building a sustainable way to fuel your body every week and no excuse for skipping breakfast.

Now that you have successfully prepared your breakfasts you are ready for next steps. This is a sample of one of my morning routines. Hopefully, it will inspire you to add some of these practices into the start of your day, to help you fuel your mind and body properly.

My morning routine actually starts at night before bed:

• Set the coffee to brew for when I wake-up. ( Foodie Fuel Organic, Fair Trade and Kosher Coffee Blend of course)
• My meal prepped breakfast. – I prep several breakfasts and lunches for myself at a time.
• Lay out clothes for the morning- Workout Clothes or Regular Outfit. Takes the last-minute guess work out deciding what to wear.

In the morning :

• Drink a glass of water while the coffee brews.
• I take my time and enjoy my first cup of coffee, helping me ease into my day. It really allows me to stop and pause and not feel rushed.
• 5–10-minute meditation or breathing exercises and journaling with prompts.
• Get dressed for either my workout or for clients/meetings.
• Meal prepped breakfast such as overnight oats, smoothie or avocado toast. Second cup of coffee.

All of these tips for meal prepping and taking the time to develop a health morning routine are to help you start your day on a positive note , manage your stress and fuel your body properly.