A = Activity

According to fitness expert, personal trainer and founder of Yes Please Fitness, Katharine Busby, the best place to start your morning routine is in bed. “Move your pillows so that you’re lying flat on your mattress, bring your arms above your head and stretch while also flexing and extending your feet (so your toes point towards and then away from you a number of times),” Katharine explains.

“Next, bring your knees up and hug them to your chest. Hold and release, then roll onto your side and swing your legs over the side of the bed.”

Katharine advises following with some dynamic movements. “Running through a series of yoga moves may be the best thing to suit your morning mood, such as sun salutations. But try to keep a flow going - no relaxing in child’s pose for ten minutes and then thinking you’re sorted.”

Alternatively, Katharine suggests trying five workout moves to get a mix of cardio and bodyweight activity. They are:

Reverse lunge
Squat
Cross jacks
Wall climbers
High plank leg lifts

Hold each one for 45 seconds and take a 15 second rest in between. Then repeat depending on how much time you have.

B = Breathe

Spending a few minutes in the morning focussing on our breath is crucial, says Dr Rangan Chatterjee, as it prevents us from starting the day off with a reactive mindset.

“By going inwards and finding a calm centre, before we see anyone or do anything, we are building our inner strength and resilience – giving us the tools to deal with the day ahead,” he says.

Dr Rangan advises trying the simple but very effective 3-4-5 breath, where you breathe in for three counts, hold for four counts, breathe out for five, and then repeat.

C = Consciousness

This is where it’s worth taking some time the night before to think about what soothes and inspires you.

It could be reading a couple of pages from a self-help book or a collection of poems that you keep on your bedside table, or listening to a guided meditation on an app like Calm or Insight Timer.

A popular method is writing a list of all the things you’re grateful for in a journal and making a quick plan of what you want to do that day. You could also try repeating a simple affirmation ten times such as “I’m happy, calm and stress free.”

“The key is to have something in mind so that you can turn to it as soon as you wake, as this is the part of the routine that will set the tone for the rest of the day,” says Dr Rangan.

If you are struggling with your mental health during lockdown, you can get information and support on the NHS Every Mind Matters or visit the Mind website.

4 simple morning routines that could help you have a better day