One aspect of Yoga is becoming aware of your daily routine. How do you create little rituals to keep your flame of consciousness burning brightly. For me the way I wake up in the morning and the way I go to bed at night are extremely important. For some reason these two times of day can either break or make my day. Wish I wasn't so fragile and could rise above it but I can't. So if you are finding your day stressful, or less productive as you might like, maybe some of what I write next will be helpful.
Wake up at least 2 hours before you have to get on the road, or have appointments. This is a time for you and you alone. Even if you have a partner or room mate, this is not a time to visit and chat. Some people like to sit up right upon waking and meditate. I like to have a cup of coffee and read a bit, and go on facebook. As the coffee is brewing I light candles. Then I take a long hot shower, sing or chant in the shower, talk to myself and get direct guidance on something I am contemplating. I end the shower with a 30 second cold rinse down. Then Brahmanand and I do yoga for an hour together.
I get up at 3 or 4 am, varies, but never later than 4. This gives me plenty of me time before appointments begin. So give yourself some time to contemplate how you would like to consciously start your day. There is no right way to do it. But do, do something that prepares you to have the strength and energy to "show up" fully. Go for a walk as the sun rises, mountain bike, jog, surf. Do something you love that integrates your body. Feeling good is a body experience. Feeling Good makes it so much easier to spread more goodness. Feeling terrible, half asleep, feeling way behind before the day even gets going, is not going to generate a new world. It's going to only generate more negativity.
And yes, to wake up at 3am, I go to bed at 8pm! We can talk about "time" later.
Share with all of us how you experience your waking up time, and give us some more ideas.
Next issue we can chat about how to prepare yourself for sleep.
