An invigorating way to wake up

Are you like most people who wake up in the morning by jumping out of bed and diving straight into a stressfully hectic day? This sudden shift from rest to activity jolts the body and taxes the heart and nervous system, resulting in an abrupt increase in heart rate and blood pressure. Due to this, it is of little wonder that strokes and heart attacks usually happen between six in the morning and 12 noon.

Any sudden and unexpected shock that the body is subjected to is detrimental to the system, especially for older people whose arteries have become fragile or clogged. It is better for your well-being and long-term health to wake up gently and ease your body gradually into the hassles of a busy day. How you begin the day generally sets the mood and tone of the rest of your day. Here are a few morning rituals to help you get up on the right side of the bed any day:

Morning Rituals To Ease Awake With

• Say a prayer of gratitude. As soon as you wake up, immediately say, "Thank you, God, for giving me a new day to live and love, another chance to realize my dreams, and prove my worth. Amen." I personally prefer to use the simpler declaration, "Thank you, God, I’m alive!"

• Read your body’s messages. Usually, your body wakes you up to perform your early morning functions, like urinating or moving your bowel. If you feel that you need to relieve yourself, don’t waste a minute and head on right to the toilet. Make sure to get up slowly because your sense of balance may not be stable yet.

• Wake your body up gently. After going to the toilet or if you are still lying down because you didn’t feel the need to relieve yourself, you may stay in bed longer and enjoy the dreamy languor of waking up. Take a deep, invigorating breath, fake a yawn, and luxuriously stretch your body to release all tensions that may have built up during the night.

• Gently massage your head. Sit on the side of your bed and wake up your senses, starting with blinking your eyes. Do this in a relaxed way, looking to the right first, then to the left in eight counts (four counts per side). Similarly, do the same looking up and down. Massage your nose gently to help loosen phlegm and post-nasal drip; rub your lips a few times, then open your mouth and move your jaws with a masticating movement. Touch your ears to stimulate the blood vessels and massage your scalp with your fingertips to get blood circulating to nourish your hair.

• Massage the rest of your body. Flex your hands with slow close-open movements. Do the same with your feet by flexing them to the maximum they are able to. Stand up and follow with a stroking action massage of the rest of your body starting from your neck down to your shoulders, elbows, arms, hands, chest and abdomen, back, hips, thigh, knees, legs, all the way down to your feet. A light pressure is needed to help stimulate beneficial blood circulation.

• Do the cleansing breath. Put your hands on your hips and while rising on your toes, inhale deeply through your nose. While landing on your heels, exhale through your mouth. Do this at least three times to expel toxins and impurities lodged in the respiratory tract. This is a great exercise especially for smokers and people who work in polluted areas. Follow with three more invigorating deep inhalations and exhalations but this time through the nose only.

• Do warm-up exercises. Follow the breathing exercises with whatever warm-up exercises you prefer. You may do calisthenics, yoga stretches, dance routines, or slow walking. When you feel that your body has warmed up, you may do more strenuous exercises like brisk walking, skipping rope, or routines with weights. Remember to gradually warm up and ease into more complicated and demanding exercises.

• Wake up to music and water. Yes, waking up is easier if you do it to the sound of your favorite music. Start with soothing music to wake you up, slowly building up to energetic beats to accompany your exercise routines. It is a good practice to gargle with water to clean your oral cavity upon waking, and drink water if you feel parched.

• Drink just enough so you don’t get the heavy bloated feeling. Warm water is better to drink upon waking; iced water may shock your digestive tracts.

• Ease into your morning shower. To avoid the chilling shock of jumping into a cold shower, slowly wet portions of your body with water scooped by your hands. This will help acclimatize your skin and blood vessels to the temperature of the water. It is best to shower or bathe in water that is close to the normal body temperature. Of course, cool water is refreshing during hot weather and warm water feels great during the cold season, but always consider the skin-drying effects of water whenever you bathe.

• Have a healthy breakfast. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day because it provides the energy to start the day with. The typical Filipino breakfast is a nutritionist’s nightmare: sinangag (oily), tapa or chorizo (fried), sunny-side up or scrambled eggs (fried), tuyo or salted fish (salty), red egg (salty), and coffee loaded with sugar. Fruits, whole oats, whole wheat bread, and low-fat dairy products are to be preferred. Avoid foods that are fried and oily, over-processed, highly salted, or too sweet.

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For those interested, an introductory seminar on the spiritual teachings of the Ascended Masters featuring the "Magic I AM Presence" will be conducted by a visiting team from the Temple of the Presence in Arizona. The lectures will be held at the Valle Verde Country Club beside ULTRA in Pasig City on March 16-17. For more info, e-mail friends@manilatorchbearers.org or text/call 0917-5059925 and 0927-2443840.