Wake up. Snooze. Coffee. Rinse, repeat.
Most of our daily routines are so ingrained that we rarely think of changing them. But many of our morning habits aren't helping us to be the most productive, joyful versions of ourselves.
A spate of research on everything from our breakfast to our workout routines is helping to illuminate a handful of opportunities to change things up for the better.
Read on to learn when you should time your coffee to get the most of your buzz, what kinds of workouts to prioritize in the morning, and even whether popping that daily multivitamin is worth the money.
SEE ALSO: What your daily routine should look like, according to science
Skip the shower.
If you showered yesterday, you should probably skip it today. A growing body of evidence suggests that showering too much can mess with your skin and dry out your hair, since it can wash away many of the naturally occurring but beneficial bacteria and oil that keep skin and hair healthy.
"It's paradoxical, but people who wash their hair a lot to get rid of oil are drying out their scalp and producing more oil," Lynne Goldberg, a dermatologist and the director of Boston Medical Center's hair clinic, told Business Insider.
When it comes to setting up your own regimen, consider two things: the average dryness of your skin and scalp, and the texture of your hair. If they are neither very oily nor very dry, you likely only need to bathe once or twice a week. If your hair is curly and thick, you may need to wash it even less frequently, since coarse hair slows down the spread of oil from your roots through the length of your hair.
Brew your coffee — but don't drink it yet.
Many things naturally happen to our bodies when we wake up. We start pumping out the hormone cortisol, a sort of natural caffeine. Most people's cortisol levels peak sometime between 8:00 and 9:00 in the morning.
Instead of hopping aboard this wakefulness train, however, coffee consumed at this time may actually blunt cortisol's natural effects, according to Stephen Miller, a Ph.D. candidate at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland. Instead of caffeinating during this window, Miller recommends holding off for an hour after you awaken.
Hit the track.
Research suggests that an early-morning workout on an empty stomach helps speed weight loss and boost energy levels by priming the body for an all-day fat burn. Exercising first thing in the morning may push the body to tap into its fat reserves for fuel instead of simply "burning off" the most recent snack or meal.
Plus, working out early could mean you get more sunlight, which is key to properly setting your body's internal circadian rhythm. In one study, people who basked in bright sunlight within two hours after waking were thinner and better able to manage their weight than those who didn't get any natural light, regardless of what they ate throughout the day. A morning walk or run outside can also help fight the winter blues during dark, cold days.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider