My Morning Routine

I am honored that you have joined to share in one of the most sacred parts of my day, of my life. My morning routine consists of breathwork, meditation, gentle movement and writing. I've been practising this type of morning routine for 12 years and it's become almost as important to me as water, as air, as food. I encourage you to stick with a practice like this, to listen to what your mind, body and soul need,each day. Slowly, you will see your life, you will see yourself, the way you see, the way you hear, and the way you feel starting to change as you practice.

Transcript

I begin my morning routine with breath.

I find connecting with my breathing,

Connecting with my heart through breath really helps ground anchor and open my energy.

So I want you to find a comfortable place to sit and just start by taking three deep breaths.

And I want you to breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth.

So just breathing in and out.

Make the breaths a little deeper and a little longer than usual.

Then breathing in and breathing out.

Shoulders dropping.

Energy settling.

And last one,

In through the nose and out through the mouth.

This type of slow breathing tells our mind that everything's okay and we can move into a state of calmness more easily.

So with your eyes still closed,

I just want you to see if you can feel your life energy living inside you.

Can you feel the kind of pulse or rhythm of your blood rushing?

And then I want you to bring your attention to your heart.

See if you can connect with its beat.

And I want you to imagine that your heart is breathing.

When we focus on our heart breathing,

It actually creates a sort of opening of the heart center.

And I find the longer I sit with my breath in that way,

It actually begins to change the energy and frequency in my body.

One that is far more loving,

Compassionate,

And peaceful.

Now that we're settled on our heart,

We're going to move into a little bit of breath work now.

This breathing technique I have learned from a teacher by the name of Wim Hof.

It's a type of hyperventilation and breath holding that helps release any stagnant energy in the body and helps the body resume its proper order and function.

You may feel a little bit lightheaded as you do this.

I encourage you to override your instinct to stop and just continue with the process.

Nothing harmful can happen.

In the end you will feel a release,

Hopefully,

And a deep peace.

We'll be taking deep inhales through the mouth and out through the mouth.

So in through the mouth and out through the mouth.

We'll be doing this breath for 30 breaths.

And on the last breath we're going to exhale fully and hold ourself empty for as long as we are comfortable.

And then we're going to inhale and hold ourselves full for 15 seconds.

And then we'll do one more round of the same breathing.

So just be comfortable and let's begin.

Remember in fully through the mouth,

Out fully through the mouth.

And for our last five here,

Let's do the best we can,

Inhaling fully and exhaling,

Inhaling and exhaling.

Fully out on this last exhale and holding your breath now.

We're going to inhale now,

Holding ourselves full for 15 seconds.

And exhale.

Great job.

We're going to go into our second set of deep breathing,

Inhaling through the mouth again and out through the mouth.

Really great job.

We're down to the last five now.

Give it the best you can.

Fully in and fully out.

And on your last out breath,

Hold yourself empty.

Release and inhale now,

Holding yourself full at the top.

And now release.

Really great job.

Now just sit peacefully for a minute and notice how your breath is changing.

Sit peacefully for a minute and notice how the energy in your body is feeling.

Notice if there's any spaciousness created or a more peaceful energy pulsing through you.

And just enjoy this for a minute now.

Great job with your breathing.

We're going to move on to meditation now.

I meditate two to three times a day,

Once in the morning,

Midday and then after I put my kids to sleep.

And depending what I feel my body wants or needs,

I'm either working to guide my meditation with healing thoughts and words or affirmations or I'm just trying to let everything go and really sit in stillness and quiet.

So I've included for you here the option for a guided meditation or a silent meditation.

So just join me now in getting comfortable and following along.

When I come to sit in meditation,

I always just bring my attention to my breath and my heart.

And then I imagine that my heart is actually breathing.

And I imagine my breath moving into these calm waves.

And I want you to use your heart breath to kind of blow back the layers of any resistance or tightness that may be lingering in spots,

Maybe around your hips or your lower back,

Between your shoulder blades.

You can just direct the breath there and tell everything it's okay to rest.

Once you've settled into your body a bit now,

We're going to imagine that our skin is becoming totally soft,

As if you're losing your defined edges.

Softening into the room the energy of space around you.

Letting your mind resign from thoughts,

From worries,

From obsessions.

Really leaning into the openness of your own self.

Really leaning into the openness of your own self.

Your mind can pick everything back up after this,

But for now we're just going to let all of you be.

Being.

Breathing.

You are the dawning day.

You are the contents of your heart.

You are the crowning sun.

Breathe.

All that is behind you has evaporated,

Has been forgiven,

Has been redeemed,

Has been resolved and absolved.

A playground of light stretches out before you,

And in your hand you hold the seeds that will be carried on the wind.

What is blessed with your breath will grow with grace.

So be wise in this moment,

In this young light of the day,

And hold your seeds as intentions,

And hold your seeds as intentions,

Warm in the palm of your hand.

Be aware of your thoughts and all the goodness you wish for.

Be aware of your body and how you want to stand on this earth.

Be aware of your words and what sounds come from your mouth.

Be aware of your eyes and how they see.

Be aware of your hands and how they are holding the seeds of your precious life.

Warm the seeds in your palm with your loving awareness and breath.

This day and every day is a gift for you,

An opportunity to sow with great care and dignity the seeds you wish to sprout into fields.

Be wise in this moment.

You are the dawning day.

You are the contents of your heart.

You are the crowning sun,

The keeper of seeds.

Sow,

Dear one,

With great care the contents of this,

Your new day,

The quality of your moments.

Sow,

Dear one,

The world you wish to live in.

The world you wish to see.

Just coming back into your body now,

Moving fingers and toes or stretching your spine up and opening your eyes whenever you're ready.

Wonderful job meditating.

We're going to move on to some gentle stretching now.

Your mind should be a little calmer now that you've practiced some meditation.

Now that we've taken care of the mind,

We're going to move down into the body now to really honor the shape that we take,

To really honor the vehicle that carries us through our day.

Each of these practices that I use are a blend from Tai Chi to Yoga,

They're interpretations of things that I've picked up along the way from different philosophies.

So the first movement is I'd like you to stand up now.

Keep your feet solid on the ground,

Kind of hip width apart.

And make your knees kind of bent and loose,

Not rigid.

With your arms kind of loose at your side,

I want you to begin twisting from right to left,

Allowing your arms to swing out from your body as you twist,

Kind of like helicopter blades.

And bring your head with each movement.

Don't look straight or forward,

Just move your head.

Don't look straight or forward,

Just move looking right and left as you twist,

Tapping your body with your loose arms.

We're helping the energy of the spine to wake up by doing this,

Bringing both the left and the right hemispheres of our bodies together.

And keep twisting,

If you can.

And keep twisting a few more times.

And now just become still and pause in stillness.

Keep your eyes closed.

Just feel how the energy is maybe shifting or waking up in your body,

In your spine,

In your back.

Out of stillness,

We're going to begin to shake our arms and our legs.

The more jelly-like,

The better.

Just become like a little kid,

Shaking all of the energy out of your body.

And if you feel the energy wanting to rise up in maybe a yelp or a yell or a sigh,

Or a growl or a laugh,

That would be wonderful.

Let it all go.

Watch yourself loosening the energy.

The key to this movement is to elevate the depth of your awareness.

And if you feel the energy wanting to rise up in maybe a yelp or a yell or a sigh,

The key to this movement is to elevate the dormant energy in the body and to kind of sweep out the stagnant air and stagnant spots.

And finding your stillness again,

Closing your eyes.

Noticing if your energy or your mood is changing.

If you're becoming lighter,

More joyful.

More calm.

So for this next movement,

We're going to do really deep inhales through the nose and out through the mouth.

And a ha.

And that's the sound of the breath.

And with the breath,

We're going to be taking a deep inhale.

We're going to lift our arms above our head.

As we exhale,

We're going to swing our arms back down with great force.

Imagine we're cutting through the air as we push out this kind of loud sigh or exhale.

So in,

Arms up.

Out,

Arms down.

In,

Arms up.

Out,

Arms down with force.

Bend your knees when you're doing the exhale to let your arms really swing down with more force.

Okay,

So we're going to be doing three of these.

Deep inhale,

Arms up.

Strong and loud exhale,

Arms coming down.

Cut the air.

Inhale.

Strong and loud exhale.

Arms coming up,

Body coming up.

Reaching toward the sky,

Maybe looking up if you want.

Feel the very top.

Letting out loud exhale,

Cutting the air,

Moving down.

Last one.

Deep inhale,

Reaching up,

Looking up.

Exhale,

Swinging the arms down with a ha.

Becoming still again.

Noticing the energy in your body.

I want you to take your right hand and your left hand and your right hand and your left hand and I want you to take your right hand and make it into a fist.

And we're going to take that fist and we're going to pound lightly on our heart and our chest and our ribs.

So kind of just knock around your whole chest area.

As if you're knocking on the door of your being,

Of your heart.

And just moving your pounding around across your face.

Moving your pounding around across your ribs,

Your chest,

Over your heart.

Keeping your eyes closed.

And just keep knocking,

Knocking,

Knocking.

We're just getting still again.

And bringing our hands to our heart again.

And I want you to bring a slight smile to your face.

Feeling your heart beating against your hand.

Feeling the kind of harmony and vitality you've just created in your body.

Feeling grateful for how easily this sort of grace and energy can come to us.

And opening your eyes whenever you're done with your gratitude.

Great work.

We're going to move on to journaling now.

We're going to move on to journaling now.

We're going to move into writing practice now.

So make sure you have a notebook and pen.

Writing practice is the fulcrum of my growth and spiritual evolution.

I really don't know where I would be had I not developed a daily practice of journaling.

It continues to help me understand myself,

Teaching me compassion and humility and healing.

Each day I write,

I learn something new and enlivening and honest and raw about myself.

I look,

I feel,

I admit,

I curse,

I struggle,

I surrender.

And I wake up.

I wake up to the moment in front of me and the world inside of me.

I wake up to my life.

And never has this practice left me in lack.

But rather it strengthens and revitalizes me.

So this is my most cherished part of my routine.

It's a non-negotiable in my life.

So I'd like you to grab a pen and a stack of paper or a spiral notebook.

Make sure that it's nothing too precious or too beautiful because you want to be free in this moment to write maybe the worst thing you've ever written.

We're not aiming for perfection or even understanding or coherent thoughts,

Feelings and words.

There's absolutely no goals.

So we're aiming to just let the mind go wild.

And we're aiming to let ourselves be led by whatever arises and asked to be expressed without censor.

One of the most important things is do not let your pen stop moving.

We remove the censor,

The critic,

The rational part of ourselves by doing this.

So if you are getting stuck and you feel like you want to stop your pen,

Just write blah,

Blah,

Blah until a new thought comes up.

Just keep the pen moving.

This is keeping the energy moving.

And we want to do this for the whole 10 minutes no matter what.

I've been doing daily writing for over 12 years.

So letting your thoughts and mind go wild does get easier and more liberating as you practice.

So start today with little expectation and a lot of curiosity.

And we're going to begin with my favorite writing prompt.

And it is what I really want to say.

So at the top of your page,

I want you to write what I really want to say is.

And then I want you to go for 10 minutes without stopping.

Remember?

Now,

Begin.

So finishing up your last thought now if you're still writing.

Great job.

I just want you to tune in and ask yourself,

How did that feel?

Did it feel freeing or hard?

Were you surprised by anything that maybe came up or was revealed?

Do you feel more connected with yourself?

I'd like you now just to write one sentence of intention for your day.

Something you can easily remember as you go about your daily life.

We're going to be using it as an anchor throughout your day if you're ever feeling kind of lost in frenetic energy again.

Mine on most days is simply,

May I be kind toward myself and others.

Or may I embody love.

So just write something,

A sentence right now.

Good job.

My favorite author and poet Mary Jane is a woman who has a very special way of expressing herself.

As Mary Oliver once said,

Attention is the beginning of devotion.

So whenever you can remember today,

Maybe when you have a moment at lunch or when you're waiting to pick your kids up from school or you have a break between calls,

Just touch your heart and bow your head and repeat your mantra.

Whatever it was,

May I embody love.

May I be kind toward myself and others.

This is just a nice way to remind ourselves throughout our waking moments to shift our attention to what we really want.

I guarantee this practice will start to change your world.

And I believe you will begin to change under the light of your own loving attention.

Great work with writing practice.

We are coming to the end now and I'm just going to send you off with a little blessing next.

I am honored that you have joined to share in one of my most sacred parts of my day,

Of my life.

It's been such a joy to share this with you.

I'm most grateful for the longing we are each following.

The thread of goodness that's pulling us,

That's guiding us to the same place together,

To really hold our life and ourselves with reverence.

As I've said already,

I've been practicing this type of morning routine for 12 years now.

And it's become almost as important to me as water,

As air,

As food.

I know when you're just beginning it may be a bit challenging to really become disciplined.

But the more you do it,

The more this sort of life begins to push up through the soil and begins to flower.

And this flowering and this blooming keeps bringing you back to yourself because it becomes exciting.

It becomes like drinking nectar or honey.

So I really encourage you to stick with a practice like this,

To really listen to yourself in this way.

To really follow the goodness that comes with it.

To really follow the goodness that comes wafting up from your own center.

Slowly you will see your life,

You will see yourself,

The way you see,

The way you hear,

The way you feel starting to change as you practice.

And it will bring more joy and more peace to your life.

I want to send you off with a little blessing.

I bless myself every day with kind words and it's incredible how the body responds.

So let's just bring our eyes to a close and bring our hands to our hearts.

May you open your eyes to this day.

To feel the swell of life breathing you toward.

What brings you joy?

May you rise each day from your bed to touch and feel the life you have been given.

With new eyes and new hands.

May you let yourself be born anew each day that opens.

May you be careful not to let yourself grow callous under the light of the day.

May you smile most at what is simple.

At what is ordinary.

May you squeeze drops of joy from the smiles of those you love.

From the winding winds.

From the quiet moments in between.

From the moment you open your eyes.

May you see,

Dear one.

May you hear,

Dear one.

The light calling your very name.

I bow to each of you.

Thank you with all of my love and gratitude.

Be well and in blessings.

Reviews

Amazing practice, wonderful routine. I’ll go on practicing with you. A heartfelt thank you for sharing 🙏🏻🪷

Thank you for making my life more relaxing, more significant.

Thank you for sharing your beautiful gift with the world. You are making incredible waves all around you 🩷

Absolutely beautiful practice, that I will put on repeat. I found all the stages very enjoyable and will help me be more resilient to stress and be compassionate to myself and others. Thank you for your guidance.

Thank you Sarah for sharing this beautiful heartfelt practice with us. I will cherish and practice it every day of my life from this day forward. Namaste 🙏

Thank you Sarah for sharing this beautiful practice with us. I will be listening to your gentle voice and integrating the essences and I know it is going to improve and inspire the starts to my days. 🙏🏼

My heart has been opening wide these past few weeks in a beautifully natural manner. It has been indescribable - until the end of this routine when prompted to journal and words began to flow. The words that landed on the paper I realize are my compass for how I want to live as much as my life as possible, thank you 🙏🏻

Beautiful. Thank you for inviting us into your sacred practices. I am honored and inspired. ✨

Finally! I have found a morning routine that suits me and my soul's longing, all wrapped up in one beautiful source . I should have known it would be Sarah who would offer it. Thank you, thank you. Deep bows to you. Namaste 🙏🏼
...update May /25
Still following this everyday. If I occasionally miss a morning I always wish I had not skipped. Now it has become a must do! I'm probably going to be doing it when I'm 90years old. I have grown by leaps and bounds past few months and a lot of the credit goes to the growth of discipline. Thank you Sarah. 🫶🏻💫😊

Wonderful experience 💫
I substituted the Hoff breath with Bhastrika 🧘🏻‍♀️
Thank you for sharing your morning practice Sarah 💞heartfelt blessings🤗🥰🌞
Namaste 🙏

I always avoided journaling but gave it a go today! It gelt so liberating to get my thoughts about a challenge I am facing onto paper! Thank you Sarah for sharing your wisdom and practice with us 🙏🏽❤️

Quintessential Sarah Blondin. It doesn’t get better than this!

Thank you for sharing your practice! May you find the joy you enlighten in others✨

I love all of Sarah’s tracks. I especially love this one 💕.

Thank you. I am coming to realize that I need "new input" to create a healthier, happier and more creative me. Your morning routine primes body, mind and heart for the day with flexibility, harmony, vitality and love.

Thank you so kindly. This is just what I need to begin my days with living attention. First to myself so that I can take care of my peeps.

Thank you. I was reminded that I have a soul and to connect. It is honest and will always be straight with me.

A beautiful way to start my day, thank you for sharing your morning routine: Wake Up To Life!
This practice is a game changer for me 🙏🏻
The journaling 📝 revealed some deep sadness although I do not feel hopeless! I had tears, but I also wrote about heartfelt gratitude. Morning journaling after meditation & movement will be my January 2025 morning routine. I know this practice will change my world 🌎 ☮️ 💗 💭✨

Thank you from my heart. This is exactly what I needed today. Thank you for sharing your wisdom and love. I am grateful all the sharing and care.

Thank you.This by far has been a favorite with so many different things we did during your guidance.Thank you .Much Love and Peace ❤️✌️