No.1 Sleep Negativity
Do you feel well rested in the morning? For many, the answer is no. You may feel tired every morning. Well, why is that? Because one bad habit may be ruining your sleep and the rest of your day. Let’s say you got eight hours of sleep last night, but you tell yourself you didn’t sleep long enough. Maybe you complain about waking up in the middle of the night. Either way, you’re convinced that you need more sleep, complaining about your sleep undermines the hours that you spend sleeping. This comes from a 2014 study in the journal of experimental psychology. Negativity devalues a good night sleep. In other words, by complaining about your sleep, you’re making yourself more tired. In this study, every participants left a healthy number of hours. In the morning, researchers gave each participant a random sleep score. A score of 28 represented a long and deep sleep cycle. On the other hand, a score of 16 represented a night of tossing and turning. After receiving their sleep scores, every participant took a word association test. Who do you think perform better? The 28 group or the 16 group? The 28 group significantly outperform the 16 group, even though both groups slept the same amount, the 16 group had a negative perception of their sleep and that perception decreased their performance. So, what can we learn from this study? If you complain about your sleep, your brain will believe you. So, stay positive about your sleep cycle, each morning, tell yourself that you feel rested and energized. If you actively change your perception, your body and your brain will follow.
undermine vt.逐渐损毁；暗中破坏 devalue 贬值 tossing n.抖动，摇动；颠簸 word association test 单词联想测试 outperform v.胜过，做得比……好 perception n.看法，认识
No.2 Skipping Breakfast
Countless studies have shown the benefits of a healthy breakfast. Yet, so many people skip the first meal of the day. In a survey of 14,000 people, only 34% a breakfast on a daily basis. The other 66%, they lay their first meal off the day, starving their bodies of food until lunchtime. Well, here’s the problem, if you miss breakfast, your body continues to crave the same amount of food. Many people eat oversized lunches and snack throughout the afternoon. Their portion control flies out the window and they energize their bodies at the wrong times. All of these things can ruin your day. So, how do you change this bad habit? Just think about the two most common reasons that people skip breakfast: time and hunger. Some people rushed through their mornings, they have busy schedules. So, they don’t have time to cook a morning meal. Others feel nauseous or simply stuffed in the morning. Their stomachs feel restless. So, they have no interest in breakfast. To navigate both of these issues, experts recommend spreading out your morning meal. So, instead of one big breakfast, just break your meal into three short mobile snacks, just start with a piece of fruit on the go, wait 30 minutes to an hour and then add a bit of protein. Later in the morning, if you’re low on energy, finish your meal with healthy carbs and fats like toast or peanut butter. By spreading out your meal, it becomes easy, accessible and gentle on your stomach. So, stop skipping breakfast and start spreading out your first meal of the day, your energy, your attitude and your productivity will be glad you did.
starving their bodies of food 饿死他们的身体 snack n.零食，点心，小吃 portion n.（某物的）一部分；（尤指餐馆中食物的）一份，一客；（责任、过失、职责等的）一份，一部分；<法律>（根据法律赠与或遗留给继承人的）一份财产；<古> 命运，天数 nauseous adj.令人作呕的；厌恶的 stuffed v.塞进，填进；填满，装满 spreading out 展开 扩散 on the go 在行动中 protein n.蛋白质，朊 carbs abbr.碳水化合物 toast 吐司
No.3 Sedentary Mornings
How many hours do you spend sitting at your desk? In 2019, the average American sat for 6.5 hours every day. That number is only going up. in the middle of your work day, there’s little you can do to energize your body, but the mornings offer a perfect opportunity to animate your routine. Most people are sedentary at work. And in the mornings, you may spend your morning lying in bed or sitting on the couch. But this bad habit worsens your sedentary lifestyle, and it leaves you feeling sluggish throughout the day. Luckily, a little activity makes a big difference. Just take a short walk around your neighborhood, do some yoga in a quiet room. If you really want to get your blood pumping, go for a run or challenge yourself with calisthenics. By moving in the mornings, you amplify your body’s performance, you increase your circulation and you speed up your metabolism. You boost your energy and develop physical confidence. If you’re tired of living a sedentary lifestyle, infuse your mornings with energy and action.
Sedentary adj.（人）惯于久坐不动的；（工作、活动等）需要久坐的；定居的，不迁徙的；（动物）静止的，固定附着的
energize vt.激励；使活跃；供给……能量
animate 活跃
couch n.长沙发
worsens 恶化
sluggish adj.缓慢的，迟钝的
get your blood pumping 让你的血液沸腾
calisthenics n.健美体操
amplify v.放大，扩大（声音）；增强，加强
circulation n.发行量，销售量；血液循环；流传，流通；参加社交活动，交际；环流，循环；（图书的）借出
metabolism n.新陈代谢
infuse v.使充满（某种感觉），向……灌输（某品质）
No.4 Changing Clothing
How long do you spend getting dressed in the morning? Do you change outfits multiple times? This bad habit affects millions of people on a daily basis. Before work, you may try on outfit after outfit, but nothing feels rights. Every time, you look in the mirror, you don’t like what you see. The problem isn’t your clothes, it’s this bad habit. By changing outfits over and over, you’re crippling your own confidence. You’re telling yourself that you don’t like your appearance, you’re decreasing your physical satisfaction. And for some people, this bad habit is like body shaming. Each time you switch outfits, your damaging your mental image of yourself, but your morning should develop your confidence. It’s a time for productive decisions, not worry and self doubt. So, do yourself a favor, pick out your clothes the night before, lay them somewhere in your room, and no matter what you chose, stick with it. This new habit will save you time and teaches you to like the way you look, no matter what you’re wearing. You’ll feel more satisfied with your appearance, and that satisfaction gives you a much needed boost of confidence for the rest of the day.
crippling adj.造成严重后果的
shaming v.（使）感到羞耻
stick with it 坚持下去
No.5 Daily Dread
Do you feel irritated in the morning? Do you spend the week wishing for the weekend? Morning negativity can be a very destructive habit. If you’re negative in the morning, you’re bound to be negative during the day. That means less motivation, stifled inspiration and a lack of confidence. So, don’t spend your mornings dreading the day to come. Instead, find reasons to look forward to your day, think of one reason why today is going to be great. Pros of goal off your to-do list, make time to see your loved ones, get started on a healthy habit you’ve been procrastinating. Every day, give yourself a reason to look forward. If you expect your day to be amazing, there’s a good chance, it will be.
dread n.害怕，畏惧
irritated adj.恼火的，急躁的；疼痛的，发炎的
stifled adj.窒息的；受压制的；vt.扼杀；使窒息；藏匿
No.6 Driving In Circles
Imagine taking a road trip to the Grand Canyon, you get in your car, you start driving. But you don’t know where the Grand Canyon is, should you drive straight and hope for the best? Or should you plan your routes, so you don’t get lost? This bad habit is like driving to the Grand Canyon without a map. Many people begin each day with no sense of direction. You don’t organize your time, you don’t create a schedule, you don’t set goals that you want to accomplish. Instead, you let the day happen naturally. Now, this may sound relaxing, but without a plan, you’re sure to get lost. On the road, countless detours can lead you on the wrong direction. You may drive in circles for hours making zero progress, that’s why planning is important. You make a plan before you leave, your plan ensures you get where you want to go, and in the same way, you should make a plan in the morning, because that plan will guide the rest of your day. Planning doesn’t have to be complicated, it can be as simple as this. Think of three small goals that you want to accomplish, then accomplish those goals through the day. They may be chores, habits, projects or personal passions. That parts up to you. But make sure you’re moving forward day after day, make sure you’re getting closer to your goal instead of driving in circles.
Driving In Circles 绕圈子
Grand Canyon n.（美）大峡谷
chores 杂物
day after day 日复一日
No.7 Bottling Anxiety
Are you anxious in the morning? Do you feel like one big ball of stress? With a long day in front of you, you may feel unsure of yourself, you may doubt your ability, you may worry about failing. Those nerves keep you from concentrating or performing at your best. So, how do you get rid of your anxiety in the morning? Many people stuff their thoughts and feelings down, hoping they’ll disappear. But they never do. Instead, their anxiety piles up and mutates in the back of their brains. It influences your thinking and steals your motivation, it resurfaces when you least expect it, getting worse and worse over time. So, don’t stuff down your anxiety in the mornings. It’s okay to feel anxious at the start of your day, but bottling up your feelings is not the answer. Instead, express those feelings for all of that negativity out of your brain. If left unchecked, self doubt will swirl around you like a toxic storm inside your brain. So, get those thoughts out into the open, you may realize just how unrealistic they are. Many times, we get scared of unrealistic situations. In our heads, they seem very possible, on paper, they’re anything but. So, express your nerves, fears and doubts out loud, Or try writing them down using a journal. A journal offers you a safe space to talk through your anxiety, you can say anything, you can make mistakes, you can sound like a fool. There are no wrong answers as long as you express your emotions.
Bottling Anxiety 装瓶焦虑
stuff v.塞进，填进
piles up 积累
mutates v．变异，突变
resurfaces 重新露面，再次出现
swirl v.（使）打旋，（使）旋动
toxic adj.有毒的，引起中毒的
nerves n.[解剖]神经；神经紧张
as long as 只要，在……的时候，只要……就
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