This Olympian Has a Winning Morning Routine to Get Her Ready for the 2020 Games

What's the first thing you do when you get out of bed in the morning? A well-rounded morning routine sets the tone for the day and gets you prepped—both mentally and physically—before diving into a packed schedule filled with emails, chores, happy hours, workouts, and more. Our series Morning Person profiles those who have mastered the art of the morning routine. Tune in every Monday morning here and on our Instagram to learn exactly how the pros get it all done before the sun comes up, from their go-to breakfasts to their a.m. workouts.

I don't know about you, but everyone at THE/THIRTY is already amped up for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. It might be just about six months away, but we've marked it in our calendars, planned opening ceremony viewing parties, set up a Google alert… We could go on and on.

If we're this excited about the games (and we're not even competing), we can only imagine what an Olympic hopeful must feel during the lead-up to this summer. And, well, it just turns out that we don't have to imagine at all. We have Kelsey Robinson, an American indoor volleyball player and bronze Olympic medalist, to share how she's training and getting ready. Take a look at her morning routine below. You might find some inspiration in it, as she told us, "You don't have to be an Olympian to want to get the most out of your body and mind!"

As a professional athlete, my body is my job. My days consist of four to eight hours of a combination of practice and weight lifting. And game days come with a lot of pressure and stress on performance. At the pro and Olympic level, the details make the difference in success. This is why my morning routine is all about helping my body physically and mentally feel the best it can to maximize performance.

In the morning, it's essential for me to tune into my body to give it what it needs. This starts with sleep. While it might seem unattainable to most, I usually get nine to 11 hours of sleep every night. This allows my body to recover and gives me mental clarity throughout the day.

After I wake up, I usually give my kitties a cuddle and my husband a kiss because starting my day with a little love puts me in a good mood. That little time with them is why I love mornings so much.

I start my day with a Hydro Flask full of water that I fill up from my Berkey water purifier, which uses charcoal filters. I take omega-3s, vitamin D, B-complex vitamin, maca, zinc, and l-carnitine supplements. I swear by omega-3s and vitamin D. They're essential supplements for overall health. The others I take mostly for my hormonal imbalances.

As a female athlete training six to seven hours a day, I've been on the lower percentages for body fat. I've struggled with ovarian cysts, hormonal acne, and a mild version of PCOS in terms of just not receiving my period for four to six months at a time.

I've found that managing my stress levels, taking supplements, and switching all my products to natural and organic has helped a ton.

I love to start my day with a breakfast smoothie. I stop eating around 7 p.m. the night before so I can let my body digest a full 12 hours. I've been having this breakfast smoothie almost every day for the last four years, and it never gets old! I use the Vega chocolate protein powder, but the cold brew also tastes amazing in it. The full recipe is in my ebook, Beachside Guide, which has 17 recipes and four workouts inside.

I stopped having coffee a few years ago and have found that my body naturally wakes up in the morning without it.

I take a cold shower and do my morning face routine. The cold water not only wakes my body up, but it has so many healing properties including reducing stress and inflammation and forces me to focus on my breathing. As an athlete, breathing is my lifeline. It helps me to focus on the present in high-pressure moments. On weekends or if I don't have a morning practice, I'll go down to the beach and hop in the cold water to surf.

Face routine: I have hormonal acne and cystic acne. It started my first year playing professionally. All of the travel and stress just compounded, and my body was out of alignment. This showed up all over my jawline. Now, I make sure I don't eat dairy, added sugars, or meat, and I swear by Marie Veronique's line and Estée Lauder's Advanced Night Repair Serum. It legitimately cleared up my skin within two months, and I haven’t had a breakout since. I also was getting micro-needling and PRP treatments for a few months, and this helped immensely. Her products are clean and natural, and they wrote a customized plan for me.

After all of this, I pack my Adidas gym bag and head off to the gym to start my day. I carry the compostable vegan shampoo bar from Morocco Method and its leave-in conditioner for after practice. The natural products help grow and thicken my hair and keep my body in alignment. I also take with me BCAA to help my muscles recover after workouts.

On my way to practice, I usually listen to some podcasts or music to get me in the mood for training. Even when I don't have workouts in the morning, I always try to do some type of movement. Whether it's a yoga flow, walk, or foam roll. The more I can wake my body up, the better.

My morning routine is all about alignment and finding balance in my high-stress, high-pressure job. But you don't have to be an Olympian to want to get the most out of your body and mind! Everyone can benefit from these small changes.

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