One important conversation I have when discussing health goals with patients is about living a life with no regrets.

While that may sound like a rather abstract goal, the truth is your life is made up of days. So, the way to live a life with no regrets is to end each day with no regrets.

But how? The best way, I find, is to view each day as a gift and identify your intent for that day.

Starting the day with a structured morning routine is a simple way to develop this habit. It sets the tone for your day, helps provide direction and meaning, and offers a starting place of strength, calm, and clarity rather than stress or chaos.

An approach that I find helpful and often recommend is the SAVERS morning routine.

What Is the SAVERS Morning Routine?

SAVERS is a structured morning approach based on the book The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. It’s a simple and highly effective method for starting your day with purpose and alignment mentally, emotionally, and physically.

SAVERS stands for:

• Silence
• Affirmations
• Visualization
• Exercise
• Reading
• Scribing

You don’t need hours for a SAVERS morning routine. You can start with as little as 15 minutes, though a half-hour might be ideal, but even a few focused minutes can shift your energy and mindset for the entire day.

And that’s why the morning is important. While you certainly can spread these six steps throughout the day, doing them at the beginning sets the trajectory for everything that follows.

Plus, if you wait for your day to calm down before doing these steps, they often simply won’t happen. You have to build in this routine before the world starts making demands on your time and attention.

Let’s break down the SAVERS morning routine steps and how each element plays its part.

Silence: Begin With Stillness

We live in a noisy world. From the moment we open our eyes, our minds often begin racing: what’s on the schedule, who needs what, what didn’t get done yesterday? That noise can be overwhelming, crowding out the intention we need to shape our day.

Silence is about blocking out the chatter. I recommend starting with just 60 seconds of meditation.

Sit in a comfortable position and visualize your breathing. Work up gradually to five minutes. That quiet space allows your brain to reset, reducing stress and anxiety while increasing focus and happiness.

Affirmations: Tell Yourself Who You Are

Though some people view them with suspicion, affirmations aren’t some fluffy or woo-woo nonsense for children. They’re practical tools for programming your subconscious to act in alignment with your goals (including health goals!).

An affirmation is simply stating a goal for yourself as if it’s already true. For example:

• “I am someone who exercises regularly.”
• “I am someone who gets to bed by 10 p.m.”
• “I am someone who eats a balanced diet.”

You can apply affirmations to any goal, including every component of the Four Pillars of Health: sleep, exercise, nutrition, and stress elimination.

It doesn’t matter if you only stretch for five minutes that day or if you’re still working on your bedtime routine. Stating your aim as a present truth gets to your subconscious, helping your brain align with that identity and move toward it consistently.

Visualization: See It, Feel It, Do It

Visualization is imagining your success — what it looks like and what it feels like. If your goal is to wake up energized and ready to move, close your eyes and picture it in detail.

When you visualize achieving a goal, you get a taste of how that success will feel, and it motivates you. You actually harness your thoughts to produce motivation rather than waiting around for it to strike.

Exercise: Move to Wake Up

Don’t worry, I’m not suggesting you need to run a marathon. Even if you’re crunched for time or not used to working out, five minutes of stretching or light movement first thing in the morning will get your blood flowing and jump-start your energy.

If you have more time, you can certainly do a more substantial workout, or add one later in the day. But since you’re trying to build a reliable habit and get your momentum going early, aim for at least a minimum amount of movement in the morning.

Reading: Feed Your Mind

What you read first thing in the morning can shape your thoughts for the rest of the day. Choose something that inspires or uplifts you: self-growth, spiritual insights, or even fiction that sparks your imagination.

Avoid technical work-related content during your first few minutes of the day. Save that for later. Start your morning with something that fills you with positive thoughts and ideas.

Scribing: Reflect and Reinforce

Scribing means journaling, which can be as simple as writing down a few thoughts, intentions, or reflections. Write about what you’re grateful for, what you accomplished yesterday, or what you hope to do today.

There’s something powerful about putting pen to paper. When you record your thoughts consistently, you create a record of your progress. On tough days, you can flip back through your journal and be reminded of what you’ve already achieved — and that can be exactly the motivation you need.

The SAVERS Morning Routine: Live Each Day Without Regrets

Living a life with no regrets starts with leading each day with intention. Whether your goals are physical, emotional, or both, the SAVERS morning routine gives you the structure to approach every day with focus and clarity. You’re not just hoping to make progress; you’re setting yourself up for it on purpose.

Adopting the Miracle Morning SAVERS approach is a simple and powerful change you can make to start living intentionally. Give it a try tomorrow. I think you’ll be amazed at how just 15 minutes can transform your day.

How you live your days is how you live your life — so make each one count.