A day in the life

How I spent a typical workday as a CEO, author, influencer, wife, and mom (not always in that order)

This issue is sponsored by LMNT electrolytes, a long-time staple in my daily routine. I add LMNT to my gym water bottle, my morning MUD/WTR, and to my hiking or trail running water reservoir on the weekends. LMNT keeps me hydrated, energized, and adds a delicious pop of flavor to my day. Get a free LMNT 8-pack sampler with any purchase. (Might I suggest their Chocolate Medley box, perfect for coffee, hot cocoa, or a grown-up chocolate milk? It’s a seasonal offer and a fan favorite, so get some before it’s gone!)

Last month, I polled my Substack paid subscribers: What would you like me to write about in the new year? The idea of a typical day came up again—how have I never written about this? Today I’ll walk you through a typical day-in-the-life, assuming it’s a weekday, I’m working, and we have my son that week.

My morning routine

I’m very much a creature of habit. I love the structure and comfort of routines, and put the most important things first. These days, I’m waking up between 5:30 - 6:00 AM without an alarm.

I take my son to school three days a week, which gives me less time to work out in the morning. If I really want to get it in, I’ll tell myself before I go to sleep to wake up at 5:15 AM (I can do that, is that weird?), hit the gym right away, and be back in an hour for the pre-school routine. Otherwise, I’ll wake normally, take a cold shower, and take the dogs for a walk before breakfast and school. If it’s my husband’s day to take the kid to school, I’ll wake, take a cold shower, spend a little time with our son, then head to the gym and stay as long as I want (usually 60 to 90 minutes).

After my workout, I’ll do my post-workout meditation, then head home to make a MUD/WTR and eat before I start my day.

I typically don’t start work until 9:30 AM. I work for myself, I work from home, and Whole30 offers flexible hours, so I’m able to get my morning routine done before checking email, Slack, or social media. I do not schedule calls or media before 10 AM, and try to keep the bulk of them to 11 AM or later.

Fun fact: We play a card or board game with our son every morning at breakfast. I’ve been doing this since he was three years old. It gives us quality time in the morning, and we all love the tradition.

Workday mornings

Mornings are my most creative and productive period. Since I’m not working on a book at the moment, I’ll check email and Slack to make sure there isn’t anything urgent. Then I’ll film content for Whole30 or my Instagram channel, write a newsletter, or work on an article for the website.

I’m recording videos nearly every day. If I’ve got sponsored content, I like to film it early, even if I don’t post it until afternoon. That way I get the good natural light, and if my day goes sideways, I can still make the deliverable. If I have a fun or energizing idea for my personal channels (Instagram or TikTok), I’ll film that, and either post it or bank it for later. If I don’t have anything fun or energizing on my mind, I won’t film a thing. I don’t pressure myself to post daily, and most weeks, I only share 3-4 times a week in my feed.

Recording, editing, and posting videos takes more time than you might imagine. I rarely script my personal videos ahead of time, so I’m refining what I want to say in the moment. I may record three, four, or eight takes before I have enough to put it all together.

Editing takes the longest. It’s tedious to find the best segments from multiple clips, edit, caption, and add text or B-roll. I might film something in ten minutes, then spend an hour editing. Lately I’ve been keeping captions and hashtags light as a way to pare down the workload. For stories, I just record, caption, and post—these don’t have to be perfect, even if they’re sponsored.

Newsletters and blog posts generally go quickly! I write in my head before I ever put pen to paper. Someone (me, or my Content team) will have an idea for an article. Then I spend a day or two just thinking about it. By the time I sit down to write, it feels like I’m plagiarizing myself, and I crank it out fast. When I’m done, I’ll start at the beginning and edit, then put it away for a day to get some distance. I’ll then final edit, then send it to my team for review.

Fun fact: Once in a while, my Content team suggests a topic for the Whole30 blog that I struggle to make work. If I spend a day thinking about it and it doesn’t start writing itself in my head—we’ll find a new topic. Forcing myself to write something never goes well; it takes me four times as long and is only half as good.

Workday afternoons

On average, I have between one and three calls a day, usually in the afternoon. I block Fridays off as no-call days. I do not schedule back-to-back meetings unless it cannot be helped. I like having 30 minutes between meetings to eat, move around, check email or Slack, and mentally regroup.

Lunch is around noon or 1 PM, and it’s always Whole30 or Whole30-ish. I don’t eat at my desk; that helps me keep work and home stuff separate. I often have a mid-afternoon protein-rich snack, then I close my laptop anytime between 4:30 and 6:00 PM.

A few days a week, I take a break from 2:00 to 3:00 to pick my son up at school. I absolutely love seeing him midday, and block this time off on my work calendar. He likes to pop his head in to say hello when I have late afternoon Zoom meetings.

Fun fact: I manage my own work calendar. Letting people add something to a blank spot in my calendar is my worst nightmare. I need to gauge my energy levels given the ask, and place the meeting where I have capacity.

Workday evenings

Once I’m done with work, I’m done. I don’t check emails, Slack, or get back on my laptop for anything short of a true emergency. Our evening routine is a little chaotic with my son’s activities, so we only eat dinner together a few nights a week. When we do eat together, we have dinner around 6 PM, then play a game or watch a show on Netflix until my kid starts his bedtime routine at 8:30 PM. (I don’t eat anything after dinner, because it messes with my sleep.) I’ll brush my teeth with the kid, tuck him in (he still lets me), then come up to start my bedtime routine. Yes, I start this early.

I’ll do my skincare and finish my dental routine, wrap my hair, and pop out my contacts while listening to an audiobook. My husband and I are both in bed by 9:00 PM, and every single night, I read a book until I fall asleep. I don’t use my phone in bed, which hugely helps my sleep quality.

Fun fact: I don’t think about “balancing” work and home, because that’s impossible. Instead, I focus on being present at work when I’m working, and present at home when I’m at home. Social media in particular is a unique mix of business and fun, but my son instituted a “no phones after 7 PM” rule for my husband and I a few years ago. This helps us stay present during family time.

We DON’T all have the same 24 hours

I don’t know if you expected something more glamorous? Most of my day is what you’d call “typical,” other than the part where I get paid to be on social media. Also, do I have days where I do all of my work from the couch? Yes, like today. Do I have nights where I eat dinner in front of Netflix? Absolutely. Are there evenings where I’m distracted by my phone? Of course.

Most important to acknowledge: I have a lot of privilege. For one, I work for myself, which gives me a massive amount of flexibility. Two, my son spends every other week at his dad’s. This gives me a hell of a lot more free time for working out, hiking, running, walking the dogs, reading, and socializing. Three, my husband is an equal partner in household management and childcare. I do not carry all the invisible labor, and he’s cleaning, cooking, and running the kid around just as much (if not more) than I am.

I share this to dispel the idea that “we all have the same 24 hours.” No, we do not, so don’t try to compare your average day to mine, said with love. However, if there are things you can steal from my typical day to make yours more relaxed, comfortable, productive, or fun… please do! (And tell me what you’re stealing in comments.)

XO, MU