--- title: Navy SEAL: How I Have Productive Mornings description: It starts with a workout and a long positivity process. canonical: https://time.com/4287426/navy-seal-productive-morning/ author: Mark Divine article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-04-11T16:37:12.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:44:54.595Z og:title: How To Have A Productive Day, According to A Navy SEAL og:description: 'This routine has actually saved me enormous time and energy' og:url: https://time.com/4287426/navy-seal-productive-morning/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d794e364284c77e/69888e8ebc6cfcbf733dc85d/mark-divine-morning-routine-navy-seal.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1364 og:image:height: 767 og:image:alt: mark-divine-morning-routine-navy-seal og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How To Have A Productive Day, According to A Navy SEAL twitter:description: 'This routine has actually saved me enormous time and energy' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d794e364284c77e/69888e8ebc6cfcbf733dc85d/mark-divine-morning-routine-navy-seal.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # How To Have A Productive Day, According to A Navy SEAL > Sponsored content. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=7f829fd0-6218-4323-9126-626c19f98529&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1) ## Video: How to Find Motivation in Music [Watch (HLS stream): How to Find Motivation in Music](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/LCpXYXxf.m3u8) (1:23)  _Published 2016-01-07_ by [Mark Divine](https://time.com/author/mark-divine/) ## Mark Divine Apr 11, 2016 4:37 PM UTC  US Tactical is granted the following perpetual, non-exclusive, non-transferable rights to this image. 1) Internet Rights 2) Internet Advertising Rights 3) Internet Advertising Rights for Email 4) Collateral Rights 5) Publicity Rights US Tactical is granted the following perpetual, non-exclusive, non-transferable rights to this image. 1) Internet Rights 2) Internet Advertising Rights 3) Internet Advertising Rights for Email 4) Collateral Rights 5) Publicity Rights Peter Bohler by [Mark Divine](https://time.com/author/mark-divine/) ## Mark Divine Apr 11, 2016 4:37 PM UTC As an active Navy SEAL, my daily rhythm used to be dictated by the mission my team was preparing for or conducting. But no matter the mission, one thing that was always part of our morning routine was team physical training, or PT. That training, an invigorating (to say the least!) combination of full-body calisthenics, running, swimming and an obstacle course, provided a power-packed morning ritual for myself and my team as a whole. Starting my day with an intense functional-fitness workout, just like I did when I was in the SEALs, is a routine that I have carried into my professional life after military service. But the way I do that routine is somewhat uncommon, as I have a different view on physical training than most. My experience in the SEALs taught me that how you train is equally important to whether you train. Many people struggle daily with “whether” to train. As a SEAL, I have that covered—it’s on autopilot. Rather, I spend considerable time experimenting with “how” to train, to use that time not only to strengthen my body, but also strengthen my mind and emotional resiliency—all within one session. In the SEALs, character development—both as a team and as individuals—was conducted through a fierce and relentless exercise regimen. I continue to strive to develop my character through my training, cultivating traits such as: * Competitiveness in a cooperative way * Mental agility, focus and accuracy of thought * Emotional resiliency and confidence * Durability and a warrior’s non-quitting spirit My daily training is conducted in what I call my morning routine. I would characterize this routine as “integrated warrior development.” Though it changes a bit daily, for variety and to meet my objectives for the day, the basic building blocks remain the same. **_Read more:_** [_What You Can Learn From a Military General About Building Better Habits_](http://motto.time.com/4285675/build-better-habits/) Here is a typical routine: * Wake at dawn and before even opening my eyes, I begin my positivity process * I then get out of bed to drink a glass of fresh water and do some forward bends with deep, diaphragmatic breathing * Next, I review my personal ethos to ground my inner domain in the important things and box breathe for five to 20 minutes (a core practice I teach my students). * To cap off this stage of the morning routine, I visualize my day to set things on the right path. I also picture a “future version” of myself to sow the SEALFIT goal-actualization process. * Then, I have a cup of coffee with coconut oil and butter and head into my workplace, where I crank out my 90-minute SEALFIT Operator Workout of the Day, either alone or with my teammates. This routine may sound extensive to you, but it has led me to an incredible level of integrative health and functional fitness at the age of 52 (I can routinely outperform men half my age!). Another exciting outcome is that the time I spend each morning working on my “inner domain” has resulted in much greater success in the “outer world.” As a result, over the past few years, I have written several best-selling books, built six multi-million dollar businesses and am able to be fully present with my family. **_Read more:_** _‘_[_How I Became a Morning Person’_](http://motto.time.com/4243660/how-became-morning-person/) In fact, this routine has actually saved me enormous time and energy by providing me the clarity and confidence to say no to the wrong things in service to the bigger yes! It has also delivered astonishing levels of focus and energy and ensures that I am growing physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually every day. And to that, as we used to say in the SEALs, I give a big Hooyah! _Mark Divine is a retired SEAL Commander, the founder of SEALFIT and author of_ [8 Weeks to SEALFIT](http://www.amazon.com/Weeks-SEALFIT-Unconventional-Training-Toughness/dp/125004054X?tag=timecom-20)_._ ## Transcript [00:00] [ BLANK_AUDIO ] [00:03] [ SOUND ] [00:06] [ MUSIC ] You have to pay attention to [00:10] the music you're choosing to motivate yourself. [00:13] [ MUSIC ] [00:27] If you're looking for motivation, you need to play [00:29] motivating music. You turn your phone on with your [00:33] favorite song [ SOUND ] and you just [ SOUND ] [00:38] you walk. [ SOUND ] [00:43] [ MUSIC ] Remember when Rocky was really big in [00:48] that Da da da da da da da da da da da. [ MUSIC ] [00:56] Your shoulders would go back. You'd get that feeling. [01:02] You have to find your Rocky song. [ MUSIC ] And [01:10] whatever your Rocky song is, play it. Every morning, [01:14] every walk, whatever it is, you need your theme song. 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