How important is a routine for you

[georgegeorgia]

One thing that can lead to a downfall in expats living in Thailand particularly Pattaya is not following a routine .

 

Sleep all day ,drink all night ,no structure ,no routine.

 

I just read a Prison boss saying his prison is successful because prisoners follow a routine 

 

When we went to school we had a routine,a job a routine ,up at 7am ready for work ,travel , work till 4pm ,go to gym ,etc 

 

Is a routine for you ,how important is it in life ,is it necessary for success in ife ,to get through life ?

 

What happens if you don't have a routine ,many of you retired may not.

[jumbo]

I have a morning routine before going to work and a (fitness) routine for after work

The latter one might vary depending my lust for alcohol

[Crossy]

20 minutes ago, jumbo said:

I have a morning routine before going to work and a (fitness) routine for after work

The latter one might vary depending my lust for alcohol

 

My evening routine only involves alcohol (and food of course)

 

[georgegeorgia]

38 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

My evening routine only involves alcohol (and food of course)

 

I have a brother who religiously has red wine every Friday & Saturday night with his meal ,part of his routine ,don't know why 

 

 

 

[nikmar]

having a routine works or me. Every morning. Having a Thai wife who wouldnt know a routine if it sh#t in her hair is not good for my OCD.

[Mentors65]

Going in a bar daily for 20 beers is also a routine

[scubascuba3]

Routine is good thing for sure, I've fallen into one, Cycle 4 days a week, golf 2 days a week, beers on a Friday, etc etc, even sleep same time most nights

[bkk6060]

1 hour ago, georgegeorgia said:

Sleep all day ,drink all night ,no structure ,no routine.

Well, in reality that is a routine.

Of course, a healthy lifestyle routine would be a better choice.

[OneMoreFarang]

Years ago, I would have said routine is boring and restricting.

 

Now I think it's good. Maybe calling it structure is a nicer way to explain it.

If people have a structure in their life, then nothing dramatic will happen. Obviously, they can change the structure, but better slowly and part by part.

 

I think lotto millionaires are a good example. If they keep their friends and live in the same house like before, then all is fine. If they move to a mansion, look for new friends, and change more of their existing structure then it's easy that things go wrong. 

[KhunLA]

To the title ... don't consciously have or want.  Hate schedules and never make definite plans.

 

Saying that, when home, I enjoy my daily coffee/reading 'routine', and know I'll be walking the dog between 10-12am at the park when home.

 

The rest of my day, life is open for suggestions.

[georgegeorgia]

2 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

To the title ... don't consciously have or want.  Hate schedules and never make definite plans.

 

Saying that, when home, I enjoy my daily coffee/reading 'routine', and know I'll be walking the dog between 10-12am at the park when home.

 

The rest of my day, life is open for suggestions.

I guess then some would say your life could be boring as there is no plan routine.

 

[The Fugitive]

37 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

I have a brother who religiously has red wine every Friday & Saturday night with his meal ,part of his routine ,don't know why

Sounds like a good thing to do IMHO.

[Bert got kinky]

 

I'm ex-forces, so like most ex-forces personal, my whole life is a routine.

I'm totally thrown out of sync if my routine is disturbed.

 

 

[georgegeorgia]

11 minutes ago, Bert got kinky said:

 

I'm ex-forces, so like most ex-forces personal, my whole life is a routine.

I'm totally thrown out of sync if my routine is disturbed.

 

 

You go to bed same time every night ,wake up same time?

[Don Chance]

It is the opposite,it is changing your routine that will keep you young and healthy.  You need to step out of your safe space regularly.

 

Quote

Repetition compulsion is just that, a compulsion. When we repeat the past, we are not doing it on purpose, rather, it is a learned response to what we already know.

 

[JensenZ]

25 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

Years ago, I would have said routine is boring and restricting.

 

Now I think it's good. Maybe calling it structure is a nicer way to explain it.

If people have a structure in their life, then nothing dramatic will happen. Obviously, they can change the structure, but better slowly and part by part.

 

I think lotto millionaires are a good example. If they keep their friends and live in the same house like before, then all is fine. If they move to a mansion, look for new friends, and change more of their existing structure then it's easy that things go wrong. 

I believe too much structure and routine is a bad thing as it makes people too inflexible and any disruption to the routine causes stress and difficulty coping or performing.

 

I have only one structured activity, my daily exercise routine, but even that is not performed at the same time everyday. Sleeping time, duration of sleep, eating time - all else is flexible. When I'm hungry I eat. When I'm tired I rest, when I'm sleepy I sleep.

[HappyExpat57]

I live for routine, and it's a healthy one. Same time to bed +/- 5 minutes, get up at oh-dark-thirty, do class prep for the day then the next week, then eat the same basic healthy meal, shower, and off to teaching I go. After work, sit for an hour to relax, then go back to class prep for the next week, make the same healthy dinner/lunch for the next day, and off to bed +/- 5 minutes.

 

I believe without this routine I'd already be pushing up daisies.

[scubascuba3]

18 minutes ago, Don Chance said:

It is the opposite,it is changing your routine that will keep you young and healthy.  You need to step out of your safe space regularly.

 

 

The reason people do routine is because it feels good, if it didn't you'd change it

[Bert got kinky]

18 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

You go to bed same time every night ,wake up same time?

Oh yes, mustn't upset the balance of the Universe.

 

[Bert got kinky]

16 minutes ago, JensenZ said:

I believe too much structure and routine is a bad thing as it makes people too inflexible and any disruption to the routine causes stress and difficulty coping or performing.

 

I have only one structured activity, my daily exercise routine, but even that is not performed at the same time everyday. Sleeping time, duration of sleep, eating time - all else is flexible. When I'm hungry I eat. When I'm tired I rest, when I'm sleepy I sleep.

I believe too much structure and routine is a bad thing as it makes people too inflexible and any disruption to the routine causes stress and difficulty coping or performing.

While I can agree that breaking my routine does send me a bit wobbly for the day but there are plus sides to following a routine.

You can make better advanced plans, you are less likely to forget important tasks and you are hardly ever late for anything.

 

[JensenZ]

4 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

I live for routine, and it's a healthy one. Same time to bed +/- 5 minutes, get up at oh-dark-thirty, do class prep for the day then the next week, then eat the same basic healthy meal, shower, and off to teaching I go. After work, sit for an hour to relax, then go back to class prep for the next week, make the same healthy dinner/lunch for the next day, and off to bed +/- 5 minutes.

 

I believe without this routine I'd already be pushing up daisies.

I understand that a tight routine is necessary when you're working a paid job, but most expats here have probabaly spent most of their lives doing that, and retirement is a time for change.

 

My main daily work (more a hobby than a job) is online trading, which means I'm often up at all hours of the night monitoring trades and I need the ability to be mentally alert at any time of the day or night. Flexibility is very important, and you don't get that by sleeping at the same time everyday. 

 

I can't really say if this lifestyle is healthy or not as I've been on this non-routine for a long time. I'll push up daisies when I'm ready.

[JensenZ]

Just now, Bert got kinky said:

I believe too much structure and routine is a bad thing as it makes people too inflexible and any disruption to the routine causes stress and difficulty coping or performing.

While I can agree that breaking my routine does send me a bit wobbly for the day but there are plus sides to following a routine.

You can make better advanced plans, you are less likely to forget important tasks and you are hardly ever late for anything.

 

I have calendar reminders so I don't forget important events/activities. I'm never late for anything as I set timers or alarms. You'd be surprised how well you can perform without a routine. I've found that too much sleep is the worst thing for me. I'm ok with 4 - 6 hours on average. I feel really bad or groggy if I manage to stay asleep for 7 hours.

[ExpatOilWorker]

48 minutes ago, Bert got kinky said:

 

I'm ex-forces, so like most ex-forces personal, my whole life is a routine.

I'm totally thrown out of sync if my routine is disturbed.

 

 

Any special kinky routines we should know about? ???? 

[Bert got kinky]

15 minutes ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

Any special kinky routines we should know about? ???? 

 

Not since Sukhumvit Square went missing (overnight). ????

 

[JensenZ]

1 hour ago, Bert got kinky said:

 

I'm ex-forces, so like most ex-forces personal, my whole life is a routine.

I'm totally thrown out of sync if my routine is disturbed.

 

Yes, but when you go to war, things change a lot and the ability to be alert on short notice and at any time becomes very important. Don't you train for this too? I've found that a 2-hour timed sleep is amazing for regenerating and getting back to action at a time I would not normally be awake. When it's over 2 hours it's more difficult to wake up again.

[Lacessit]

I am a creature of routine, and enjoy it. I feel uncomfortable when my routines of exercise and food choices are disrupted.

[Moonlover]

3 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

I am a creature of routine, and enjoy it. I feel uncomfortable when my routines of exercise and food choices are disrupted.

Yes I'm in complete agreement with that. Some circles consider it to be an OCD. I don't care. I can live with that. It suits me fine and there is medical evidence in support of regular habits.

 

Health benefits of routines

[LaosLover]

I do the gym, Mon-sat, alternating weights and treadmill days -to not much effect, I might add.

 

And if we're watching something like the stupid Ultimatum show on Netflix, that'll be an 8 to nine-er till it's done.

 

Other than that, I got nothing.

[save the frogs]

yes routine is important. especially if you want to stay in shape. 

 

maybe you can be less rigid on weekends. 

sometimes it's good to do something spontaneous without planning. 

 

[473geo]

Have daily tasks some are not frequently changed, others we can juggle as necessary, so while there is routine there is also required a flexibility and no set timing on those tasks we can move around 

Makes life interesting, our agenda can be influenced by so many different things the following day seldom the same