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Felicity Palmateer’s morning routine

  • December 21, 2020

Instantly recognisable as one of Australia’s leading professional surfers, Felicity Palmateer knows more than a thing or two about catching big waves. While she competes for much of the year, she also happens to have a very healthy and happy attitude toward life outside the water.  

At nudie, we’re all about positivity, growth and happiness, so we thought it was only fitting to chat to Felicity (or ‘Flick’ as she’s known by family, friends and fans) about caring for her mind and body, as well as finding time to indulge in the things that matter most in life. Here, thanks to Surfing Australia, Felicity breaks down her morning routine and shares a little about how she sets herself up for success, each and every day.  

  • Rise and shine

    “I do have an alarm set, because I’m very into my routine. My saying is ‘win the morning, win the day’, so my alarm time tends to change from day-to-day depending on what the surf is doing that morning. Typically, it will go off at 5am, I’ll have a big drink of water and then coffee. I don’t think I ever miss a day without coffee! Once that’s done, I check the surf forecast to see what’s going on in the water. If there’s no surf, I’ll work out from 6am-7am and then come back home to have breakfast. If there’s surf, I’ll surf! If I have a coaching session in the morning and I have certain things I want to do in that session I’ll usually be out for a while but if the surf is absolutely pumping, I could be out there for three hours!” 

  • Refulling and forging forward

    “I don’t like to have much in my stomach before I surf or workout. I might have a banana but that’s it. Sometimes I’ll do exercise and then it’s straight into a surf and by then I’m pretty starving. I’ve been really obsessed lately with these protein pancakes I’ve been making. It’s a super simple recipe, I’ve been putting it on my Instagram a lot, and people make jokes about how often I eat them, but I literally make them every day. They are so good and pretty healthy, and they feel naughty even though they aren’t.” 

  • Life admin and hobby time

    “I have emails and admin things I need to do most mornings, but it really depends on each day. I only tend to know a week in advance what I’m doing at any given time. My life revolves around the surf forecast and I just try to fit everything else in as I go. I also like to engage with my art, which is really nice. I’ve moved back to Western Australia and have established a space in the house where I’ve got a bit of a studio. Surfing and art are different but in some ways they’re really similar, they’re both forms of expression and creative outlets, so there’s a nice crossover there. I was doing art before I started surfing. My mum studied fashion design and my dad is a ceramicist, so I’ve always been interested in art from a young age. It makes me feel super calm. I tend to practice my art at least every second day. Sometimes when you’re a competitive surfer, and especially in the big waves with world tours and training, it can be quite intense. It’s just good for me to have a different outlet where I’m thinking differently.” 

  • Social media and life online

    “I would be lying if I said I didn’t check my social media within half an hour of waking up, because I do, but I just try to be mindful of it, and I try not to be too hard on myself because I know I do a lot of other things where I’m not on my phone. I make a conscious effort not to be on my phone around my family too, so even though I am checking social media on and off, I’m not too worried. I do really love connecting with people online, and I can get a lot of young girls writing to me who ask about surfing and even my art, so there are a lot of positives that come out of being on social networks regularly.”  

  • Meditation and visualisation

    “I’ve been trying to get more into meditating in the mornings but It’s hard. My personality is go, go, go. As soon as I get up in the morning I like to get into life and the day, so I think trying to make meditation a part of my routine and create a habit has been a bit tough. I do a lot of visualisation and meditation before I surf and compete, but that’s different because I’m trying to get into a flow state. It’s definitely not part of my morning routine (laughs).”