John Legend's wife Chrissy Teigen may write cookbooks full of recipes for comfort food like grilled cheese sandwiches and corn dogs, but his own go-to breakfast — and the rest of his morning routine — is way healthier.

"I usually have eggs and a salad and maybe a piece of like whole grain toast," Legend tells CNBC Make It.

Salad for breakfast?

"I have a salad with every meal," says Legend, who is a spokesperson for the Drink Good Do Good campaign, a partnership between Naked Juice and non-profit Wholesome Wave to help get all Americans access to fresh produce.

He also often works out for about an hour in the morning, and that doesn't have to be at a pricey gym, he says: "[R]un or walk or do something to keep your blood flowing and get you energized for the day."

It helps set Legend up for success and gets him "ready to tackle whatever I need to tackle that day," he tells CNBC Make It.

But what Legend listens to while exercising is not what you might guess for a Grammy-winning musician. Though he does sometimes listen to other artists, he also likes to listen to the news.

"A lot of times I'll just listen to Rachel Maddow from the night before," Legend says of MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show" for which the audio for episodes are available in podcast form. "So I'll just have it on my headphones and catch up because I missed it the night before, and see how the world is falling apart again."

The three key components that make up Legend's morning routine — healthy eating, fitness and a dose of news — are the same elements that many successful business titans incorporate into their own morning routines.

Virgin founder and CEO Richard Branson, for example, also kicks off his day with an early morning workout and a healthy breakfast. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey wakes up at 5 a.m. to meditate and work out. While Warren Buffett skips the healthy eating (he's a McDonald's breakfast sandwich fan) he starts his day at the office reading the news.

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