When was the last time you planned self care ideas for your day off? Whether it’s a vacation, a personal day to recharge, or any given Saturday, what gets measured gets managed. You may find a lot of joy in the planning stage too!
In this blog I will be providing you with a number of self care ideas that make your day off both pampering and rejuvenating.
Why take a self care day
Self care days are important. It brings us back to ourselves and can remind us of some activities that we really love, making space for them. It allows us some quiet time; time to destress and time away from all the stimulus that life is constantly throwing at us.
Stress causes illness. It’s important to take time to unwind and heal. Our thoughts and judgement may be more clear. We make better decisions, sleep better and react better to challenging situations.
This post is jam packed with self care ideas to help you create your perfect day. Of course, you don’t have to do all of them. Mix and match to your heart’s content! Every person’s self care day can look different.
I strongly recommend using a journal to record your favourite activities and meals. Keep it in a safe place so that you know what to do the next time you need self care ideas for your day.
Let’s get ready for the day! Unplug your headphones, put the cell phone down, turn off the tv and prepare yourself for some much deserved pampering!
Morning Self Care Activities
1. Plan your wake up time in advance
If you need an extra hour of sleep on your self care day, set an alarm for that time. Try not to sleep in too long. The point of your self care day is to explore activities that bring you peace while you are awake. This in turn can help you cope with daily stressors. Besides, is there anything better than waking up at your normal time knowing that you don’t have to work today?
2. Lemon Water
Start your day with warm lemon water. You can spice it up with a bit of fresh ginger or a clove. Don’t worry, once you finish with your lemon water feel free to enjoy a relaxing cup of coffee or morning tea.
3. Set an Intention for Your Day
This is a day for you. Be kind to yourself today. Very soon after you wake up, begin to think about your intention for the day. This is a day of pampering. Which activities are you most looking forward to? Make sure you prioritize them.
4. Light Breakfast
One of my favourite self care ideas is starting the day with a healthy breakfast. It’s important to eat healthy on your self care day. You may be amazed at how much better you feel. Take the time to prepare in advance if you need to. Have a light breakfast of a yogurt bowl with berries, nuts and seeds, or scramble up some tofu with veggies. There are lots of suggestions on the web for your inspiration. Do a little searching and then plan for your favourite light breakfast.
5. Prepare Hydration for the Day
I’m a huge fan of having a large water bottle ready in the morning to help monitor my daily water intake. Our bodies are mostly water, so it’s important to replace it during the day to help our system function at higher level. Water helps to move the digestive system, is important for brain function and is hugely helpful to our skin. You can create a habit tracker in your journal, track your water intake on your phone or do what I do. Get a large water bottle with measurements on the side so that you know how much water you’ve had. Two full water bottles for me make my daily recommended water intake goal. This water bottle takes the counting and the guess work out. If you don’t want to drink from the water bottle, that’s fine too. Just pour it out into your preferred cup. Drinking a good amount of water each day is one of the self care ideas that you can do any day. With the right tools this will become second nature in no time.
6. Morning Walk
Get outside and take a walk. Walking is a great activity for stress relief. It’s also great for getting the body systems moving, whether that be digestion or creativity. Walking is like setting a wheel into motion. This is one of the small self care ideas with a big pay off. It’s an activity that you can do at your own pace. Leave the headphones at home and just walk. Notice your surroundings. Ask yourself questions and see what comes up.
7. Somatic Yoga
Every now and then something comes along to take your workouts to the next level. Somatic Yoga is the practice of mind-body connection to relieve stress, pain, and create a sense of overall wellbeing. You can do it in your house. All you need is a bit of space.
8. Meditation
Meditation is for everyone. It’s free, you can do it almost anywhere, and it transforms lives. You may have better reactions to stress. Over time you may find an inner peace or guidance that has been missing from your life. Or you may find that you enjoy silence. Whatever reason you find, with practice you may find that meditation becomes an essential part of your week.
9. Journaling
Just the word “journaling” warms my heart. There are so many ways to journal. You can – and perhaps should – start with a brain dump. Write down whatever comes to your mind. Often we try to hold onto memories of conversations or situations that we are trying to work out. Your mind wants to solve problems or remember things, which can lead to problems sleeping, concentrating and can enhance stress. By writing down what is on your mind first, you allow the page to hold the memory so that your mind doesn’t have to. After that, you can use journal prompts to help the creativity flow. Write down what you are grateful for, something that happened to you recently that made you happy or something nice that you did for someone else. The sky is the limit. Here is a secret about your journal. What you write down doesn’t have to be true. Imagine if you started journaling with intention for 30 minutes per day. At the end of one year you would have a book.
Afternoon Self Care Activities
10. Creativity
Plan to create something in the afternoon. Whether you choose to bake, make a seasonal wreath for the home, or DIY a potpourri basket, choose a creative activity that you used to enjoy in your younger days, or something you’ve been curious about. The Dollar Store is a great place to get materials, or check out your local craft store such as Michaels and Hobby Lobby. Don’t worry if you feel that you are “not good at art”. This is just for you. You may surprise yourself once you are picking out the crafts yourself.
11. Face Care
Pair your water therapy with a face care ritual. Create a facial steam by adding one drop of cedarwood and one drop of lavender essential oil into a bowl of hot water. Being careful to not burn yourself, place your face at a good height above the bowl and inhale the relaxing scent while allowing your face to receive some of the steam. Be very careful to not burn your nasal passages. You could also make a face mask to cleanse the skin, followed by a moisturizing routine. Face masks can be made from your favourite clay and water, or add skin nourishing ingredients such as yogurt, aloe or kiwi! Often I find that taking a few minutes for an at-home facial is one of my best self care ideas.
12. Hair Care
Do you take the time to deep condition your hair? Our hair is exposed to sun, wind, water and heated tools, all of which can make your hair look dull and coarse over time. Rebuild your hair with a deep conditioning treatment. Follow up with hydrotherapy below.
13. Hydrotherapy
I love the water so incorporating this into my self care ideas is very important. Take a bath, enjoy a shower, or if you have access to a pool, go for a swim and a sauna. Water allows us to dull some of our overused senses and other senses come to the surface. Have you ever thought that you get great ideas in the shower? Put on some music and relax with water. Know that if you do this in your house, this is the penultimate of “me time” as the bathroom is a private space.
14. Play that Funky Music
Music is a very fast way to set the mood. Whether you want to listen to something soothing to enhance quiet time, or rekindle the old question, “who do you like better, the Beatles or the Stones” music has many unique abilities. It’s healing. It brings people together. It creates connection and can help you tap into your inner creative archives. Begin a playlist on Spotify or YouTube of your favourites. That way you have access to something that you love on your next day off. If you play an instrument, now is the time to pick it up and free form for a while. There are very few concerns that music can’t fix, at least temporarily.
15. Dance Because No One’s Watching
Another great way to get movement into your day is to dance! Put on the music that uplifts your spirits and go for it. This is your day off so no one should be watching. However, if someone else is home you can dance in the bathroom. Dance while going up and down a staircase, or while doing the dishes. Even just a few songs will very quickly raise your spirits and might just be one of your new favourite self care ideas. The Friday Dance Party is not just for Fridays.
16. Make Dinner Early
How many times do you think, “I wish someone else would make dinner tonight”? Well someone else can! Sort of. You! Earlier in the day. Dust off that crock pot book, or plan your Instapot for the night. Cut up your veggies in advance. We have a saying in my house. “I love it when dinner is made at lunch.” It’s true. The scent of your evening meal cooking brings comfort. I find that dinners that cook low and slow taste better and are more tender.
Evening Self Care Ideas
17. Foot Care
It’s amazing how luxurious foot care is, making it a must self care activity. Our feet take us everywhere and a number of people have jobs that keep them on feet a large part of the day. Create a relaxing evening ritual with foot care. Add two drops of frankincense and two drops of peppermint to one ounce unscented lotion and give yourself a foot massage. Afterwards, wrap your feet in soothing aloe infused socks for a special treat. Just be careful to not walk around much after you look after your feet. The floor will probably be slippery. Move slowly and hang on to something until you know that slipping will not be an issue.
18. Diffuse Essential Oils
Nighttime is the perfect time to diffuse essential oils. Let the relaxing scents help to calm your nervous system and provide a sense of peace and wellbeing. Great essential oils to diffuse at night include frankincense, sandalwood, lavender, rose, patchouli, cedarwood or chamomile.
19. Gratitude Journaling
At the end of the day, it’s time to be grateful. You don’t need to spend a lot of time on gratitude journaling for it to make a difference. Try writing down 3 things that you are grateful for from that day. If you repeat this activity nightly, you may be surprised what comes up for you as things that you really enjoy that are simple, found in nature or easily repeatable.
20. Read a Book or Listen to a Podcast
I’m adding listen to an audiobook to this list of self care ideas. Picking up a great story is important to all of us. When you watch a tv show or movie, you are experiencing a story. Often, books and audio books will provide an enjoyable experience that also brings into play your own imagination and visualization. You can be inspired or intrigued by a podcast that deals with your favourite subject. Whether you are interested in mystery, history, learning something new, or career or spiritual guidance, it’s out there.
21. Go Light on Evening Calories
After dinner, drink only tea or lemon water. Stop eating, and keep your drinks to a minimum one to two hours before bed. Do not have sugar drinks after dinner. You may sleep better and you also may find healthy changes to your digestive system. Sleep is meant for rest and repair of the body, not resting and digesting – which happens more efficiently when you are awake.
How to Plan Your Self Care Day
I’m outing myself as an A-type personality here, but I highly recommend creating a schedule for the activities that you want to do the most. You can get a lot done when you are focused. Being focused means taking decisions out of the equation. Therefore, I recommend making as many decisions as you can in advance so that you know how your day will go. For example, if you want to start your day with lemon water and journaling, schedule an hour or so to do this activity. If walking is next, schedule that in for an hour and so on. Break it up into morning, afternoon and evening. You can always move things around or change the length of an activity as the day goes along. Just make sure that you prioritize your favourites to get the most out of your day.
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