My Night Routine

Hello friends! I have been all about creating new routines and habits lately. I’m trying to add healthy and fun habits to my daily routines, so when things eventually return to (some aspect of) normal, I’ll be leading a better life. One way that I’m doing this is participating in a challenge run by Hedy from Happily Hedy. You can expect to see a blog post about this challenge on Wednesday, June 10! Today, however, I’m sharing my night routine with you. My full night routine takes around a half an hour and generally stays consistent.

Change and skin care

The first thing I do when I think it’s time to wind down is take one last look at my phone and plug it in. I then change into some comfy clothes to sleep in. I usually do this at 11 or 11:30. At this time, I brush my hair out and put it into a braid. I then head into the bathroom and start washing my face. I don’t have a complicated skin care routine by any means, I just use my CeraVe facial cleanser and Cetaphil moisturizer. After, I brush my teeth and head back into my room.

Journal

I love this journaling! It’s so relaxing and a great way to unwind and wipe the slate clean for the next day. I fill out my habit tracker and record my exercise in a log. I also write a little (more or less) diary entry recording what happens during my day and how I felt.

Meditate

Directly after finishing writing, I take a few deep breaths and start my timer. I’ve been meditating every day for the last month and it’s becoming so much easier! I could not keep my mind quiet at first, but now the 4 minutes, that I so vigilantly worked up to, feel like nothing. On nights that I can’t focus, I like to do a body scan. This is where you notice how each part of your body feels, you don’t label it, just observe.

Affirmations

I curated a list of affirmations for myself and my goals, and they are so helpful! I have 12 or so phrases that I say to myself in the mirror. I get quite passionate when I’m reciting them, and the actress inside of me comes out. Sometimes I prefer to wait to say them when I’m in bed right before I go to sleep, but I like saying them at night so they stay in my mind while I sleep.

Stretch

I’m a runner. For the last year, my coach has been telling my to stretch at least once a day, but it was rare for me to stretch more than twice a week! I decided to commit to stretching every night to relax my muscles and get some stretching into my daily routine. I take 5-10 minutes stretching, nothing complicated, just a few simple stretches.

Sleep

Obviously, the last thing in my night routine is to go to sleep! I climb up into my bed and fall asleep shortly after. I few days into my routine that I fall asleep pretty easily, definitely a lot faster than I did before I started this routine.

There you have it, my nightly ritual! This is just what works for me. As I said before, I made sure to incorporate some habits that I want to adopt. I highly recommend doing this if you are curating a night routine of your own. I’m curious, let me know if you have a night routine! Stay safe and happy!