20 Morning & Evening Routine Ideas to Help Calm Your Mind & Body
The secret to your future and success is hidden in your daily routine.
Some people believe that routine makes life less happy, while others believe it makes life easier.
Some people think that having a daily routine is boring, while others think of it challenging.
Some people say, ‘the less routine you’ll have, the more fun life will be’. While others say, ‘the more routine you have, the more progressive and prosperous you become’.
There ain’t no right or wrong to this because how you decide your day to be like depends on what you value and on your personality. If you think routines stress you, you can always find a way to organize your errands and plan your life. It’s all about finding whatever works for you.
But one thing’s for sure, having a daily and night time routine isn’t bad. In fact, you’ll get more benefits from it, like calming your mind and body, since you won’t miss deadlines or overlook important matters.
So if you’re a person who doesn’t like morning routines, this blog can help you realize the importance of it. Or if you’re having crazy schedules and cannot find the best daily and evening routines, we’ll give you 20 ideas that will not only help you prep for the whole day, but will also give long-lasting mind and body health benefits.
Benefits of having a routine
- Makes things more convenient and efficient
- Less hassle and clutter
- Less stress and hurry (no rushing for everything)
- Creates structure and organization
- Saves more time, energy, and money
- Encourages you to focus on your health more
- Breaks bad habits and starts good ones
- Makes you more productive and efficient
- Helps you prioritize and avoid procrastination
- Boosts determination and willpower
- Encourages discipline and motivation
- Builds confidence and momentum
- Gets you closer to your goals and achievements
- Gives you more time to evaluate, adjust, and recreate
10 Morning Routine Ideas
1. NO PHONES TO GATHER POSITIVE THOUGHTSPicking up your phone to turn off the alarm is totally fine, but don’t go scrolling anymore. Because the split second that you wake up is the most crucial part, for it will set the tone of how your day will become.
You may see an urgent email that will force you to get up immediately, which can break your planned morning routine. Or scrolling through social media and seeing a bad news or unfortunate event that can ruin your mood, eventually ruining your day, too. So hands off the phone first.
2. LET THE LIGHT INTo brush off the morning laziness, turn on your bright bedroom lights or open your curtains to let the light in. Exposure to bright lights can increase the feeling of productivity and wakefulness.
3. DO MINDFULNESS TECHNIQUES AND DEEP BREATHINGPracticing mindfulness daily can help clear your mind and help you become more aware of your actions, subconscious thoughts, and mindset. It is an activity/habit/practice that focuses on meditation, for the goal of preventing physical, psychological, and emotional exhaustion.
You can do this by expressing gratitude, saying a prayer, or doing yoga.
4. HYDRATE RIGHT AWAYAfter calming your mind, it’s time to nourish your body. Drink water first before your cup of jo or a glass of juice.
A glass of water gets the entire waking process and activity going, while allowing blood circulation, nutrient absorption, and boosting metabolism.
Keep a glass of water on your bedside table so it’s the first thing you can see once you wake up in the morning. Hydration comes first!
5. STRETCH AND GET MOVING
Doesn’t it feel great when you give yourself a nice, little stretch in the morning?
Stretching doesn’t always have to be a full yoga session. Simple stretching exercise from head to toe will do like neck, shoulder, arm, hip, knee, and ankle rotation. You just have to get your blood flowing healthily.
After that, you can proceed to your daily workout or exercise. Short or long fitness workout routine will do, as long as you engage in physical activity to aim for a healthy body and manageable weight.
6. CONTEMPLATE AND REVIEW YOUR DAILY TO-DO LISTSpend a couple of minutes going through your to-do list or checklist. Check which ones to prioritize and which you can set aside for the day.
Do you need to head outside to buy stuff? If yes, how can you make sure it won’t swamp your other schedules? Doing so will let you accomplish the harder tasks first before the easier ones.
7. MAKE YOUR BEDSome people see making bed as a tedious chore, but if you make it a habit, you’ll see the good in it. It will make yourself feel better because there’s less clutter, providing more room for focus and good sleep hygiene.
8. WASH YOUR FACEWash your face to get rid of the sweat, oily skin, and product residue. Then you can proceed with your morning skincare.
Skincare is also a self-care tool. It’s healthy for your skin and it makes you feel good because you’re like having a mini-pamper session with yourself.
9. MAKE TIME WITH YOUR FAMILYNo matter how busy or preoccupied you are, always spend time with your family, even for just a couple of minutes. But if you can do for an hour or so, then that’sbetter.
Have a healthy breakfast with them and talk about your plans for the day. Communication and having meals together are simple ways to maintain a meaningful relationship with your family.
10. MUTITASK IN A FUN WAYMake your morning routine enjoyable by doing something fun. Like enjoying that coffee and meal of yours on the terrace as you enjoy the view outside. Or preparing a nutritious breakfast while watching your favorite TV show. Or taking a bath and playing your favorite upbeat music at the same time.
This will keep you occupied in a fun way to get all your routines done, rather than just doing everything in a monotonous way. There’s a difference between just completing tasks and loving what you do.
10 Evening Routine Ideas
11. PLAN FOR THE NEXT DAYIn order to prevent getting swamped out with appointments and tasks, always plan for the next day. Review your schedules carefully to make sure you won’t get tangled with your activities.
Have a meal plan, double check your alarm, prepare your clothes and other stuff so you won’t forget anything the next day. If you make this a habit, you will always have time for your family, make way for exercise, and prepare a healthy meal since you’re not rushing and you have everything strategically planned.
12. TAKE A WARM BATHNaturally, your body experiences different hormonal changes throughout the day as part of your sleep-wake cycle. One of these is the serotonin and melatonin production that plays an important role in preparing your mind and body for sleep.
Taking a warm bath helps your core body temperature to drop, therefore signaling the pineal gland to produce melatonin.
13. WEAR COMFY CLOTHESAlways wear your favorite sleepwear or a pair of comfy pajamas to help you sleep better and faster. Sleepwear usually has fabrics that are soft and gentle even on sensitive skin.
PJs also cover your legs from the cold as you sleep, protecting you from catching cold or flu.
14. DO YOUR NIGHT SKIN CARE ROUTINEWhen you go to sleep, your body recharges and your skin rejuvenates. Your skin produces new cells that can also improve its texture.
Additionally, at night, your melatonin production increases, which can also accelerate skin regeneration.
While morning skincare protects your skin from bacteria and impurities throughout the day, evening skincare serves as an overnight repair process. Because at night, your skin transitions from protect mode to repair.
15. PREP YOUR BEDROOMDim the lights in your bedroom, clean or mop the floor, turn on your aromatherapy diffuser, remove clutter, and make your bed more comfortable in any way you like. You can also change your bed and pillow sheet if you feel the need to. These will help you feel more relaxed, contributing to good quality sleep.
16. DECIDE AND SET YOUR BEDTIME
If you have a morning alarm, you can also set an alarm for your bedtime. Setting a wake-up and bedtime routine will help regularize your sleeping pattern.
This will also help train your brain to feel sleepy and your body to feel tired when it’s time for bed.
But as you do this, make sure you’re done with all your chores and night time routine before you schedule 30 minutes to 1 hour before bedtime. This way, you don’t have to go rushing to sleep or force yourself to sleep.
17. DRINK YOUR BEDTIME TEA OR MILKCoffee lovers prefer to drink coffee before bedtime, and it makes them fall asleep easier. However, this is not the case for most people, especially if you have a low tolerance for caffeine.
Caffeine can block the sleep-promoting receptors in your brain, making you feel more awake. So instead, reach for milk or the best teas for sleep.
18. STAY AWAY FROM ELECTRONIC DEVICESEven though you believe that binge watching on Netflix or scrolling through social media can help you fall asleep, your devices actually emit a strong blue light.
When you feel sleepy while watching your favorite show, you may think that it’s helping you to sleep faster. But you’ll be surprised at how removing these from your evening habit can establish a better wake-sleep cycle.
This is because when you use an electronic device, the strong blue light will prompt your brain into thinking that it’s daytime. This process can suppress the melatonin production, making you feel awake rather than sleepy
19. LISTEN TO MUSIC
Listening to your favorite music, no matter what the genre is, as long as it relaxes you, will distract you from negative thoughts and energy. This will allow your mind and body to feel calm and ready to sleep.
20. MINDFULNESS AND MEDITATIONWhile mindfulness and meditation during the morning prepare you for the day ahead, evening mindfulness and meditation teach you to let go of the worries and release the tension you’ve encountered, in order to control your mind and not let stress ruin your sleep.
This can be a difficult process, especially if you’re dealing with a lot of issues. But the more you stay consistent, the stronger and more optimistic you’ll become.
When doing this, close your eyes, focus on how your day went, and observe your thoughts. If the negative encounters keep coming, it’s time to let the positive thoughts flow in.
Be thankful for your experience and lessons for the day. Appreciate that you did an awesome job, acknowledge your strengths and skills, or say a thankful prayer.
Takeaways
No matter how long or short your routine is, it will always be a part of your life. So always look for the beauty in it and make each day your masterpiece.
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