We’ve all heard people talk about self-care and emphasize how important it is, but we don’t always hear people explain exactly what self-care routines actually look like. And that’s partially because self-care routines are, by nature, customized to the individual. 

By definition, self-care is the process of caring for yourself without the aid of others. It’s a procedure that’s meant to help you destress and unwind so that you have the energy to do the things you need to do. A self-care routine can also help with your mental health. If you love working out, a walk or a spin class might be self-care for you. Letting yourself watch Criminal Minds without multitasking might be self-care for you if you always need to be cleaning or doing laundry while watching TV. Whatever it is, self-care is something that is exclusively for you and your benefit.

Self-care looks different for everyone. These ideas aren’t meant to be an exact list that you need to follow for your self-care time – instead, they’re meant to be a great place to start. Think of it like a menu where you can pick the things that seem the most peaceful to you. When you start regularly scheduling self-care time you’ll start to find your perfect routine. Until then, here are some great options for you to try out!

Go for a walk, run, or hike without stressing about calories.

It’s easy to focus on calories or a similar metric when doing physical activity, but it might be liberating or refreshing to instead focus on the fresh air, flowers, and your other surroundings while walking or running outside. 

Sip on a coffee at your favorite coffee shop.

So many of us are always on the go so the chance to sit and relax at your favorite coffee shop is one you might not get to enjoy as often as you’d like.

Give yourself a spa day.

This is probably the most common self-care idea, and that’s because it really does work. If you love painting your nails while watching reality TV, do that! If you love skincare, give yourself an extra ten minutes to leisurely do your complete skincare routine. Whatever it is, pampering yourself is fun and relaxing.

Dance!

If you work at a desk, getting up every hour or so to just move can be really helpful! You can walk around your office or house, stretch, or put on a song and dance like no one’s watching. There are countless Youtube dance fitness videos you can pick from as well. Dancing is a workout that doesn’t feel like a workout until you get that boost of endorphins that will make you feel a bit happier and more energetic throughout the day.

Take a day off of work to do nothing.

This type of self-care needs to be planned in advance, but if you’re able to schedule a day off to just do whatever you want and ignore emails, it might be exactly what you need to feel refreshed. 

There are a lot of ideas for self-care routines – what are your favorites? Let us know in the comments!

If you’re planning an epic getaway as your form of self-care, we can help! Head over to https://thesocialsetters.com/startplanning to get started!