My Nightly Routine: 5 Things I Do To Wind Down After A Tough Day

My Nightly Routine: 5 Things I Do To Wind Down After A Tough Day.

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but. habit” – Aristotle.

Having a solid and structured morning routine is something which I pride myself on. I love to rise early, workout and invest in my personal development, all before my work day has even begun.

At some point however, I realised that I simply wasn’t putting any effort into planning my nightly routine. I’ve since learned through personal experience and from research, that nightly routines can be equally important when it comes to priming ourselves for success. Having a consistent and well-planned nightly routine plays a key role in setting our next day the right way. By implementing a nightly routine, I have been able to wake up the next day feeling well-rested, and ready to tackle the day.

Here are 5 key practices I have put in place to set up my nightly routine:

1. DESTRESS & DECOMPRESS

For a significant portion of my working life, a stressful day at the office would often translate to a stressful night at home. I have since realised that my ability to destress and decompress would be a critical factor in my resilience and ability to take on new challenges and opportunities.

I find little ways to destress and decompress after a long and stressful day, including:

• Living by the ‘5 by 5 rule: If it’s not going to matter in 5 years, I allocate a maximum of 5 minutes to spend worrying about it.
• Mental dumping ground: On my commute home from work, I reach a particular point of my journey where I mentally ‘dump’ everything before I go home, and then pick it up on my way back to the office the next morning.
• Having a long, hot shower or running a bubble bath.
• Lighting my favourite candles.
• Having some peppermint tea

These small practices help to get me in a calm state for the evening, despite how stressful my day may have been.

2. EVERYTHING HAS IT’S PLACE

A key part of my nightly routine includes tidying up, and ensuring that everything is in it’s place. I spend time each day putting my clothes away or in the laundry room, washing and putting away the dishes and ensuring that my home is in order.

3. PREPARING FOR THE NEXT DAY

“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail”- Benjamin Franklin.

Setting my day up for success requires preparation for the following day. Some of the steps I take to prepare for the next morning include:

• Food prep: Ensuring my breakfast, lunch and snacks are prepared for and ready to go.
• Gym clothes: I lay out my gym clothes, shoes, water bottle and towel to minimise the amount of preparation when I wake up to train at 5am.
• Outfit planning: I check the weather and work schedule, and plan my outfit accordingly.

4. SET A NIGHT TIME ALARM

Just like setting an alarm to wake up in the morning, there is also value in setting an alarm on when to go to sleep. I used to be a night owl and would spend hours and hours lost scrolling through instagram, online shopping and watching videos on Youtube. At some point, I realised that I had developed a really bad habit which impacted my ability to sleep. Setting an alarm for when it’s time to get into bed serves as an important reminder and helps to stay disciplined with my bed time.

5. READING & GRATITUDE

Lastly, an important part of my nightly routine comprises of reading and practicing gratitude.

When it comes to reading, I aim to read one self-development book per month, and dedicate about 20 minutes to reading before going to sleep each night.

As for practicing gratitude, I have a small daily practice where I reflect on the day and think of three things I feel most grateful for. This ensures that no matter what’s happened throughout the day, that it always ends on a positive note.

SETTING A NIGHTLY ROUTINE

Do you currently follow a nighty routine? Is having a nightly routine something which is important to you? I would love to hear your thoughts, please leave your comments below!