Let’s Look : My Wellness Routine

Today, I’m joining up with Mix and Match Mama and talking about “My Wellness Routine”. These are the little routines I do daily that help me feel better and live a more healthy, peaceful, happy life. The more I’ve thought about this post the more excited and inspired I am to share my wellness routines with you because my own health journey has been full of ups and downs. I’ve lived through years of stress, anxiety, and depression and I no longer take my health and well-being for granted. Now I intentionally build my days around things that support my body, mind, soul, and spirit because I’ve learned that they are all interwoven with each other, each part affecting all the other parts. What happens in the body, also affects our mind, our soul, and our spirit, and vice versa. And the older I get, the more I value a peaceful mind, a thriving spirit connected to God, a healthy soul, and a strong, able body.

1. Put My Phone on Do Not Disturb

We all know how important sleep is to our overall health, so I really try to go to bed at a decent hour and get a good night’s sleep. One of the things I do to support my sleep is putting my phone on “Do Not Disturb” mode every night from 10:30pm – 7:00am. Ideally, it’s best not to sleep with a phone in our bedroom, but in reality, I have a 19 year old son that is often out late or on a solo off-roading/camping adventure somewhere in the middle of the desert. And since I always want to be reachable in case of an emergency, I sleep with my phone in my room. But by putting my phone on “Do Not Disturb”, texts and phone notifications won’t wake me up unless they’re from Tim or one of my kids.

2. Coffee and Morning Quiet

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One of the nice things about having older kids is that they tend to sleep in. This gives me plenty of time to get my coffee in the morning and wake up slowly in a quiet house. I like to read my Bible or a devotional, journal, pray, listen, and connect with God during this time. This quiet time is one of my favorite times of the day. And usually I end up making a second cup of coffee and enjoy reading through emails, blogs, or watching some IG stories.

3. Own Dogs

I love my dogs so much. They make us laugh, they comfort us, they bring more peace and joy into our lives every day. I recently read that having a dog extends the owner’s life by ten years because of how much they love and expand love in their owner’s heart.

I mean, just look at all that love in Duke’s eyes! Whether I’m in a good mood or a bad mood, happy or sad, peaceful or stressed, my dogs just love me and want to be curled up right next to me.

4. Daily Walks

I walk every morning because it clears my mind, gives me energy, and fills me with all the good endorphins to start my day. We live in a beautiful beach town and I get to see vast ocean views along my walk. Sunshine and salty ocean air bring a sense of peace and well-being to my heart. Depending on the day, I’ll call my mom or a close friend, talk to God, process my thoughts and emotions, or listen to a good podcast. I always feel better after my morning walk.

5. Minimal Home and Life

If you have read this blog or followed me on Instagram for any length of time, then you know how much minimalism has changed my life. Living in a smaller home with less stuff to clean and maintain means less stress and anxiety for me. I have more free time, more energy, more peace, and more rest when my life isn’t consumed with taking care of stuff or constantly cleaning a large house. Along the same idea, I choose to say no to busyness and not over-schedule, over-plan, or over-commit myself so that I’m not stressed and exhausted at the end of each day. I purposely plan for lots of margin and free time in my life.

6. Afternoon Breaks

Going along with the last point, I intentionally set aside time in the afternoon for a break. I don’t schedule appointments or plan any activities right after lunch. I give myself time to make a coffee and rest. I scroll on IG for a bit, read, watch my favorite YouTuber, and often take a nap. This daily break time started when my kids were young and needed a nap or quiet time every afternoon. It became such a habit and I liked it so much that I just never stopped doing it.

7. Workout Regularly

Throughout the day, I fit in quick strength training sets or a short yoga session. We have weights in our garage, so I often do a few sets of squats, curls, or lunges in-between laundry or cleaning up the kitchen. On my walks, I do pull-ups on a low hanging, sturdy tree branch. I’ll stop and do a set of pushups several times in the middle of the day. I’ve gone through seasons when I’ve spent more time at the gym, but lately, I’ve found that I don’t need long gym sessions to maintain my strength… I just do some sort of strength training exercises throughout the day, most days of the week. I try to focus on legs one day and upper body another, and just rotate back and forth, varying the exercises.

8. Reflexology, Gua Sha, and Cupping

Over the years, I’ve started incorporating some Eastern/Chinese therapies into my daily routines. I’m still learning about them, but I’ve been using facial cupping, Gua Sha, and facial reflexology on myself. They not only help my skin, but also brings more health and well-being into my life. A few weeks ago, I even scheduled a professional Quantum Facial that included fascia release and reflexology and it was amazing. These healing therapies relieve stress, release stuck fascia and tension, flush stagnant fluid, and improve circulation, which brings a sense of peace, overall wellness, and relaxation to the mind and body, while also enhancing skin tone and glow. After my session, I wanted to learn even more about facial reflexology because of the way it can stimulate the body’s natural healing processes to help restore our body, mind, and emotions. I’ve been practicing on myself, Tim, and my kids and we all love it because it’s so calming, stress relieving, and restorative.

9. Sunset Golf Cart Rides

I’m convinced that we live in one of the most beautiful places in America to watch a sunset. Several evenings a week, we load up in the golf cart, turn on country music, and ride down to the cliffs to watch the sun set over the ocean. I don’t think I could ever take the drive along our coast for granted. Gratitude fills my heart when I look out along the rocky coastline, out to the vastness of the ocean, with the sun generously painting brilliant colors across the sky. It’s breath-taking, soul healing, and life-giving in ways I can’t explain.

10. Consume Media Mindfully

I’m probably more sensitive than most people, but I think we’ve all experienced times when we’ve watched the news, scrolled through social media, or watched an intense drama on Netflix and then we’re left with a sense of anxiety, pending doom, or fear about the world we live in. In order to avoid that situation and maintain my peace, I’ve become more mindful about what I consume when it comes to social media, books, movies, and news. I don’t spend a lot of time scrolling through FB or IG. And I intentionally don’t open myself up to political drama or fear-inducing social media accounts that are just going for clicks and likes. Along with following friends, I mostly like to follow people or accounts that bring peace, beauty, inspiration, or education to my life. I always try to be aware of how I’m responding to anything I’m consuming and if it is adding fear, negativity, stress, or anxiety, I’ll turn off the tv, close the book, or hit unfollow.

11. Eat Real Food

This wellness blog would not be complete without mentioning food because of the impact it has had on my life. I don’t subscribe to a certain diet, but I do try to eat real, high-quality food, with a focus on choosing healthy fats, organic produce and dairy, and grass-fed meat as much as possible. I know groceries are expensive and the better quality, the more expensive the grocery bill gets. But I’ve heard it said that you can either pay now or pay later. Meaning you can invest your money now into buying higher quality food that supports your health and well-being or you can pay the doctor later when you’re sick and unhealthy. As harsh as that sounds, it’s usually true. I mentioned earlier that I spent years dealing with anxiety and depression and it took me a very long time to finally realize much of it was caused by certain foods that I was eating. This was a big wake up call to me and drastically changed the way I ate and thought about food. My kids have also experienced health problems and reactions to certain foods or food additives. Some of their reactions have been anxiety, anger, nosebleeds, clogged ears, and dry itchy skin/rashes. Food is powerful, and there’s a huge connection between the food we eat and how well we feel mentally and physically. We’re not perfect, we buy processed foods, and we eat out sometimes too, but we’ve learned the importance of listening to our own bodies (which are constantly communicating with us) and making the necessary dietary and lifestyle changes. So for me, choosing health and wellness means mostly choosing to cook at home using fresh, high-quality ingredients.

12. Buy Clean Skincare

And finally, I choose skincare, sunscreen, and makeup with clean, safe ingredients. Just like food, what we rub into our skin is quickly absorbed into our bodies and also affects our health and hormones. I was reminded of this a few months ago when I started having random anxiety for no apparent reason. I finally traced it back to a new lotion I had started using. Once I stopped using the lotion, the anxiety went away. You can use free apps like EWG and Think Dirty to check the ingredients in your skin and beauty products. I know the process of switching out all your personal care products can feel overwhelming, but you can make it simpler by just taking it one thing at a time and over time you will make a lot of progress.

Well that wraps up my daily wellness routines! What things do you do to support your own health and well-being?

“Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” 3 John 1:2