This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Clark chapter.
One of my biggest obsessions in life is wellness. How I feel physically is usually reflected in how I feel emotionally and mentally, and determines my happiness. I can be somewhat obsessive, and sticking to routines that are familiar to me makes me feel more at ease. Because things come up and I can’t insure that every single day of mine will be the same, I try to stick to a smaller routines that make me feel like every day is somewhat similar. Not to mention, routines help me feel like I have my sh*t together. If you’re looking for ways to incorporate wellness into your lifestyle, or simply want to live a healthier lifestyle, I hope these tips will help you out!
Morning
- Exercise: The first thing I do in the morning is drink a huge glass of water, and head to the gym. If I don’t work out first thing in the morning, I usually tend to drag it out and then give up on going altogether. I use the Nike Training App (Nike please sponsor me), which is a free workout app that allows you to create a plan for yourself. When I use the app loosely, it’s harder for me to a good workout regimen, so I prefer to use the workout plans that you can customize based on your goals. Exercising is not only a great way to boost your energy and metabolism, but also helps you clear your head and reduces stress.
- Cleansing: I really like sticking to products that I’m familiar with and that I know work, so I use the same face wash, body soap and toothpaste ritualistically. I use the time during which I wash my face as a time to breathe and mentally prepare for my day.
- Breakfast: I usually have the same thing for breakfast every morning, which includes a spinach or kale and berry-packed smoothie with some apple cider vinegar, and spirulina thrown in. I know it doesn’t sound very appetizing but the simple act of drinking it makes me feel 10x healthier and more energized. I also try to get some protein in, especially if I’ve worked out, so I’ll have a piece of bran crispread with peanut butter. Eating a healthy breakfast and taking a multivitamin every morning will give you the energy you need to tackle everything you have on your daily to-do list.
Nighttime
- Tea time: Chamomile tea is known for its ability to help you calm down and drift off into a deep sleep. Although I don’t remember to do this every night (especially when I get back from a 6-9 class), I have notice that when I do drink chamomile tea a couple hours before bed, I fall asleep much faster and without all the usual anxious thoughts rushing through my mind.
- Unplug: Around 9PM, I try to unplug from social media, and use my devices as little as possible. Our brains tend to get really wired when we use technology, and since we’re usually connected until moments before we fall asleep, it can be harder to nod off. I recommend using Night Shift if you have an iPhone, or f.lux for laptops, which reduce the amount of blue light emitted from your phone (this is the kind of light that affects our production of serotonin and can entirely throw off one’s circadian rhythm making it nearly impossible to fall asleep at a reasonable hour).
- Consistency: Much easier said written than done, but going to bed and waking up at a similar time every day is really important for maintaining a healthy circadian rhythm, and provides so many healthy benefits. During the school week, I try my best to stick to a similar cycle, but on the weekends I’m looser with my sleep cycle. I will always, always set an alarm that let’s me get at least 7 hours of sleep after a night out, even if that means waking up at noon (which to me, feels pretty grimy).
Daily
- Hydrate: Throughout the day I make sure to drink plenty of water, at least 64 ounces. I also like to drink apple cider vinegar diluted with a glass of water, or some ginger-turmeric tea from Trader Joe’s.
- Breathe: Taking the time to breathe very deep breaths keeps my anxiety and stress at bay. One thing I’ve learned about wellness is that tools such as meditation shouldn’t be used as a last-resort type of thing when you feel a full-blown anxiety attack coming on, but should rather be incorporated into your daily activities. One thing my grandmother always repeats is “when one is late, one should take his/her time” (which sounds a lot better when she says it in French), which I think about sometimes multiple times in a day when I find myself rushing to class, getting my blood pressure up for no reason.
Weekly
- Yoga: Even if the yoga class itself didn’t do much for me, the task of simply going to the class alone and taking a break from my work can make me feel more at ease. When I can’t make it to a physical class, I like to turn on Yoga with Adriene, which is a YouTube channel filled with yoga videos made by a young woman named Adriene whose voice and personality alone can ease your tensions!
- Meditation: For me, meditation is one of those things that I know I probably should be doing, but can rarely muster up the energy to actually do. I can hardly classify this as a weekly effort, and more so a monthly effort, but I like to think that laying down for 5 minutes once a week and closing my eyes to just breathe is considered meditation.
- Me time: Every other week or so I like to have a “me night”. I never actually plan these nights, they usually just sort of happen when I have no homework to do, but they’re a tool that I use to recharge. I take the time to take a hot shower, and get squeaky clean, file and paint my nails, do a hair treatment (usually just olive oil, honey and argan oil mixed in the microwave. I’ll read a magazine that I haven’t had the chance to read yet, catch up Netflix shows and/or write in my journal. I make a point to go to bed earlier than usual, and set an alarm that will allow me to get 8-9 hours of sleep so I can wake up feeling refreshed.
I’m definitely not a “wellness expert”, but I think we should all value our overall health and wellbeing and am always looking for new ways to become more wholesome and well.