5 Ways to Implement Daily Self Care Into Your Busy Life

Sometimes, when people think of self care they think of spending hours at a spa or treating themselves to a massage or shopping spree. Here at Noom, we like to be more practical with our self care. We like to break down self care to everyday routines we can do for ourselves in order to enjoy moments of luxury.

Ever heard, “you can’t pour from an empty cup”? Meaning, we can’t give away value/time/love…etc to others, if we have none to give. And it starts by pouring first into our cups, in order to give more to others.

A self care routine is crucial for our physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing. But what does it really look like? Tune in here to learn about effective and simple actions we can take every day to pour more into ourselves…

1. Meditate

Whether we have 5 minutes or 60, we can spend as little or as long time doing this calming activity. Finding that peaceful time to stop all the noise in our head is a wonderful way to either begin the day or wind it down. Meditation slows down our busy days, reduces any anxiety we may be feeling, and helps us enhance our self awareness.

2. Stay active

Don’t you just feel better after you do a workout, go for a walk, MOVE?! And feeling better is exactly what self care is about. Staying active everyday in some shape or form (it can be even doing squats at your desk!)  will please your body and mind in a number of ways. One way including healthy energy levels! Not to mention those feel good hormones, endorphins, that movement releases. Hooray for productivity and feeling good!

3. Focus on the moment

So many times we all find ourselves thinking TOO much! What would happen if we shifted our focus to, what can we do today? When we begin to put our thoughts into actions and break them down day by day, we feel a better sense of accomplishment and purpose. So, next time we find ourselves getting overwhelmed with everything we have to do for work, our families, our health…etc, think: what can I do in this moment that will bring me closer to where I need to go?

4. Gratitude journal

In a world where it’s common to focus more on what we don’t have vs. what we do have; it can feel like we’re always in a state of striving rather than appreciating. But, that all changes with this self care activity! A daily gratitude journal, teaches us to be more aware of all the wonderful things we do have and all the amazing things that we are doing. So, how does it work? You simply write down anywhere from 3-5 (or the number you want!) things that you appreciate in your life. It can be as simple as appreciating the clean water you drink! One of the many benefits of journaling is reduced stress levels and helps improve our focus on what matters.

5. Eat Your greens

Having a clean and balanced diet is one of the surest ways to feel mentally and physically healthy. As we all know, we are what we eat, right? Getting in our greens on a daily basis doesn’t happen without a plan. One way to begin doing this, is thinking about how many vegetable servings we’d like to have each day. Then think, to which meals and/or snacks will I add them? Will they replace any of the foods that I’m eating now? By asking ourselves these questions, it makes planning for and eating more greens that much more realistic and achievable.

We don’t have to go from zero to 100 by implementing all 5 tips tomorrow, but we can start with one at a time, and start reaping the benefits of more self care and self love in our daily routine. Remember, it starts with pouring first into ourselves, in order to pour more into others.

Author: Mary Kate Murphy