Take a Routine Retreat

8 essential tips on how to level up your self-care

Hey girl, let’s talk self-care. In honor of our #R45DayChallenge we’re giving your routine a glow up and reminding you to put yourself first. 

A big part of healthy skin is making sure you destress and take care of your body. Stress causes a chemical response that makes the skin more sensitive and reactive. Have you ever noticed your face break out more when you’re stressed? This is because stress tells your body to make hormones like cortisol, which tells your skin glands to produce more oil, more oil = more acne-prone skin. Self-care is skincare and we want to make sure that your self-care routine gets an upgrade too.   

Does self-care ever feel like another thing on your to-do list? 

We are all guilty of neglecting ourselves from time to time, let’s face it life gets hectic. There’s a lot of info out there about self-care and routines. Google can only make things more confusing with a sea of overwhelming options. We’re all about simplicity, your self-care routine doesn’t have to be lengthy, and you don’t have to wake up at 4 am to make it happen (no shade to the early risers, shout out to you!) Let’s focus on our 8 essentials to revamp your routine.

We want to see you glow from the inside and out!

Meditation is key for a sound mind. Research suggests that meditation can have some pretty incredible effects on the mind and body. Along with a heightened state of awareness, meditation helps with anxiety and depression, reducing blood pressure, and insomnia. Even 5 mins of meditation can change your outlook on a situation or set yourself up for a big day or big presentation.

Take some time to sit and just quiet your thoughts, and give all your attention to your breathing and how you feel at that exact moment. Meditation can feel uncomfortable when you first start the practice. It can be difficult to quiet the noise in your mind but the keyword here is practice. The more you practice the easier it will be and the more natural it will feel. Here is a 5 minute video to start yourself on the journey to mindful meditation:

 

Yoga is an amazing way to destress and improve relaxation. The physical postures promote flexibility and relieve tension. Yoga is awesome at promoting the release of mood-boosting endorphins, which are the feel-good hormones you need to combat stress. There is plenty of scientific evidence that supports how great yoga is for reducing stress, depression, and anxiety. You can easily start adding this practice to your daily routine in a way that works for you. Yoga With Adrienne on YouTube is a master instructor with amazing step-by-step videos for everyone, no matter your fitness level.

This beginners video is a great place to start, take 5-minutes out of your morning and give this video a try:

Music can be used as a therapeutic tool to reduce stress, promote healing, and improve your overall emotional well-being. Think of how great you feel when you hear your favorite song. The right kind of music just makes you feel good (queue “Alexa! Play Finesse by Bruno Mars and Cardi B”, right??) There is solid evidence that music stimulates the production of dopamine – that feel-good hormone we just talked about. Bottom line is, no great self-care routine is complete without the proper playlist to compliment the flow.

Here is one of our favorite playlists to relax and recharge. Come Zen and Chill with us:

There will be days when you just need an extra boost. We all have bad days, and negative thoughts don’t have to hold us down. When you find that your day just isn’t glowing (see what we did there? ✨)  the way it should, a little self-talk-pick-me-up could be just what you need. 

Reminding yourself how awesome you are is the ultimate self-care hack. This small but mighty habit can help you reform your outlook on the world and give you the mood boost you need when you need it the most.

Here's a list of positive starter-affirmations:

• I choose peace.
• I deserve to feel joy and true happiness.
• I am healthy, I am strong.
• I am present today.
• I am resilient.
• I am ready to take on the day and whatever it brings.
• I am ready to live my dream life.
• I am beautiful and I love who I see in the mirror.

Say these affirmations aloud while looking in the mirror and watch how amazing you feel. Give yourself some love every day and never doubt your greatness. You’ve got this!

P.S - If you’d like a little extra guidance on affirmations this podcast from Debbie Neal is incredible. Every week she highlights a 5-minute affirmation episode to level up in every aspect of your life. Check it out here:

 

Sometimes, the best thing you can do to de-stress and recharge is just take a break. We value our daily screen breaks here at BeautyBio, which we try to make happen in the afternoons.

It’s great to just step away from the screens for a little while and allow your brain to reset. Take a walk, sit outside, walk your dog, read a couple of pages out of your favorite book, or grab coffee with a friend. 

Give yourself a 30-minute break every afternoon and make sure you’re showing up as your best self for the rest of the day. You deserve it! 

 

This one goes without introduction, who doesn’t love a candlelit bubble bath? It’s what self-care dreams are made of! There’s much more to a hot bath than Instagram-worthy esthetics. Hot water helps increase blood flow to the skin and can also lower your blood pressure. Relaxing in a hot bath can also burn calories which is just the icing on the cake! Ending your day with a bubble bath might just become your new favorite thing if it isn’t already. There’s no better way to relax and reflect, you can even do a quick meditation while soaking (You know we love a good multitasking moment.) 

 

Writing is one of the best things you can do for your mind. Journaling is amazing for stress management and a powerful self-exploration tool. Writing out your thoughts and feelings in detail helps you get the clarity you need while giving you a safe space to brainstorm solutions. Journaling has also been scientifically proven to improve cognitive function. Take 5 minutes each night to write out your thoughts and feelings from the day. Just let the words flow onto your page naturally. You don’t need to overthink your spelling or the way you write, this is just for you.

Give yourself this time to truly reflect on your day and how you feel about it all. Here are some helpful journaling prompts to get you started:

https://www.throughthephases.com/journal-prompts-for-stress-relief/

 

We love food and we know you do too! What better way to decompress and take care of yourself than to cook yourself a delicious meal? 

When you cook you are generally focused on cooking and/or following a recipe so you have less time for negative thoughts. The benefits don’t stop at deliciousness - experts have detailed how cooking can soothe stress and build confidence. Food is one of those things that connect people and it’s an amazing way to show love to yourself and others. Cooking is generally a great de-stressor because it serves as a creative outlet and activates your senses. Experimenting with new recipes and flavors provides a special kind of relief.

Not a cook? No problem! These simple, easy-to-follow recipes from The Defined Dish will have you tapped into your culinary expertise in no time...

https://thedefineddish.com/category/recipes/undefined-dishes/

                  

Adding some or all these things to your daily routine will give your self-care a boost. Remember, consistency is key to developing a new routine, start small and add things over time. Be kind to yourself because let’s face it…none of us have this life thing all figured out. Take it day by day and just breathe. This is your official reminder to take some much-needed me-time and give your self-care an upgrade, the BeautyBio way.