Start the day, the night before, with these 6 rituals to get the most out of your evening

By Kate Hassett

Start the day, the night before, with these 6 rituals to get the most out of your evening
Six of the best evening rituals to ensure a stress-free night, every night.

We all know about the benefits of starting your day the right way, but what about ensuring you end the day the best way too?

The same idea extends to the way we approach our nighttime rituals. By ensuring that we enter into sleep with a calm and collected mind, we are setting ourselves up to begin and continue, the next day with great success, as well as ease.

As such, the way you end one day can determine the way you start the next. Here are our favourite rituals for ensuring a stress-free evening, every night.

Prepare your food for the next day

By spending some time each evening preparing your breakfast, lunch or afternoon tea for the next day, you can ensure that the following morning won’t be spent rushing around trying to gather everything together. By investing in quality food and putting thought into what you will be eating the next day you are not only saving time, but you are practicing good nutrition and mindful eating.

Meditate

Becoming mindful and meditating doesn’t necessarily mean sitting in dark room with your thoughts, instead, mindfulness can be practised during our nighttime activities. Do you walk your dog after work, or put on a load of washing? Take each activity as an opportunity to relax and reconnect with your body and mind.

Simply taking in the view, acknowledging your surroundings and taking note of your breath, can be a perfect way to centre yourself and place your mind back in the now.

Learn about other ways to incorporate mindfulness into your everyday life here. 

Reflect on your day

If you end your day shrouded in negativity, expect to start your next day the same way. Take five minutes to reflect on how your day went, the interactions you had, the emotions you felt and how you can do things differently tomorrow. Think about what improvements you can make for tomorrow and write down one, simple goal, you want to achieve.

Debug your bedroom

Turn your bedroom into a sanctuary where its soul purpose is to allow you to drift off to sleep. Keep the bedroom free of technological distractions, loud noises, bright artificial lights or anything that could disrupt your sleep. It’s surprising what a fresh set of sheets and some plush pillows can do for your bedtime practice as well.

Read our surprising tips and tricks to getting a good night’s sleep here. 

Out with the old…

Write down any negative thoughts, anxieties or forms of stress on a piece of paper and spend a few minutes removing them from your thoughts and re-purposing them on a page. By removing those negative vibes from your mind you open yourself up to letting in new, positive thoughts.

Stretch it out

Letting go of tension can be both a mental and a physical practice. By dedicating a few minutes each night before bed to stretch out your body, you are entering into a relaxation process that will extend to a good night’s sleep.
Register where tension is being held in your body and start with simple, slow stretches. Calm your breathing and check in with your mind. Where are you struggling to push past? What areas need attention? Are you feeling relief?

Try these yoga poses to help quiet your mind for a good night’s sleep.

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