How to squeeze in self care activities during a busy week

How’s your week going? Busy I hear you say, here is how to squeeze in self care activities during a busy week without needing to take a day off work (well, sometimes you need it). Working from home is fun and the ‘no-commuting’ makes it 100% better unfortunately it also means I can start early and finish late which is exactly what happens every single week and often not by choice. Over the last 7+ years I have learned how to squeeze in self care activities during a busy week and I am happier for it.

There is a huge misconception when it comes to what self care actually means, that it’s a spa days and sipping on Pina coladas as you get a nice massage and get your nails done. It can be that but it’s not what it is all about, it’s about taking a little time for yourself to just breath, relax and don’t have to do anything at all. For many people with busy lives, it can seem like an impossibility to squeeze in self care activities during a busy week but it’s doable, I do it every single week and in this post I will show you how.

How to Squeeze in Self Care Activities during a Busy Week

Working 9-5 has its own perks which I absolutely love but it can be tiring especially if you don’t manage your time correctly or even practice simple activities to reduce the stress that comes with always been constantly under pressure to deliver. Don’t get me wrong but before I became proficient at time management I was overwhelmed and stressed and I even started losing hair which wouldn’t grow back for a number of years. This is why I am a great advocate of practising self-care every single day if you can afford to.

Each week is different for everyone but there are certain things that I make sure remain the same and those activities are those that support my desire to practice self-care as often as possible. This may not be the same for you, you might only have a couple minutes a day but I still think you can still use those few minutes to practice self-care in the comfort of your own home or around your neighbourhood. I certainly make use of the fact that I live not too far from the local park and I can enjoy an early morning stroll and take in the fresh air.

So, how can you squeeze in self care activities during a busy week?

Early morning walk or run

Until recently, I used to spend most of my mornings forcing myself to go back to sleep when insomnia would have had other ideas. I have a natural body clock of 5.30 AM which is annoying because it doesn’t matter what time I sleep, I am still walking up at that time on the dot. Obviously I needed to find a way to use this time to be productive and working wasn’t it so instead I opted to go for a walk or a run (I mean jog as I can’t run).

Since I started doing this, it has totally changed the outlook of my day, on days when I don’t go for a morning walk or run, I struggle to stay awake or motivated. And on those days when I can’t go for a run or a walk, I use the other activities that I have found work just as good if not better.

Mid-day Restorative Yoga

Thanks to my membership with Peloton, I stumbled upon a restorative yoga class, I did not know what this meant but I knew I wanted to take it. For the first time ever, I found a form of yoga that I can practice on my rest days and re-set my body and my mind. You can practice a short 10-minute restorative yoga or if you have a bit more time you can do a longer class.

Restorative yoga isn’t the only yoga you can do as a form of self-care, you can do various forms of yoga and gift that 10, 20-30 minutes of your time to looking after your body and mind. I often find I start feeling fatigue around 2pm especially if I only managed 3-4 hours of sleep so I practice some sort of yoga to rejuvenate and refresh my mind.

5-Minutes of Stillness

If you are anything like me you have a mind that is almost always operating at a 100 miles an hour. The minute you sit down it reminds you of the deadline you have in 10 minutes, the items you didn’t buy at the supermarket or the appointment you missed earlier in the day. Until I took the ‘power of sleep’ meditation class at Peloton, I didn’t think I could sit still for longer than a minute. Although I am not sure I can do longer than 5-minutes, I do appreciate that for 5 whole minutes I am able to keep the chatter in my mind quiet and focus on being present in the moment for a whole file minutes. No e-mails to reply to, no pings to respond to basically no distractions just 5 peaceful minutes to myself.

10-minute Cuppa

Whether you are a coffee lover or a tea lover it doesn’t matter, what matters is that you make your cuppa, sit down and stare at the sky (or people watch) as you sip on your cuppa. People often underestimate the power of sitting down, doing nothing much sipping on your favourite cuppa. The amount of times I have had all-day meetings with only 10 minute breaks has taught me to make use of my time and for me 10-minutes with my favourite cuppa staring into space is perfect. That is self care without the gloss but what I actually need on a busy work day.

Mid-week Soak

Those who know me personally know I prefer showers over taking a bath because I am always on the go and feel like baths take too long. But that’s the whole point, it takes too long to make them but afford you the luxury of relaxing in them for longer. I often enjoy a mid-week soak often and on days when mid-weeks are a no-no, I always soak in the bath on Sunday because that’s when I love to unwind. Soaking in the bath with a nice bath foam/bomb, light some candles and watch your favourite programme or maybe read or better yet – do absolutely nothing but soak in the bath.

Face Mask Morning or Evening

At the beginning of lockdown #1 I made a decision to work through my huge stock pile of beauty face masks that I bought in South Korea because I love Korean Beauty products. And now its something I do and absolutely love and find it so relaxing, I don’t need a spa I just need my beauty mask and I am good. Every morning after my walk/run and workout I take a nice long shower then I apply a mask and lie on my back for a whole 20-30 minutes doing nada.

There are days when I can’t do the morning beauty masks so I often shower as soon as I finish work and wear one. Over the last year my skin has maintained its glow and I am attributing it to the amount of beauty masks that I use every single day. You don’t have to do it every day like me but you can pair it with your mid-week soak and just have the complete package at home.

15-Minutes of Reading

Take 15 minutes out of your day and read a book or maybe listen to audible or a podcast if reading is not your thing. When I started reading Atomic Habits I learned the important of setting systems that support my end goal. I want to get back to reading as much as I used to when I was younger but we lead busy lives so I made a decision to dedicate a small amount of time to reading every single day and now I can barely put the book down I literally have to set timers to put the books down.

Taking 15 minutes to read or listen to a podcast might not seem like a long time but its time well invested and this is why I encourage people to do it. I have been reading a lot of books on subjects that I enjoy and can not wait to share here on the blog. See when the best time might be for you to allocate a few minutes out of your day to read or listen to your favourite book.

And there you have it, 7 simple self care activities that you can squeeze in during a busy week. Do you practice self-care often?