How to Create the Perfect Nighttime Routine
* This post may contain affiliate links that I receive a small commission off of (at zero cost to you).Please see my full Disclosure policy for any questions. I always appreciate any support to keep this site running!
Thank you!*
Do you have an evening routine in place?
Would you say it helps you get up in the morning?
Do you feel like anything is missing from your routine that could make it even better?
It took me a while to prioritize and customize my nighttime routine. My sleep used to be all over the place, especially when I worked in hospitality and my days revolved around work, being scheduled back-to-back close then opens shifts, but once I got it under control my whole life changed. I noticed when I went through my routine, I fell asleep faster and getting up in the morning became easier.
Getting a good night of sleep is obviously important for our health but it’s also a huge contributor to having productive days and not feeling fatigued all the time.
RELATED:
How To Sleep Better at Night!
One of the best things you can do to achieve better sleep is to create a nighttime routine that works for you! Everyone will have different parts to their routines depending on priorities and what realistically works with your schedule.
Below is a list of 10 ideas that can make your nighttime routine work for you. Implementing these ideas before you go to bed should help improve your sleep and make the next day better!
Why it’s good to have an evening routine
We spend a lot of time talking about morning routines and how developing a series of healthy morning habits can set you up for a successful day, but we don’t spend nearly as much time discussing nighttime routines. I think it’s because we struggle with waking up to take on the day more often than we do to fall asleep, but I would argue that morning & evening routines are just as important as one another.
They’re both about establishing a series of steps that can have monumental effects and really lead to some big changes in your life. Want to be happier, healthier, and more productive? Then you need a good morning routine AND evening routine.
RELATED:
How to Create the Perfect Morning Routine!
A good evening routine can help you unwind, reflect on your day, prepare for the next one and help you to fall asleep.
When does your evening routine start?
For me, the perfect evening routine starts by separating my work day from the rest of my evening. If you’re still thinking about work or the things you did or didn’t get done that day, then your work day hasn’t ended. You’re also not getting paid to think about work all night. Even entrepreneurs and business owners have their off-time. Every single one of us deserves time for ourselves so we need to make it for ourselves — starting with turning off our work brain and enjoying your evening the way you want to.
Watch some Netflix, spend quality time with family and friends, work on your special projects, hit the gym, anything you want to before it’s time to start relaxing for bed.
Now let’s look at what we can do to end our day relaxed for a better morning, shall we?
1o Evening Routine Ideas
#1 - Create a Positive Bedroom Environment
Start setting the tone for winding down with a lavender scented candle or lavender essential oil with a diffuser, putting a soft weighted blanket on your bed. Creating a calming and positive bedroom environment helps your mind and body start processing that it’s time to get ready for a great night’s sleep!
While that scent begins filling your bedroom, take a few minutes to tidy up. Waking up to a clean home feels great and sets you up for success tomorrow.
I’m not talking about a deep clean or anything, just making sure you aren’t leaving dirty dishes in the sink, put clothes in the hamper, do a quick sweep of the main living area. These little things make a big difference for your space when you wake up in the morning!
RELATED:
5 Ways to Turn Your Bedroom Into a Sanctuary
#2 - Journal & Reflect on Your Day
Journaling looks different for everyone and can have a wonderful impact on your mind!
Writing down your highlights of the day, what you’re grateful for and something you learned are simple enough for a quick journaling before bed.
It doesn’t have to be huge. I love using my Five-Minute Journal! It’s easy, effective, designed to be used for the morning and night and — like the name says — takes no more than 5 minutes.
#3 - Make a Plan for Tomorrow
Look over your plans for tomorrow and make sure everything is there that should be. I’m a huge color coordinator and this helps me see everything sooo much better than just a bullet point list, but do what works best for you.
I’m in love with the Artful Agenda Digital Calendar! It’s super stylish and based off the pretty, paper calendars we always spend so much on each year and either never use or have to edit so often it looks like a scrapbook. Using this lets me connect my iCal (also available for Android devices) then create checklists (some being my nighttime & morning routines), track my water, view everything on my desktop computer & best of all: it’s created by 3 amazing women!!
Don’t forget to use my code with Artful Agenda!
My Code: RK478154
Reviewing the next day makes it easy for me to decide what I want to wear and I can set everything out in an easy space for the morning. I set out my morning workout outfit along with what I want to wear during my work day. This will save you so much time in the morning and removes the guessing game of what you feel like wearing when you wake up!
I love having a shoe bookshelf in my room and designating one of my shelves to tomorrow’s outfits. (Tip: For more shelves go to Home Depot and ask them to cut a $10 closet shelf piece to your bookshelf’s width and get more out of the unit)
#4 - Get Some Fresh Air & Light Exercise
Getting a few steps in with my pup around my complex is a relaxing way for me to starting winding down and hit my step goal for the day if I need to. I love being out in the fresh air all throughout the day and there’s something so soothing about the nighttime — listening to crickets, appreciating a beautiful moon and spending time with my fur baby puts me in such a restful state.
Once I come back inside I do a little yoga designed to help me fall asleep faster. In a way, it’s my form of nightly meditation. Those 10-15 minutes max of stretching & breathing help tell my brain it’s time to go to bed soon and I also wake up with fewer aches.
#5 - Limit Screen Time
This is a tip many of us have heard about and while I do like the idea of having an electronic-free zone before bed, it’s just not something that works well for me…at least not 100% electronic-free.
My nighttime routine includes guided yoga…on a phone, listening to a podcast or meditation…on a phone, starting my sleep tracking…on a phone. The world we live in is extremely technology based, but if it’s used in a mindful way it can be helpful — hence the tip LIMIT screen time rather than completely unplug.
I really like utilizing the “Focus Setting” iOS 15 has released. It helps limit how I use my phone at night (and in different time blocks throughout the day). No scrolling social media or watching tv shows, no notifications allowed to come through, and my screen is dimmed. Being mindful with how we use our technology can make a huge difference on how it affects us. Take a little time to decide what you want to focus on and when at each stage of your day. I promise it will make a huge difference in your relationship with your phone.
There was a really great tip I heard listening to Brett Eldredge’s conversation with Ed Mylett on his podcast episode Overcoming Stress and Anxiety to Produce Beautiful Music in Your Life where Brett limits specific app usage with this advice:
“I limit my phone time now where you can set a screen time limit on your phone, the trick is though a lot of people will set that and you can hit ignore…well, I learned that if you have somebody else set a passcode you can’t get back through it…once it shuts me out I’m out”
#6 - Take Care of Your Body
Once you’ve finished taking care of your mindset, plans for tomorrow and last few body movements you’re ready to start working your way into bed. The last few steps before getting tucked in and cozying up to a good book is caring for your body.
Take a 5-minute warm shower, wash the day off, brush your teeth, complete your nighttime skincare routine, and don’t forget to moisturize your whole body. My favorite nighttime body lotion has a lavender scent and help calm my senses.
Taking vitamins at this time can also help you fall asleep faster & stay asleep — some even go hand in hand with your skincare routine.
I love taking my OLLY Sleep Melatonin Gummy! When I first started taking control of my sleep routine and everything was a mess I needed the OLLY Sleep Melatonin Extra Strength Gummies, but now I’ve brought my dosage down to their regular sleep gummy.
I will also take my Evening Primrose Oil Vitamin — literally AMAZING! This vitamin can really help maintain healthy skin and boosts your immune system. Give it at least 90 days to notice a real difference, but once you do you’ll never want to go without it again!
Some vitamins are designed for the morning (don’t go taking Vitamin C and hoping to fall asleep soon), but there are also certain vitamins that are better taken at night.
Do research on your current situation and figure out which vitamins are going to help you at night or in the morning! I personally have my own morning and nighttime vitamin routine and the effects have been a game changer!
Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! Hydration has so many health benefits! Make sure to give yourself about 20 minutes before falling asleep to stop drinking the water. I keep a 32oz insulated water bottle next to my bed and drink half while I’m reading before falling asleep — then I have cold water right there when I wake up and can’t rehydrate first thing in the morning.
RELATED:
Mastering Your Nighttime Skincare Routine
#7 - Read for 30 Minutes
Pick up a good book and read a few chapters. Try to avoid reading on your phone or tablet. A lot of new reading tablets have been designed to have less blue light effect on us, but reading a real book or magazine will always be best before bedtime.
The best thing I ever did for myself was purchase the Hatch Restore - Sound Machine Smart Light, Bedside Reading Light, Wind Down Content and Sunrise Alarm Clock for Gentle Wake Up. I’ve customized my nighttime routine so that I have a 30-minute reading light setting, which will cut me off at 30 minutes, then begin a 15 minute of meditation session, before transitioning into the sleep sound I want to have on throughout the night. Honestly, I can’t live without this alarm clock now! I travel with it and refuse to go back to blaring alarms.
I try to alternate between fiction and non-fiction, usually self improvement books or biography books of people I look up to during my nighttime routine.
#8 - Relax
As I mentioned above, I fully relax with a 15-minute meditation session using my Hatch Restore - Sound Machine Smart Light, Bedside Reading Light, Wind Down Content and Sunrise Alarm Clock for Gentle Wake Up and become aware of every part of my body. I start tracking my sleep with the SleepWatch App on my Apple Watch and “put my body to rest,” if you will and work my way from breathing, down to my toes, and bring my attention back to head, jaw and shoulders before settling back on my breathing.
Before you know it, your whole body will feel a release of all tensions and naturally fall into a deep sleep.
#9 - Go to Sleep at the Same Time…if You Can
The final tip I have for you is go to sleep at the same time, if you’re able to do so. Like I’ve said before, I used to work positions that didn’t always make this possible so I understand this isn’t an easy step for everyone.
Being able to go to sleep at the same time every night is a true luxury and helps tell your body that it’s time to get some zzz’s. However, since the above steps are going to be part of your sleep routine, your body will begin to register it’s time for bed as you complete them even if it’s at a different time than some nights before.
At the very least, give yourself enough time to sleep between 6-8 hours so you don’t wake up cranky and drowsy.
On weekends I don’t go to sleep at the same time as the rest of the weekdays. I’m typically in bed by 10-10:30pm so I can be up by 5-5:30am, while on the weekends I give myself until 12:30am so I can be up at 7-7:30am.
Do what works best for you and learn how many hours your body really needs to wake up feeling rested and go off of what your body is telling you. Our bodies are smarter than we give them credit for, learn to get in tune with it and never apologize for prioritizing your health.
Once I began giving my body what it needed I noticed I felt better and I also didn’t get sick as often. Our body does a lot of restorative work while we sleep so don’t ask it to do less work if you can help it.
“I sleep for eight hours a night, which is why I think I never get ill.””
So, there you have it, my perfect nighttime routine! We wish you the best of luck implementing and creating a nighttime routine that works for you and incorporating these 9 ideas into your routine!
Thanks & We Wish You The Best!
Let’s Do BetterTogether!