Creating a Sunday Routine that Will Help Kick Monday’s Ass

When Thomas jokingly took a picture of me in my blue surf face mask this past Sunday, drinking my cup of tea, and reading a new book, I had a realization is this is what my Sunday ALWAYS looks like. That’s if we’re not traveling or have a special occasion that is, but outside that every Sunday I try and fit in as much self-care and relaxation as possible. I know all of that changes as soon as kids are in the picture, so I’m trying to soak it up as much as possible! That’s not to say that mama’s still don’t deserve a little r&r as well!  Do you have have those times when you’ve gone out way too late on a Saturday night and your Sunday is completely wrecked and unproductive? Hungover, lazy, and not prepping myself for the week ahead always ends in Sunday scaries and a not so great Monday. Working out, eating yummy meals that are still clean and healthy, self-care, and a good nights sleep are all components of creating a Sunday routine that will help kick Monday’s ass! 💪🏻

1. First things first, Coffee!

Or tea or lemon water – whatever is your jam. On weekdays I only add Vital Proteins Collagen to my coffee and keep in black, but on the weekends I always make it a little extra by heating and foaming the milk. I also started buying organic whole beans and grinding them for every cup. I know that sounds like a lot, but if you’re drinking it every morning clean organic beans are necessary + did you know that coffee beans are one of the most chemically treated foods in the world? Of course there’s the occasional coffee on the road or airport, but otherwise I try to keep it clean!

2. Make Breakfast

Breakfast on Sunday’s is my fave – slow mornings, cooking, listening to my favorite relax & unwind playlist on Spotify or a podcast (Goal Digger or the Skinny Confidential are two of my favorites). Of course, going to brunch with Thomas or friends happens occasionally but usually I would much rather do that on a Saturday and spend Sunday mornings at home. Shakshuka is probably my fave, but we switch it out with avocado toast, smoked salmon bagels, açaí smoothie bowls, protein pancakes or poached eggs on avocado toast if I’m feeling fancy.

3. Move your body

These days on Sundays we do a workout in our gym that we have in our apartment building. I just downloaded the Sweat app and I’m so excited to have a plan to follow! We are going to Hawaii at the end of April so it’s time to get these buns in shape! I would say on Friday/Saturday is our more indulgent days so it feels good to sweat it out on Sunday. When we lived in Portland, going on a hike and moving outdoors was a lot more common which I miss. We live close to the North Georgia mountains so we definitely have to take advantage of it this summer! But regardless of where you live, find somehow to move your body and you’ll be in a lot better mental state come Monday!

4. Do an activity that makes you happy that doesn’t involve drinking

K, you guys are the first to know I love a good wine tasting outing, brewery hop, or boozy brunch but I always feel so much more refreshed when I don’t drink on Sunday. I love going to farmer’s markets and walking around, going to a plant nursery to pick up some new greenery, driving out to a U-pick farm when the season permits, head to a theater and watch movie you’ve been wanting to see, or explore a cute neighborhood and grab a cup of coffee. This whole paragraph sounds like I’m a 70 year-old retiree but it’s the truth  👵🏻 😂

5. Self-Care (the most important in my opinion)

This is part of my Sunday I look most forward to! I. LOVE. BATHS. But only if I’m clean, is that normal? lol it grosses me out soaking in a bath if I’ve worked out or something so usually after I workout in the morning I’ll shower and then at night I’ll take a bath. Wine is usually involved in my Friday night bath, but Sundays I drink lemon or cucumber water. Who else takes a bath so hot you literally need to hydrate during it? No just me – k moving on!

My skin routine lately has been to exfoliate using Pūrlisse Watermelon Peel, my classic Cetaphil to cleanse, and using a heavy moisturizer and vitamin c at night. I feel like I am pretty basic with my skin care but I feel like it works for now, so I am sticking to it!

Products I’m using – 

1- CBD muscle cream – I’m obsessed with this stuff. I rub it on my neck since my muscles are so tight and then take a bath.
2. Hawaiian Detox Warming Mask – I’ve been using this mask every Sunday for two years now. I love that it turns blue and heats up as your rub it into your skin.
3. Marianella Body Oil – The smell is ridiculously good – I rub it on after my shower or bath in place of lotion.
4. Nourish Organic Argan/Apricot Face Serum – I buy this at target and several nights a week I’ll use it after my cleanser instead of moisturizer just to change it up. It makes my skin super soft in the morning!
5. Deep Sleep Body Cocoon – Some nights I’ll put this on instead of the body oil and the lavender makes me instantly feel relaxed.
6. Kiehl’s ultra facial cream – This has been by nightly and daily moisturizer actually. I love how it feels thick and luscious going on but it’s really lightweight and doesn’t make your skin feel clogged at all.
7. Pure C vitamin crystals – I just got this in my fab fit fun box and like it, but honestly using any vitamin c on your skin is good.
8. Lavender essential oil roller – This little roller is from the Westin hotel lol but I love it! I roll a little on before bed and love the smell of lavender.
9. Forgot to picture the watermelon peel in the picture above but I love it and definitely recommend!

This picture is literally from over a year ago in Portland on a Sunday wearing the same robe and same mask 😂  Habits die hard ya know!

6. Make a healthy dinner

Sunday dinners are typically light for us and I make a lot extra to have leftovers! Our go-to’s are any type of grain bowl like my quinoa bowl with roasted red pepper sauce, a big kale or spinach salad with roasted chickpeas or root veg, or I’ll make a healthy recipe out of Bon Appetit mag or one of my cookbooks!

7. Get a good night’s rest!

Last but not least, get to bed fairly early! There’s nothing worse than staying up late on a Sunday knowing the Monday morning alarm will be ringing sooner than later. We don’t have a tv in our room specifically to read more, talk, and well…do other things instead of watch tv 😁 Try and keep your phone at a distance and not turn on your laptop or tv if you have one in the room and I promise you, you will feel so much more prepared to kick Monday mornings ass!!

The last thing I do before bed is take two apple cider vinegar pills and my ritual vitamins. And before anyone asks, no we are not trying to get pregnant at this time, but I wanted to take prenatals because we do want to start trying in the fairly near future and I figured the prenatals had 3 extra nutrients than the other option so I figured why not! I am obsessed with Ritual so far – I only switched to them this month so I’ll let you know in a few months how I’m feeling! And apple cider vinegar is overall just good for you to alkalise your body so that’s why I take those!

I hope you all start a Sunday routine if you don’t already have one!