Take Time to Reset: 5 Best Self-Care Practices This Summer

Summer is here! Nothing beats going on a vacation this time of the year and enjoying the warm weather. It’s self-care at its best if you ask me!

Self-care activities during summer can be done throughout the season to help you feel good and uplift your mood. What’s even better is that you don’t have to do them all in one week! Take your time and enjoy nourishing yourself.

So if you’re ready, let’s start the summer with five self-care tips to start the season feeling refreshed and revitalized.

Why is Summer a Great Time for Self-Care?

Summer is a chance to start over in several areas of your life. Consider it an opportunity to replace things that no longer serve you with new ones that will. After all, it may have the potential to inspire and energize your mind, body, and soul.

A survey by OnePoll and Enlightened found that 56% of 2,000 participants make the most changes to their daily routine in the summer. Some examples include switching to summer clothing, spending more time outdoors, and eating more ice cream. Surprisingly, some of the respondents also treat themselves by doing nothing or spending time alone.

However, life presents us with a seemingly endless stream of challenges, which may sometimes cause worry and stress. But despite the summer festivities that offer a much-needed break from your daily life, the go-go-go schedules you make for yourself can become too taxing.

Still, it is necessary to find the time to prioritize yourself and your mental health. Remember that it is the season when you can go outdoors and enjoy some sunshine. The longer days and warmer weather allow you to spend more time outside, which can be a great way to energize yourself and improve your mood.

Recharge with These 5 Essential Self Care Tips

For a happy and healthy mind and body, there are various daily routine ideas, healthy habit recommendations, and well-being advice available. Here are 5 self-care tips for summer to help you get started.

A little stroll around the block will help you enjoy some sunshine and give your body a little workout, but it will give you an extra boost by going on a full-fledged nature stroll. According to a 2010 study published by the Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, walking through a forest — or "forest bathing," as it is known in Japan — decreases stress and blood pressure more than walking through a city.

While taking any kind of walk can be advantageous, taking a trail walk is particularly advantageous. For instance, a study shows that walking through forests is associated with lower levels of anger and anxiety than walking through cities. Put on your sneakers, enjoy the fresh air, listen to the birds sing, and scan your surroundings for signs that a new season has arrived.

While the season offers plenty of time to try some physical activities, summer can also be the perfect time to reflect, identify areas of your life where boundaries may be needed, and establish those boundaries. Since our daily activities and routines change with the seasons, setting boundaries in advance can be useful.

One example is to pay attention to how you use social media. If needed, consider setting time limits on phone scrolling. With so many people still working from home, it can be difficult to create boundaries around working hours, which ultimately leads to burnout. Therefore, it is advisable to set up time and space in your home for "no work" activities.

Spend a little time cleaning the spaces that are normally ignored. A thorough deep clean will give your house a new lease on life and improve both the interior and exterior appeal. 

Once the summer months arrive, your home might feel messier than usual since you might spend more time outdoors. Moreover, your regular cleaning schedules may have been disturbed as well. But by reorganizing and decluttering your home, you can get things back in order and start over.

Additionally, dust and pollen in the air can lead to difficulty breathing and can make your house feel less cozy. Having an item, such as the RENPHO Air Purifier, can help ensure the air you breathe in your home is free from pollutants or irritants that can make you uncomfortable.

Although cleaning can be contrary to self-care, it can be a form of it. The presence of clutter and disarray in your home might have long-lasting impacts on your attitude, thinking, and stress hormone levels. You might feel more at ease and calmer every day if you take the time to address it.

Buy fresh flowers for yourself — it’s an easy gesture that helps to make your space more cheerful and invites the colors of summer inside your home. 

You can decorate your home with potted plants or a vase of fresh flowers. Plants and flowers are great for helping keep the air clean in your home, which is essential for good health. For example, research has also shown the effects of having roses in the office. Other reports also show that workers are "comfortable," "relaxed," and have "natural" feelings if there are roses in their workplace.

Eating according to what the seasons have to offer means having a more diverse diet instead of eating the same few fruits and vegetables throughout the year. Adding new fresh produce varieties to your daily meals will provide you with crucial minerals and nutrients that you might not typically get. Summer is still an excellent season to begin fresh. Create a new diet plan for yourself to be healthy if you wish to change your eating habits. 

In addition, seasonal produce is superior to those produce out of season in terms of quality and freshness because they carry less preservatives and are more nutritious.

If you are new to the idea of self-care, it may take some time to get used to prioritizing yourself — and that’s alright! Don’t give up, though, even if it’s difficult at first. Self-care has astonishing benefits for both you and everyone else in your life. If you practice it consistently, you’ll surely see the results!

Takeaway

It is necessary to prioritize your well-being as you enter summer. We have many opportunities to go outside, refocus, and re-evaluate our lives thanks to longer, lighter days. Make this season the best one yet by using these self-care tips as a resource for motivation and inspiration!