From Dusk To Dawn: The Ultimate Evening Routine Checklist For Success
Are you struggling to find balance in your busy life? You came to the right place. Get ready to restore your energy and set yourself up for success with the ultimate evening routine checklist.
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Sleep is so important. It allows the body and mind to recharge, it supports our productivity, creativity, and concentration during the day, it helps to keep our emotions in balance, it supports our immune system, etc.
But a lot of people struggle with finding sleep at night.
Crafting a tailored evening routine can help to recharge and set yourself up for a good night’s sleep and for a successful day ahead.
The ultimate evening routine checklist for adults as featured below is a carefully curated list of activities that are designed to help you transition from a busy day into a relaxing evening followed by a good night’s sleep.
Whether it’s prioritizing self-care activities, improving productivity, focusing on your personal growth, or fostering better sleep, this evening routine checklist is your roadmap to achieving a balanced and fulfilling nighttime routine.
But before we take a look at the evening routine checklist…
What is an evening routine?
Most of us are pretty much in go-go-go mode during the day. Wake up, get ready, commute to work, meetings, squeeze in a quick lunch, deadlines, post-work gym session, shower, dinner, bed.
The transition from day to night can be challenging at times, especially for people with a busy lifestyle.
An evening routine can bridge the gap between a busy day and night time allowing a smooth transition from one part of the day to the other with some time to relax and unwind from the day in between.
Why establish an evening routine?
Routines are a great way to help us work towards our overall life goals and focus on the things that matter to us most in life.
Having an established evening routine can bring a lot of benefits to your physical and mental well-being.
Top 5 benefits of an evening routine:
- Reduced Stress – A structured evening routine can help you unwind and relax after a long day of work, helping you to reduce your stress levels overall.
- Increased Self-Care Time – When life gets busy, the first thing we cut back on is usually ourselves. An evening routine is an opportunity for self-care time, helping you to take care of your needs and maintain a healthy work-life balance at the same time.
- Improved Health – A structured evening routine helps you to incorporate more healthy habits into your life e.g. regular exercise, time for a healthy dinner, meal prep for the next day, etc. which can help to support your personal health goals.
- Better Sleep Hygiene – An established evening routine helps to signal your body that it is time to relax and unwind which will prepare your mind and body for sleep, leading to a much better sleep hygiene overall.
- Enhanced Productivity – A structured evening routine allows you time to plan ahead and organize your tasks for the next day. This can boost your productivity and effectiveness throughout the day.
Routines are magic and as we said earlier, routines can be a great way to support your personal health goals. In addition to this, routines can also support us in building a life with more meaning and purpose for ourselves.
Evening routine checklist
When it comes to building an evening routine or night routine, it is important to tailor your evening routine to your personal needs, preferences, and lifestyle.
Mindfulness is a key element when it comes to creating your evening routine. Already a few minutes of mindful breathing, meditation, journaling, practicing gratitude, etc. can have a huge impact on your mental well-being and sleep quality.
We are about to dive into the ultimate evening routine checklist, helping you to develop an evening routine tailored to your personal needs and desires.
As we are going through this evening routine checklist, keep in mind that creating a routine is personal. Feel free to take what feels in alignment with you and skip or replace what doesn’t feel aligned.
And now, let me walk you through the ultimate evening routine checklist to help you to more success, productivity, and relaxation.
Evening routine checklist #1: Set a goal for your evening routine
Take a moment to reflect on your overall goals and priorities in life (short-term as well as long-term).
Ask yourself, how can your evening routine support you in achieving these goals?
Are you for example looking for a healthier lifestyle? How about incorporating exercise, healthy dinners, meal prep, etc. into your evening routine?
Or are you looking to spend more time doing a hobby? How about allowing 30 minutes every evening for your hobby?
You are looking for more self-care time? Perfect, make sure to add your favorite self-care activity to your evening routine.
The more you tailor your evening routine to your personal needs and desires, the more effective and relaxing it will be for you.
Take your time for step one of the ultimate evening routine checklist. Right now you are building the foundation for your evening routine, make sure it is a solid foundation.
Evening routine checklist #2: Set a time to start your evening routine
To set a time for your evening routine, work out how many hours of sleep are ideal for you. Generally speaking, for most healthy adults it’s about 7 – 9 hours per night. But this depends and varies on your personal needs.
In the next step work out when you need to go to bed to get the amount of hours that you need for your sleep. Then, you have your ideal bedtime.
From there, define how much time you would like to spend on your evening routine.
Consider the activities that you are looking to incorporate into your daily evening routine. Keep in mind not to overload your evening routine. The main aim of your evening routine is to help you relax and unwind.
Personally, I like to take a full hour, but that is just me, it might be different for you.
Be consistent and stick with this time every night and keep in mind that Monday already starts on Sunday night.
Evening routine checklist #3: Switch off your mobile phone
Step three from our evening routine checklist might be a bit of a challenge at first, but keep an open mind and give it a try.
In order to help you relax and unwind from the day switch off your mobile phone as soon as you start your evening routine.
Be strong, set your boundaries, and make space for yourself.
Evening routine checklist #4: Create an ambiance
Next, make yourself comfortable.
Put on some comfortable clothes, and dim the lights in your home to signal your body and mind that it is time to slow down.
Feel free to light a few candles, put on your fairy lights, etc., especially during the cooler time of the year this can help to add to your comfort.
Evening routine checklist #5: Pour yourself a cup of tea
Somehow a cup of tea always has something calming…
One of the reasons a cup of tea feels so calming could be that tea contains the amino acid L-theanine which helps to relax. But personally, I think there is something magical about the ritual of preparing and pouring yourself a cup of tea.
Peppermint, chamomile, and lavender are great teas to help you relax and unwind.
Evening routine checklist #6: Make time for your goal
Whatever the goal of your evening routine was, e.g. starting a healthy lifestyle, more time for your hobby, etc. this is the time to make it happen.
How much time you dedicate to this activity is totally up to you. This can be 30 min, 1 hour, etc.
Keep in mind that you are the creator of your life and you are the only person who can make your dreams a reality.
Once you are finished, start to prep a few things for the next day. E.g. create your to-do list, do your lunch prep, pack your gym bag, etc. anything that takes off the pressure in the morning and helps to support a smoother day, now is the time to prep.
Don’t rush, take your time with everything that you are doing, you already started to slow down, so continue with that slower pace.
Evening routine checklist #7: Time to relax
Before you go to bed, take some time for your body and mind to slow down even more and further relax.
Below are a few suggestions for ways to help you relax before bed.
Take a look at all of them, then pick the one that resonates most with you and make this activity part of your nightly routine and evening routine checklist.
Read a book
Reading a book before bed can be a very soothing and effective way to relax.
Reading helps to slow down the thought process and as you immerse yourself more and more into the story, your mind begins to detach from the stress and worries of daily life.
Overall, reading offers a tranquil escape and signals the body and mind that it is time to unwind.
However, it’s important to choose the right type of material for bedtime reading. Try to stay away from books that might create too much excitement, instead pick something drama-free and easy to read. Something you find enjoyable and relaxing.
Meditate
Meditation can be another powerful tool for relaxation before bed.
Meditation helps to quiet the mind, reduce stress, and release tension that is built up during the day.
This mental clarity can promote a sense of inner peace making it easier to transition into a restful and rejuvenating good night’s sleep.
There are lots of free resources and meditation apps out there e.g. Calm, Insight timer, just to name a couple.
If you are new to meditation, look for meditation for beginners. There are also special meditations that help you to sleep.
Pick a voice that you like (this makes all the difference), listen to a few meditation practices, and pick the one that resonates most with you.
Stick with this meditation for as long as you want to. If you feel like changing it, change it. It doesn’t need to be a long meditation, even a 5-minute meditation can make a huge difference to your sleep quality.
Do some yoga
A session of calming and relaxing yoga postures before bed can do wonders for your body and your mind.
Think about it, if you go to bed with a sore and achy body, you only end up turning from one side to the other until you finally fall asleep.
Yoga will help you to release all the tension and stress accumulated during the day from your body. It will help to create space within and ease these sore muscles of yours. And as you relax your body, your mind will begin to relax too.
Again, this does not need to be a long session, 10 – 15 min is totally sufficient.
Tip: YouTube is a great place for free online resources. And if you would like to flow with me, try one of my nighttime yoga flows with YOGATX.
Practice gratitude
Practicing gratitude before bed can be a powerful way to relax before bed.
When you practice gratitude you move your focus towards the positive aspects of your life acknowledging all the beautiful things you are grateful for. This helps to shift the mind away from any worries or stress that might be troubling you.
This mental shift triggers feel-good hormones which help to promote a sense of well-being and relaxation.
In addition to this, focusing on the good things helps to reduce negative thought patterns that might keep us awake at night helping us to a deeper and more restorative sleep overall.
Tip: If you are looking to dive deeper into practicing gratitude, make sure to check out How to Start a Gratitude Journal, 7 Mindful Gratitude Activities For Adults – A Journey To Abundance, and 44 Daily Gratitude Journal Prompts – Unlock Your Inner Joy.
Listen to calming music
Music has the ability to change our mood within seconds.
Create a playlist of relaxing tunes and put it on every night while you are getting ready for bed. Listen to your playlist while you are brushing your teeth, doing your skincare evening routine, putting out your clothes for the next day, etc.
The calming tunes will help you to relax and as you release tension out of your body, you are easing your mind at the same time.
Then, time to enjoy that beauty sleep…
Evening routine checklist – 3 tips to make it happen
Sticking to your evening routine can be challenging at times, but with the right mindset and strategies in place, you can definitely make it happen.
Below are 3 tips to help you turn your evening routine into a new healthy habit of yours.
Be Consistent – We humans are creatures of habit and we love routines. Block the time for your evening routine in your diary. Stick with the timeline that you developed when you crafted your personal evening routine checklist. Keep showing up for yourself, day after day. You can do this.
Start Small – Trying to incorporate too many things at the same time might be a bit overwhelming in the beginning. Start small, focus on one or two key activities, and add to your evening routine over time.
Prioritize Yourself – Make yourself a priority and make your evening routine a non-negotiable part of your day. Recognize the value that your evening routine adds to your life, better well-being, increased productivity, more self-esteem, etc. Seeing all the benefits will motivate you to stick with your evening routine moving forward.
Keep in mind that creating a new habit takes time. Be patient with yourself as you establish your evening routine. And over time, your evening routine will feel natural and won’t require any effort.
I never thought that an evening routine could make such a huge difference in my life, but establishing an evening routine really helped ease my anxieties as well as insomnia. In addition to this, it helped me to establish a much-needed work-life balance.
In my night time routine for success, I focus on yoga and breathwork. Depending on how my day went I might do a bit of journaling. Journaling always helps me to release any thoughts that are troubling me from the day. Writing them down is like a release and frees my mind so that I can get a better sleep. And instead of a cup of tea, I usually go for a hot lemon these days.
Now I am curious to hear from you what you put on your evening routine checklist. If you feel like sharing what you put on your night routine checklist, feel free to do so in the comments below. I would love to hear from you.
Other resources you might like:
- The Ultimate 7-Step Morning Routine Checklist – Rise And Shine Warrior
- Autumn Essentials: 13 Magical Self-Care Products For Busy Women
- 7 Ways to Overcome Procrastination – Unleash Your Potential
Stay wild,
Nicolle
These are all great suggestions to help you relax. I read and meditate. It’s also helpful to set a timer to remind yourself it’s time to get ready for bed. You should also go to bed and wake up at the same time every day (even on the weekends).
Thanks so much for your comment, Shelley.
I allow myself a break on the weekends, that’s my cheat day 😉
Really like the idea with the timer!!
Great tips! Love the idea of setting up an evening routine to initiate a shift in mindset and have time to rest before bed. For me the hardest is to stop looking at my phone, which I know doesn’t help with good sleeping habits but it’s one of those habits that’s hard to break. Maybe implementing a new habit, like gratitude or stretching will help slowly let go of devices before sleep. Thank you for this great information!
Thank you so much for your comment Charlie-Elizabeth 😉
The phone was a hard one for me too, but it makes a huge difference. I now leave it away in the evenings as well as the mornings, more quality time and less stress too 😉
I usually drink a tea to calm me down before going to bed. Great tips!
Happy to hear that you enjoyed them.
Tea I do as well 😉
I used to toss and turn ALL night because of anxiety. I found a way to treat it. And BOY has it helped me out and the quality of my life so much. Thanks for sharing this post!
So happy to hear this, a good night’s sleep really makes a difference!
Thank you so much for stopping by and leaving a comment 😉
These are all wonderful suggestions to relax before going to bed. I know I tend to really push the limits and stay up late because I always want to do so much. But I pay for it the next morning, haha! Thanks for sharing these!
I so know the feeling Meghan!!
Not always easy, I am still practising too 😉
Thank you so much for your comment!!
These are perfect tips for a great evening routine checklist. I agree that tea and a book are helpful to unwind before bed.
Hi Debbie, so happy to hear that you enjoyed the blog post and found it useful. Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment, much appreciated. Hope to see you back very soon 😉
I am one of those people who start worrying before bedtime – which, of course, ruins my sleep. I plan to start a few of these ideas this evening to put me in a better frame of mind. Thank you as always for your tips to nurture the mind and body.
Thank you so much for your kind words Stephanie, that means a lot 🖤.
I totally understand what you mean, my mind is super active too, especially before bed time….I hope these tips will help you as much as they helped me to calm the mind and find a more peaceful and restful sleep.