I used to roll my eyes at the phrase “Self-Care Sunday.”It felt like something influencers invented to sell bath bombs and scented candles.
So here’s what I’ve actually tried, what worked, what flopped, and what I’d tell a friend who needs a real reset not a Pinterest perfect one.
First, Let’s Kill the Myth of the “Perfect” Self Care Sunday
The biggest mistake I made early on was treating Sunday like a performance. I’d plan it out like a schedule. 9 AM: journaling. 10 AM: yoga. 11 AM: skincare. And then I’d feel worse if I didn’t follow through, or if I “wasted” the day watching TV instead.
That’s not self care. That’s productivity cosplay with candles.
Real self care is messier. Some Sundays I need complete silence. Other Sundays I need noise, friends, and takeout. The point is noticing what you actually need not copying someone else’s aesthetic routine.
Morning: Start Slow (Seriously, Slower Than You Think)
One of the best changes I made was stopping the habit of checking my phone first thing. I know, I know everyone says this. But I actually mean it in a specific way.
I gave myself a 30 minute “no screen” window after waking up. Just me, some coffee or tea, and the window. No news. No Instagram. No WhatsApp. Just… existing for half an hour.
It sounds boring. It’s genuinely not. The first few times it felt awkward, like I was waiting for something to happen. But after a few Sundays, that quiet half-hour became the thing I looked forward to most all week.
If total silence feels too intense, try putting on an ambient playlist I’ve used the Brain.fm app and honestly some free YouTube lo-fi playlists work just as well. The goal isn’t meditation (unless that’s your thing). The goal is not starting the day at 100 miles an hour.
Mid-Morning: Do One Creative Thing With Zero Stakes
This was a game changer for me.
I started keeping a cheap sketchbook not because I can draw (I absolutely cannot), but because doodling with no purpose turns off a specific kind of mental exhaustion. It’s different from scrolling. Different from watching TV. Your hands are busy, but your brain gets to wander.
You don’t have to sketch. It could be:
Writing three pages of whatever is in your head (look up “morning pages” by Julia Cameron life-changing concept)
Playing an instrument badly and for no one
Cooking a recipe you’ve never tried before
Rearranging a corner of your room
Fiddling with Procreate on an iPad if you have one, or just Microsoft Paint
The key is: no outcome. You’re not producing content. You’re not getting better at something. You’re just doing a thing with your hands and your attention.
Afternoon: Move Your Body in a Way That Doesn’t Feel Like a Punishment
I spent years thinking self care movement had to mean yoga. Yoga is great. It’s also not for everyone, and I spent too long forcing myself through YouTube yoga videos feeling stiff and bored.
What actually helped me was walking with no destination.
Not a “fitness walk.” Not tracking steps on my Garmin or hitting a calorie goal. Just leaving the house and walking somewhere interesting a neighborhood I hadn’t explored, a park I drove past but never stopped at. I’d put on a podcast or a playlist or nothing at all.
Something about walking without a goal is deeply restorative. It’s like your nervous system gets a reset.
Other movement options that feel less like obligation:
Dancing in your kitchen put on a song you loved at 17 and go for it
A slow, non-competitive swim if you have pool access
Stretching on your living room floor while watching something comforting
A beginner pilates video (apps like Alo Moves or free YouTube channels are solid)
Afternoon Part Two: Protect Your Screen Time (Selectively)
Here’s the thing about screens they’re not inherently bad for a reset day. The question is what kind of screen time.
Scrolling TikTok for two hours usually leaves me feeling worse. Watching a film I’ve been putting off for months can feel genuinely nourishing. There’s a difference.
I started using the Screen Time feature on iPhone (or Digital Wellbeing on Android) not to restrict myself, but just to get honest about what I was doing. When I saw I’d spent 90 minutes bouncing between apps without enjoying any of them, it was easier to make a different choice.
On good Sundays, I’ll pick one intentional thing: a documentary, a film, a podcast series. Something I chose, rather than something I fell into.
A few things that have genuinely made my Sundays better in this category:
Letterboxd for tracking films it makes watching movies feel like a hobby, not passive consumption
Audiobooks via Libby (free with a library card, which most people forget exists)
Long-form YouTube channels about history, architecture, nature the kind of content that actually teaches you something
Evening: Wind Down Like You Mean It
Evening is where I used to completely blow my Sunday reset. I’d spend the whole day doing well, then spiral into “Sunday scaries” anxiety by 6 PM dreading the week, checking work emails, doom scrolling.
A few things that broke that cycle:
Write tomorrow’s one thing. Not a full to do list. Just one thing that, if you did it, would make Monday feel manageable. That’s it. It takes 30 seconds and it works.
Eat something you actually enjoy. Sunday dinner doesn’t have to be elaborate. But eating something you genuinely like whether that’s a proper home-cooked meal or your favourite takeout while sitting at a table (not over your laptop) is weirdly powerful.
Take a hot shower or bath but do it intentionally. Okay, I lied earlier. The bath thing does work. But not as a performance of self care. When I actually slow down, put my phone in another room, and use a shower as a deliberate wind down rather than a 4 minute habit, it’s completely different. Try a eucalyptus shower steam tablet. They’re about £2 and they genuinely transform a normal shower.
Set a “phone away” time. I aim for 9:30 PM. Not because some guru told me to, but because every time I stay on my phone until I fall asleep, I wake up feeling like I haven’t rested at all.
The Stuff I Tried That Didn’t Work for Me
Journaling with prompts I know this works for a lot of people. For me, being given a question to answer made it feel like homework. Blank pages work better.
Meal prepping as self-care I’ve seen this framed as self-care and maybe it is for some people. For me it just feels like a Sunday chore. If you love it, great. I’d rather spend that time on something I actually want to do.
Long meditation sessions Starting with 20 minute meditation when you’ve never meditated before is a fast way to give up. Five minutes with an app like Headspace or Insight Timer is a genuinely good entry point. Don’t go from zero to an hour-long silent sit.
Over-scheduling the day I mentioned this earlier, but it’s worth repeating. The moment my Sunday has a colour-coded timetable, it stops being restorative and starts being another thing to manage.
What Actually Makes a Sunday Feel Like a Reset
Looking back over the last couple of years of treating Sunday with a bit more intention, the common thread in the good ones isn’t any specific activity. It’s three things:
Slowness. I didn’t rush into the next thing. I let things take as long as they took.
Absence of performance. I wasn’t doing things to post about, to report back on, or to feel accomplished. I was doing them for me, in private, with no audience.
At least one moment of genuine pleasure. Not optimized pleasure. Not improving myself pleasure. Just something that felt good for no useful reason.
That could be a long lunch. A chapter of a novel. A call with a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while. A walk where you find a street you’ve never noticed before.
None of this is complicated. It’s just easy to forget when the week is loud and Sunday becomes just the day before Monday.
One Last Thing
If you try to do every single thing on a list like this, you’ll exhaust yourself and probably end the day feeling worse.
Pick one or two things. Try them genuinely. See what actually makes you feel like a person again not what looks good in someone else’s Sunday morning flat lay.
Your reset day is supposed to work for your life, not the other way around.
Have a specific self care ritual that actually works for you? The unconventional ones are always the most interesting drop it in the comments.
https://insidersdesk.com/10-healthy-habits-that-actually-changed-my-life/
Minhas is the founder and editor of InsidersDesk, a health and wellness platform dedicated to providing practical, easy-to-understand information on fitness, nutrition, healthy living, and mental well-being. He researches trusted sources and transforms complex health topics into actionable advice that readers can apply in their daily lives. His goal is to help individuals build healthier habits and make informed decisions about their overall wellness.
1 response