In the past, before I had a solid unwind routine, I would stay stressed out late into the night. I wasn’t able to unwind, and I had no idea how to beat that feeling.
I had no ritual in place to transition my day from a mind that’s focussed on work to a mind that’s focussed on recovery.
At its peak, my alertness and heightened stress from the workday just stayed with me into the rest of the day and my sleep. On lucky occasions, I would wind down after an hour of binging youtube videos on the couch.
It’s obvious to say in hindsight, but social media was no cure for this state of mind if it did anything, it made it worse. Something had to be done; I couldn’t go on like this.
The cure for my situation started by talking to my wife. That’s where I often start when something bothers me.
The ones that are closest to you are the ones that can be your first sounding board.
I told her that I was taking a lot of stress from the workday into the rest of the day and night. I told her that this constant heightened feeling of stress was sucking me dry and that something had to be done, and she agreed.
Luckily enough, she knew of a method or al least she had learned about a small ritual that had helped someone she followed on Instagram. So desperate that I was I asked her to share the method, and she did.
The method was to light a candle every day when you come home from work.
It’s a simple ritual. When you come home, put your stuff where it needs to be, and you light a candle while being mindful about it. It’s a small but powerful ritual.
I started the next day immediately, and I loved it right from the start.
From that day on I haven’t looked back, and right now I’ve built out my unwind routine into a routine that serves several purposes that set me up for an awesome second part of the day.
Below I’m sharing my step by step unwind routine with you guys, and I’ll try to take you through my reasoning on the subject.
Let me know what you like about it and if you have any additions or reasoning on how to improve it?
What is an unwind Routine?
Like my morning routine and my evening routine, my unwind routine marks a transition phase in my day. It’s a short ritual that I initiate after my workday ends. For me, it starts at the office, but it does not have to be that way.
My unwind routine serves the purpose of bringing my mind in a certain state. For instance, my morning routine is set up to bring my mind to a peak state of focus for the rest of the workday. And my evening routine is set up to get my mind into an ultra-relaxed state for a night of good sleep.
My unwind routine serves a similar purpose: it’s a method to get your mind into the right state for the following moment to come.
Even more specific, the unwind routine helps me shed away the stresses of the day. It’s designed so that I don’t carry them into the rest of my day after.
What are the effects on the body?
The routine helps me to transition into the next part of my day actively. The moment I start the routine I know work is over, it works like a trigger.
I know that I was productive, now it’s time for the next phase of the day.
Physically the unwind routine helps me to transition my autonomic nervous system (ANS) from an overactive sympathetic nervous system (SNS) into a more relaxed state where the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) takes over and helps me to relax.
And finally, it helps me transition into being a family man, a husband, a partner and a friend. I shed my founder skin and become another version of myself. A more relaxed version that’s open to others.
What is my current unwind routine?
I try to quit the workday every day at 18:00.
This is not always possible, but I try to focus on smarter and more productive work than making longer hours. For me and my brain, rest and time away from work are crucial for high productivity and focus.
- at 18:15 } Most important tasks for tomorrow
- After I’ve said goodbye to my co-workers and before I walk out of the office, I take 5 minutes to write down the most important thing(s) that need to be done right away the following morning. I use a section in my Notion Cockpit to write these things down so I’ll look at it right in the morning the next day.
- at 18:30 } I’m home, so I light a candle
- While I’m lighting the candle, I visualize closing down my office day. I put my office and all my office worries inside a mental box and close the box with the key and swallow it all. This is how I give my office stuff a space to rest.
- at 18:33 } I drink a half a litre of water
- I’ve noticed that I tend to forget to drink enough during the day even though I have a Hidrate Spark Smart Waterbottle (which I love) so I use this moment to gulp up some extra h2o.
- at 18:35 } I run cold water on my wrists for 1 minute
- It helps me to relax as I said in my evening routine. So in total, I’ll do this twice during the night to calm my body down instantly. Try it. It truly works wonders.
- at 18:40 } I eat a banana and make a glass of tea
- Since I’m still in the kitchen at the sink, I’ll eat a banana from some after-work energy, and I’ll set myself a cup of herbal green tea.
- at 18:45 } Meditate for a minimum of 5 minutes, and then I’m done
- Everyone knows the mental and physical benefits of meditation by now. In total regularly, when I’ve done all my routines correctly, I will have meditated for at least 3 times during the day.
Within half an hour, I’m home and done with my unwind routine.
After completing my unwind routine after work, I feel instantly better, and so will you once you try it out.
I hope the above unwind/ unplug routine can inspire you to set up something similar. And remember, it’s good to make it your own. for instance if you don’t like green tea and prefer a goof cappuccino with homemade cream that is okay.
The more you make your unwind routine your own, the better it will feel and the easier it’ll be to stick to it.
Good luck and start small. Begin with the candle or maybe with the most important tasks for the next day.
Have a good rest of your day and may you stay in good health.
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