The 3-Phase Sunday Ritual to Get Your Life Together

If you usually spend your entire Sunday in bed, watching reality TV and dreading the week ahead – I get you. 

But what if I told you that the way you spend your Sunday has the power to completely change your week? To leave you feeling both refreshed and totally zen, as well as 100% ready to tackle whatever responsibilities await you?   

All it takes is incorporating 3 phases into your typical Sunday routine.

These are the phases that I go through each Sunday to help me unwind and take care of myself, while also getting organized and planning for the week ahead. Let’s go through each of them:

Phase 1: Get shit done

First, we eat the frog. In other words, we start our Sunday routine with whatever requires the most work and energy. For me, that entails taking care of my space and working on chores. I can’t start the new week in a good state of mind if I don’t have my apartment in order. I need to wipe the slate clean and start fresh.

Declutter

I will usually start by decluttering my space. Anything that’s lying around is going back where it belongs. I will bring those plates that are hanging out in my bedroom back to the kitchen (I love me some 10 P.M. popcorn), store loose papers in their rightful folder or recycle them – you get the gist. My space usually isn’t too cluttered as I do a quick-clean every day, so this doesn’t take too long.

Once my space doesn’t give me anxiety anymore, I can get to business.

Clean your space

This part will look different for everyone. My cleaning routine isn’t that excessive. Don’t get me wrong – I love to keep things neat, I just can’t really be bothered to deep-clean everything in my home every Sunday.

For example, I know I should probably vacuum at least once a week, but that shit just doesn’t seem to happen until, you know, it reaaally needs to happen. Same with the bedding – who has time to change their sheets every week? (Everyone? Oh ok…)

When it comes to glass surfaces, however – I need them dust-free and sparkly! Everyone has their own routine and priorities when it comes to cleaning. You do you here!

I usually start by doing my laundry. While my clothes are in the washer, I will move onto the kitchen. I do the dishes, wipe down the counters as well as the stove, clean out the fridge if necessary, take out the trash, etc. I’ll also wipe down my bathroom surfaces, coffee table and desk.

Weekly to-do’s

Whenever there’s something I need to do on a weekly basis – I generally do it on Sunday. That way I never get confused and I can do everything at once!

For instance, I always water my plants on Sunday (this definitely counts as self-care too). I also like to prep my vitamins and pill for the week ahead and put them in a cute little pill-box so I don’t forget to take them. If I’m feeling motivated, I might do some meal prepping too!

Phase 2: Review & plan

Weekly Review

Now that our space is looking fresh, it’s time to move onto Phase 2: reviewing and planning for next week.

The first part of this phase is your weekly review. If you want to live your life intentionally, this is one of the best habits to get into. It helps you move consistently towards the life you want, and make sure you’re focusing on what matters to you.

During my weekly review, I ask myself these questions:

• What are my big wins this week?
• What isn’t working? Am I avoiding anything?
• Goals check-in: am I making progress?
• Values check-in: am I living by my values?

That’s it! I will reflect on the week (usually by going through my calendar because I have the memory of a goldfish). This in turn helps me celebrate my accomplishments, and allows me to see what I need to focus on for the next week.

As I’m writing this it’s actually Sunday, and my review mainly taught me that I’m not prioritizing my fitness goals, that I’m spending way too much time in the morning figuring out what to wear (and getting frustrated, which is not the vibe I want to start my day with), and that I’m not doing as much as I could to live by my value of giving back.

So I decided that next week I’m going to try a new fitness class, as well as plan all my outfits the night before. I also decided that I would donate to a campaign on GoFundMe each month when my paycheck comes in.

Planning

After reviewing – we plan *sparkly eyes*. Open up your calendar / planner / bullet journal and start by filling out all of next week’s events. Add any appointments, classes or shifts that you might have.

Next, look through your to-do’s. I highly recommend using a task manager app to keep your to-do’s organized. I’m currently using Notion to hold all my tasks.

I will ask myself which tasks I can do in the upcoming week, and schedule them. This is really important! Whatever you use to plan – it could be a (digital) calendar, a planner, a bullet journal or a carved stone slab for all I care – you want to block time in the week to work on these tasks so that they actually get done.

Also make sure you take the insight from your weekly review and implement it into your planning. Try to schedule a task you’ve been avoiding for a while (I really need to back up my laptop – at this point I’m just pushing my luck and I fear the universe will do something to it).

And most importantly – remember to schedule tasks that will bring you closer to your goals/dreams and align with your values. After all, those are the things that truly matter!

• If your goal is to work on your fitness, you could schedule the fitness classes you want to attend next week, or set up the time blocks in which you’ll do a YouTube workout.
• If you want to get out there and improve your social life, plan meet-ups and fun experiences with friends.
• If you want to eat healthier, plan which recipes you will make and prepare a grocery list with the necessary ingredients.

The key here is having everything set up, so all you have to do next week is follow the plan.

Phase 3: Self-Care

We have now officially arrived at the best part of your Sunday routine – self-care, baby! The whole point of self-care is that you do what will make you happy. With that being said, here are a few things I think should definitely be a part of #selfcaresunday:

Take care of your bod’

If you have a bathtub – definitely take a bath (I feel like baths just scream self-care?). I’d never had a bathtub in my life until moving into my current apartment, and it’s a game changer.

If you’re not that lucky, no worries! Before I had a tub I would just take a nice hot shower. This is your opportunity to do all the things – scrub, body oil, body lotion, hair mask – the whole shebang.

Once I’m done scrub-a-dub-dubbing, I’ll put on a face mask and leave it on for at least 3 times longer than the recommended time (SUE ME, Lush). After my face mask I like to do a little face massage with my jade roller – I keep mine in the freezer so it’s super refreshing.

I usually also give myself a little manicure while listening to a podcast or watching YouTube videos. Doing my nails is therapeutic and makes me feel very put-together.

Indulge

Now that your space and body have been taken care of – it’s finally time to lay back and indulge.

Do whatever it is you like to do and go all out – nothing is unreasonable. Sometimes I read, and sometimes I watch about half a season of a Netflix show, accompanied by popcorn and a glass of chilled rosé. Or two. And that’s totally cool.