QUARANTINE DIARIES - WOMEN'S HEALTH
I recently spoke to Women’s Health about my quarantine routine — here’s what I told them!
6am - Thanks to the clock going forward and all this new sunlight I’ll be up bright and early throughout the spring and summer. As soon as I’m awake I Tongue Tingle — or tongue scrape (a non-negotiable for me — like brushing my teeth!), brush my teeth and then oil pull for 15 minutes while I’m in the shower to get rid of the build-up of toxins and bacteria in your mouth (bye bye bad breath) that the body has ridded itself of whilst sleeping. Straight after my shower I hydrate my skin with a light layer of body oil to lock in the moisture. I’ve got a thermos of hot water by my bed so I start sipping on that, do some yoga — either sun salutations or I find something on YouTube to get my body moving and strengthen my posture and finish with a 20 min meditation. Something I’ve been doing for years and absolutely see the difference in the quality of my thoughts, my attention span and sustained energy throughout the day.
7am - By 7am I’m in the garden with the dogs and checking on my plants - this time of year with this sunny spell, you need to start checking on the water levels, plus I’ve just planted out a load of veg seedlings.
7:30am - I start thinking about breakfast and if I haven’t already, think about what we’ll be eating the rest of the day and if I need to soak anything or get it out of the freezer. This morning I’m making a bowl of Sweet potato porridge with orange, cinnamon and almond butter - I film a lot of my recipes as content for my IGTV.
8am - I sit outside in the sun or at the table for breakfast, avoiding any distractions (especially my phone!) before I start work to ensure I can enjoy and concentrate on every bite.
9am - It’s time to get to work. I like to get all my thoughts and ideas out first before I check social media or emails as I’m usually most creative in the morning and I don’t want to get distracted and buried in my inbox! Every week I create content for my website which also comes together as a weekly newsletter. Then on social media I’m currently hosting two lives a week — a #WellnessWednesdayWorkshop where I host guests for a practical hands-on tutorial and a #SundaySlow wisdom sharing talk followed by a guided meditation to end the week. I try to do 25-minute pockets of work and 5 mins off to remind me to stretch and realign my posture if it’s slipped (desk work is hard on the spine and hips!) and also to keep my brain fresh.
12pm - Depending on what lunch is I’ll start prepping in time to eat for 1pm - I always try and eat my lunch (which is also my biggest meal of the day) by 1pm which is when your Agni (digestive fire) is at its peak. I usually start with something semi-sweet (in Ayurveda the sweet taste is recommended first for maximum satisfaction and because it’s the hardest to digest) like a ladoo (think energy ball) ...and if I don’t then I’m usually sniffing around for something chocolatey straight after! Today it’s Pizza pudas - a favourite anda great one using store cupboard ingredients and those veggie odds and ends. Then I try and take a beat after eating for best digesting before diving back into work.
3pm - Nick heads out to give the dog a a walk in the park (We’re taking it in turns to do this during lockdown) while I potter around the garden, make like a tree, stretch my back with some squats and get some fresh air and Vit D for 30 mins.
4pm - I’m jumping back into work for an hour or so to catch-up on deadlines and final tasks for the day before planning a to-do list for tomorrow.
5:30pm - It’s time for my second 20-minute meditation of the day — I have to really force myself to do this one otherwise I can easily talk myself out of doing it by pushing it back later and later…
6pm - I’ve got a Instagram Live #WellnessWednesdayWorkshop with my friend and mentor, Susie Pearl on designing our lives with mind maps and other creative visualialisation techniques. Nick gets cracking on dinner which is ready to go when I’m done.
7pm - Tonight we’re having Super Supper Mung Dal, a popular recipe from jasminehemsley.com that’s easy to cook and digest, the perfect evening meal. I usually eat dinner between 6pm and 7pm as eating late and/or eating heavy really messes with my digestion and therefore my sleep and energy levels. Nick and I have both found this Ayurvedic practise of eating a light and early supper works so well for both of us and we stick to it whenever we can.
7:30pm - I get ahead on a bit of editing for next week by downloading video content and roughly planning out my social content for the following week before finally switching off of our laptop screens for the evening. I also dial in for a quick FaceTime to check in on a friend in New York and do a bit of knitting (my new obsession!) while I’m at it.
8:30pm - I take the dogs for a quick walk around the block, waving to any neighbours who are out on balconies and to one of my besties that lives up the road — if I’d been any earlier her 2 year old would be up at the window waving too!
9pm - My nightly wind down routine (as important as my morning “wind up” routine!!): turning off any blue light in line with the fading light outside and getting off screens in time to allow my mind to settle before bed.I jump onto the sofa with my knitting whilst listening to Jessie Ware’s Table Manners podcast — the ultimate duo — until they start talking about food and I get hungry!
10pm - I love it when I get the chance to hit the sack early in line with the circadian rhythm of respecting that there are optimum times to eat, exercise and sleep. A face massage before bed is a great way of indulging in some self-care and dropping any tension from the day, I’ve been practicing Gua sha over the last week or so and am loving it. I use a Jade Gua Sha tool and some face oil and follow the contours of my face to encourage lymphatic drainage. I’m usually half asleep by the time I’m done and easily drift off into dreamland - then wake up the next morning with happy skin!