Routines Over Resolutions for Better Health and a Happier Home
Tips and journaling prompts for a holistic approach to the new year
Happy New Year! This post is sponsored by Trace Minerals Research, my all-time favorite source for mineral supplements. Their products have been so impactful for my health over the last 10 years, and I am proud to partner with them to bring you the following tips and prompts for approaching the new year holistically. For a discount on your first order, use my affiliate code “HOLISTICHOMEMAKING15.” On top of you getting a discount when you use my code, I make a small commission. Thank you for your support!
When I sat down to make my New Year’s resolutions in December, I felt stuck. This is usually my favorite time of year— full of anticipation and ambition. But instead of feeling excited, I felt deflated and found myself dreading the pressure to achieve lofty goals. I was overwhelmed. So when I saw an email from someone I follow that suggested defining how you want to FEEL in the new year instead of what you want to ACCOMPLISH, it struck a chord. I could say a lot about how I wanted to feel. Maybe that’s you, too?
Here’s what worked for me this year instead of making typical resolutions:
Envision how you want to feel.
Ask yourself: What conditions do I need in place to feel this way? What’s preventing this from being my reality right now, if anything?
Determine what small changes you can make in your routines to put yourself on track to manifest your vision. (Don’t create an overwhelming list— just choose a few small things for now, and add more once those become automatic.)
Start adjusting your routines mindfully, but without the expectation to never miss a day. Give yourself grace. This is for the long term. If you miss a day, just pick back up where you left off.
Why routines are more impactful
Chances are, you already have routines. These are the actions you take on a daily basis that make up the fabric and quality of your life. They are the things you do most consistently. Routines can be designed and adjusted with intention, or they can be created by default and ruled by your habits (good or bad).
By making intentional adjustments to your routines based on your vision for what a happy, healthy, and meaningful life looks like, you are automating the manifestation of your vision. It’s not a massive and overwhelming lifestyle overhaul; it’s a manageable change that through consistency becomes a habit and influences the quality of your life over time.
How to upgrade your routines
There are four ways you can upgrade your routines.
1. Remove something from your routine.
Maybe you look at social media or work emails while you’re still in bed in the morning, and you feel like your mental health would be better if you weren’t doing that. Perhaps, like me, you find yourself scrolling endlessly in the evening when you could be doing something more genuinely restoring and (gasp) going to bed on time.
Removing something from your routine takes self-control and intention, so get clear on why you don’t see this habit when you envision your ideal life. I know that I no longer want to see my social media consumption habit because it adds too much noise to my life, and I would like to feel more clear and focused so that I can invest more into my home, family, and self.
2. Make a micro-adjustment to something that is already part of your routine.
If you already plan your meals, you could pick a day per week to eat organ meats to improve your family’s nutrition. If you already drink a glass of water first thing in the morning or fill up a water bottle to drink throughout the day, you can start adding mineral drops to make it more useful to your body, and feel more hydrated and energized.
I decided to integrate a magnesium supplement for 2023; It takes two seconds a day to add a few squeezes to my drink in the evening, which I was already accustomed to having to hydrate before bed. Over time, I found that I feel more at ease, have better sleep, no muscle cramps, and easier periods. So if you want to say goodbye to those symptoms of magnesium deficiency this year, maybe that’s something for you to look into.
Trace Minerals Research is my go-to source for mineral supplements. Their products have upgraded several of my routines; I remineralize the filtered water I drink throughout the day with Concentrace Trace Mineral Drops, I take a ZeroLyte electrolyte packet when I work out, and I add Mega Mag magnesium drops to my evening hydration. You can get 15% off your first order with my affiliate coupon code, “HOLISTICHOMEMAKING15.”
3. You can add a new step to your routine.
If there’s a new habit that you’d like to incorporate, try making it a part of a habit sequence that is already automatic. I’ve heard this referred to as “habit stacking.” For example, you drink water, brush your teeth, wash your face, get dressed (all automatic at this point, right?), and then (new habit) head outside for a few minutes of morning sun and movement before engaging with the day’s work.
4. You can create an entirely new routine.
Perhaps there’s an area of life that you’ve allowed to fall to chance. For me, that’s cleaning the house; I spent the last year more in crisis management mode (taking care of things after I’ve noticed how awful they are) than in a proactive place. I’d like to change that! So I’m trying a planned cleaning flow to make sure that nothing gets forgotten, while dividing all of the work up into manageable chunks that will ultimately only take a bit of my time each day. This can also be attached to a pre-existing routine so that you can take advantage of your momentum. I already tidy up the kitchen after lunch every day, so I could just keep moving once that’s done and knock out the day’s household task.
Journaling prompts to get you started:
What do I want to feel like, as a baseline, in 2024? What energy do I want to bring to life?
When I hold this energy and feeling in my mind, what do I envision my life looking like? How are my relationships? How is the atmosphere in my home? What am I doing?
What conditions do I need in place to manifest this vision? What’s preventing this from being my reality right now, if anything?
Do I have any habits that are holding me back from living the life I envision for myself? Why are they a problem?
What habits do I see when I envision my ideal life? What habits, when practiced consistently, can help to manifest my vision?
Can the new habits I desire be integrated into pre-existing routines?
Choose 3 things you would like to incorporate, write them down, and put them somewhere you'll see them first thing every morning.
Examples of holistic homemaking routines:
Morning routine:
Get up and prepared for the day
Fill up a water bottle for you and each family member, and add trace mineral drops
Go outside for morning sun and movement (bonus if the whole family participates!)
Prepare and eat breakfast
Distribute any supplements the family takes before everyone disperses
Check the meal plan for anything that needs to be prepared for dinner, or any baking tasks that need to be done
Clean up the breakfast mess
Start the essential oil diffuser
Start a load of laundry
Complete the day’s household task(s)
(Keeping a list of daily, weekly, and monthly tasks can help keep this part organized!)
Dinner/evening routine:
Cook dinner
Set table
Gather family, eat dinner
Prepare anything that needs to soak or ferment for tomorrow (soak beans, start sourdough, etc)
Take out the compost
Clean kitchen
Final tidy on house
Evening self care routine:
Work out or go for a walk
Refill water bottle; add magnesium drops
Put electronics away on their chargers
Take a shower
Skincare and facial massage while sipping magnesium drink and listening to a podcast
Dry brushing for lymphatic drainage
Read a book, journal, or meditate
Go to bed on time
I hope this helps you approach your new year in a holistic, balanced, and sustainable way! Let me know what simple changes you’re making to your routines in the comments.