Self-Care Tips: How to Create Your Recharge Routine

Prioritizing our self-care tips might sound selfish, but it’s actually one of the most selfless things you can do. By establishing a self-care routine and prioritizing yourself now, you’re setting yourself up for future success with family, friends and at work. 

Self-care Sundays are becoming increasingly popular to fight the so-called “Sunday scaries” that come with a return to work or school on Monday. A Sunday self-care routine is a great way to ensure you actually rest on your weekend, and caring for yourself now means avoiding burnout later. Think of it like auto maintenance: if you don’t get your oil changed and tires rotated regularly, it will eventually wreak havoc on your car. 

We’ve got our top self-care tips and a daily self-care checklist to get you started. Do you need more incentive to take care of yourself? Download the Fetch app and you can literally reward yourself for following a self-care routine. 

Top 10 self-care tips

The best self-care tips are the ones you find helpful, both in what they do for you and how easily they fit into your life. We’ve got 10 of our top self-care tips to get you started toward a successful self-care routine, but remember your goal: caring for yourself. Feel free to change any of these self-care tips to personalize your routine. 

1.Create a no-phone zone at night

There are no shortage of studies suggesting we spend too much time on our phones, but for many of us, it’s not realistic to simply give them up. When it comes to self-care tips, reducing screen time is always a popular one, but we want to get a bit more specific: create a “no-phone zone” as you get closer to your bedtime.

Reducing phone usage before bed can 

• Increase sleep duration 
• Improve sleep quality
• Boost working memory
• Make it easier to fall asleep

Park your phone in another room and make your pre-bed time a part of your self-care routine with a book light, alarm clock or sleep spray (and earn rewards on your self-care supplies in Fetch Shop).

2. Schedule a “Self-care Sunday” ritual

Have you noticed the importance of habits and rituals when it comes to self-care? It’s easier to get started on the road to self-care when you have some rules. The no-phone zone is a great way to recharge a bit every night, and a Self-care Sunday ritual is the next step. 

There’s no wrong choice as long as you’re taking care of yourself, but some popular self-care rituals include:

• Long bath with a fancy bath bomb
• Face mask and at-home spa day
• New book and your favorite latte
• Catching up on a favorite TV show
• Working on a craft project

Not only will your Sundays reward you with rejuvenation, your face mask, bath bomb, craft supplies and self-care product receipts will earn you Fetch Points.

3. Make hydration a habit

Taking care of essential bodily functions like sleep and rest are two of the top self-care tips, and hydration is just as important. The easiest way to make hydration a habit and get the most of your self-care routine is to have a dedicated water bottle that you’re not likely to forget at home. If you find yourself forgetting to sip throughout the day, try scheduling reminders on your phone.

Fruit-infused waters, flavored drops and collagen packets can all give your hydration habit an extra boost beyond regular H2O, and you’ll find plenty of water enhancers in Fetch Shop (and don’t forget to snap the receipt for your water bottle).

4. Journal for five minutes a day

Mindfulness is so important to self-care routines that you’ll often hear the two used interchangeably. Though often associated with meditation, journaling is also a mindful practice that has been shown to:

• Reduce stress
• Improve emotional regulation
• Improve memory and mental acuity
• Deliver better sleep

It doesn’t take much effort to journal, and it pairs well with your Self-care Sunday ritual or your no-phone zone. There are no rules for journaling, other than using the full time, but we’ve found that having some special notebooks and pens can help. 

If you really struggle with what to write, treat it like a brain dump or a gratitude journal, or find a journal with prompts in Fetch Shop to earn yourself more points.

5. Try a new skincare ritual

Skincare isn’t just about appearances; a skincare ritual can be a meditative routine. More than just mindfulness, few things feel more physically rejuvenating than a freshly washed and cared for face.

Even though it’s good for you to take care of your skin, it’s understandable to feel a little guilty when you splurge on skincare essentials. Fetch works with top beauty brands to both earn you points and give you gift card options for skincare self-care products.

6. Upgrade your sleep space

Reducing or cutting out nighttime phone use is just one way to improve your sleep. Upgrading your sleep space is another way to ensure you wake up well-rested and ready to go. For some, simply redecorating or rearranging the bedroom with the goal can give a sense of calm and control that carries over into the night.

Upgrading your bedclothes to include soft sheets or a weighted blanket and adjusting your sleeping environment with sleep sprays or an essential oil diffuser will more directly impact how many Z’s you get. Every cozy purchase you make to upgrade your sleep space is another route to building up your Fetch Points, too.

7. Move your body for joy, not punishment

This self-care tip can be one of the hardest for people who will benefit the most from it. Even small bursts of movement offer incredible physical and mental health benefits, including:

• Improved mood
• Reduced stress
• Improved brain function
• Reduced risk of chronic disease
• Strengthened bones and muscles
• Improved sleep quality

It’s much easier to take advantage of all of these benefits if you move your body for joy. Even the most dedicated gym goer has exercises they don’t like, and it’s finding the movement that gives you joy that will ensure you make it a part of your self-care routine. Maybe that means picking up a pickleball paddle, heading to the rock climbing gym, going to yoga or simply taking long walks.

When it comes to movement, even the smallest ones help. Pair movement with your hydration habit by getting up and going for a short walk when you sip your water. If you sit for work, just standing up and stretching every few hours can do so much. Part of the fun of finding a physical activity you enjoy is gearing up, and your sneakers, yoga mats, leggings and pretty much anything else you need will earn you Fetch Points.

8. Create a cozy corner for unwinding

When we talk about creating a space for self-care, most people think that means a space in their schedule, but it also helps to have a physical space. Create a cozy corner at home to unwind and make it a part of your self-care ritual. Essential cozy corner supplies include:

• Comfy chair you love to sit in
• Soft, lightweight blanket
• Candles and/or a lamp with soft light
• Your to-be-read pile or crafting hobby supplies
• Decorations that feel welcoming and homey
• Coasters for your tea or coffee

You’d better believe you can earn points on all of the cozy corner supplies you need, whether you find them in Fetch Shop or snap your receipt after a Target run.

9. Keep a “Treat Yourself” budget

One of the benefits of having the Fetch app on your phone is knowing that nearly every purchase you make brings you closer to a gift card reward. Even if you haven’t hit your next point milestone, you deserve to treat yourself, and that’s where a “Treat Yourself” budget comes in.

By making room in your budget to treat yourself, you’re carving out a space for self-care. Maybe treating yourself to a nice coffee is part of your Self-care Sunday routine, or you simply want to have some wiggle room for that next impulse purchase. Whatever it is, setting aside as little as $5 of your budget each week means you don’t need to feel guilty about splurging on yourself every once in a while, and with Fetch, you’ll earn points on the little luxuries you were buying anyway.

10. Say no without guilt

Part of prioritizing self-care means knowing when to say “no,” and it’s why the self-care routine is so important. By building self-care into your daily life, you make it easier to say “no” to things that might drain you (physically, mentally, emotionally or all three). Establishing boundaries to protect your “me time” ensures you stick to those routines and actually see the benefits of self-care habits.

The next time you say “no” to something in order to prioritize your self-care, treat yourself with a gift card from some of the points you’ve earned with Fetch. Dedicating your time to yourself is difficult, and you’ve earned a reward.

Build a self-care checklist

Building a routine is essential, and having a self-care checklist is one of the best ways to ensure you stick to your plans. Your list will vary, of course, but based on what we’ve got outlined above, here’s a good starting place for a daily self-care checklist:

• Hydrate
• Stretch for 2 minutes
• Journal for 5 minutes
• Go for a walk
• Write down 3-5 things you’re grateful for
• Open the Fetch app to snap your receipts

That last one is there as a reminder to take care of future you and keep the self-care routine moving forward with real, tangible rewards from Fetch.

How Fetch supports your self-care routine

The biggest hurdle for the average person’s self-care routine isn’t creating the routine, it’s giving yourself permission to truly take time for yourself. That’s where we come in; the Fetch app funds your self-care routine so it won’t impact your budget. It’s hard to feel guilty about treating yourself to a new skincare routine at Sephora or a Target run that’s just for you when you don’t spend a dime on it!

Turn me-time into reward time! Download the Fetch app and see how easy it is to earn points from your self-care routine. You’ll have enough points for a self-care reward in no time.