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Women have gotten a lot of things right over the years: the suffrage movement, allegiance to Team Edward, the return of the espresso martini, Kellyoke.
Men would do well to take notes!
Another area men could take a cue from the women in their lives? The all-important nighttime routine.
Us girlies are notorious for our detailed, meticulously-followed evening rituals, while too many of you careen like Tornado Rex from dinner to whatever’s on TV to late night screen time in bed.
If you’ve been waking up sluggish — a condition made worse by the time of year when we’re all getting dressed in the dark — try one (or all!) of these lady-approved nighttime routine steps.
5 Steps to Add To Your Nighttime Routine ASAP:
1) Adopt a proper skincare routine
You may be swiping past the kind of “So a lot of you have been asking about my skincare routine…” videos on TikTok, but you know who’s taking detailed notes?
Women.
I’m not suggesting you adopt some elaborate, 10-step, hour-long regime, but start somewhere! Commit to an easy 1-2 punch of cleansing and moisturizing every night.
The ritual will have a positive impact on that beautiful face of yours, and will get your body and mind prepared to wind down.
2) Wear dedicated pajamas
If the concept of men’s pajamas conjures up Ebenezer Scrooge in his dressing gown and stocking cap from A Christmas Carol, 1) congratulations, we share a brain. And 2) you’re on the right path, but think more modern.
Men’s pajamas can mean anything from boxers when you usually wear boxer briefs during the day to a dedicated pair of sweatpants that only come out at night.
After all, women love a matching pj moment, and it’s time you follow suit!
Fair warning, you may find pajamas so comforting that you build a collection that will eventually require its own drawer. Prepare accordingly.
Bottom line? The goal is to trick remind your conscious brain that it’s time to clock out for the night, and putting on clothes you only wear to go to sleep is a great onramp to Sleepytown, USA: population you.
3) Climb into a bed you made that morning
I really don’t think I know any woman who doesn’t make her bed in the morning.
At this point, as a full-blown adult, I couldn’t imagine not coming home to a made bed waiting to welcome me.
So, if you’re not already, do Nighttime Routtine You a solid and get in the habit of Morning Routine You making your bed.
You’ll be surprised at the soothing effect a made bed has on you when walking into your bedroom in the evening.
4) Engage in mindful yapping
Like most women do, I have ongoing text threads with multiple friends. At night before I put my phone away, I love a quick catch-up.
“How did that presentation go?” “Did your sister call to apologize?” “Should I scoop tickets to Gladiator II this weekend or will you?”
Of course, you don’t want to let it go on all night — we all know by now how bad blue light is for our sleep patterns — but finishing the day by building ties with your community is a great routine to adopt before hitting the hay.
5) Read a book…for fun!
This one comes from experience. My husband, god bless him, ends every night by either a) scrolling TikTok, or b) going down a Wikipedia rabbit hole researching whatever murder documentary he most recently watched on Netflix.
Guess who wakes up and springs out of bed in the morning bound for the gym, and who hits snooze three times?
And look, I get it. Thanks to book clubs from Reese Witherspoon’s to The Today Show’s “Read With Jenna,” reading seems to be female-coded now in a way that feels unproductive to say the least. But reading is for everyone!
I think back to when I was 12 years old and my best friend Josh and I would spend hours…HOURS!…in my treehouse reading Goosebumps.
Of course, TikTok wasn’t an option, but I’d like to think even today Josh is out there reading Stephen King to lull himself to sleep at night (hi Josh! You were the best. Hope you’re well).
So, put down your phone and pick up a book. It could be anything! But if you need some ideas, Team SG made you a list.
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