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Is taking a bath a form of self care?
After a long day of work, never underestimate the relaxing benefits of a self care bath.
Showering is pretty much the standard, but your body needs a little tenderness, love, and care regularly for barrier repair.
And while your skin will appreciate the additional moisture, there are many self care bath ideas that can contribute to stress relief.
For centuries, hot water from a soothing warm bath has been used to aid in healing bodies and reducing health risks such as heart attacks, high blood pressure, weight gain, illness and infection.
We use baths as an alternative option to rid the physical body of impurities, but self care bath rituals are common across the globe.
Some of which date back as far as the Ancient Greeks and Romans who used public baths as recreational experiences, cleansing, spiritual purification, and disease prevention.
Overtime, bathing eventually evolved to be used in various religious practices, private baths among the elite, and spas.
Now we can make modern day bath routines an entire mood within the comfort of our own homes.
Taking a bath is self care because it relaxes your mind, burns calories, reduces body inflammation, eases muscle tension, and serves as a decongestant for flu-like symptoms.
If you need a quick workout or want to improve your breathing, substitute your evening shower for a steamy, hot bath instead.
The benefits alone are enticing enough to take one every day!
Why are baths good for self-care?
There are several self-care bath ideas you can incorporate in your evening routine for a calmer, relaxing experience.
You, too, can tap into the many benefits of taking therapeutic baths.
Just decide what type of self-care bath you’d like to indulge in each evening.
Whether you want it to be relaxing, healing, weight loss, or recreational; that is completely up to you, but I’ve shared a few self-care ideas that will help you create your own bath time ritual tonight.
Relaxation
When you’re feeling stressed and need to take a few hours to clear your mind, make your bathroom a place of refuge.
Think of what activities that ease your mind, body, and soul and include them in your self care bath routine.
Reading, drinking wine, face masks, exfoliation and aromatherapy can turn your bath time into a spa-like experience.
Candles, oil diffusers, and aromatherapy can immediately reduce stress and anxiety from certain scents alone.
Many essential oils that promote relaxation are in self-care bath products:
- Lavender
- Rose
- Jasmine
- Chamomile
- Bergamot
- Rosemary
- Peppermint
- Ylang-Ylang
Don’t rule out lighting to set the mood either. If you aren’t able to control the light settings in your bathroom, keep them off.
Use the light from candles, at least 5-10, to set the mood for a romantic evening.
What do you like to do while you’re in the bath? Cultivate the bathing experience to your liking.
I enjoy reading, listening to soft music, and sipping on a cool drink.
A clay mask is usually my go-to with eye patches to really give my bath routine the full Feng Shui experience.
A diffuser, steamer, or humidifier amplifies the ambiance but can also contribute to your skin care routine.
The hot steam coupled with relaxing scents opens up the pores and allows your body products to penetrate the skin barrier easily.
There are several bath oils, bath bombs, and rose petals you can prep your bath water with before getting in as well.
Maybe a glass of wine and a sweet treat is the icing on the cake for you to relax at night.
Your self care bath routine is what you make it.
Healing
Physical labor can be stressful on the body. Those muscle aches and pains creep up out of nowhere if you don’t get ahead of them.
Stretching and hot baths can ease muscle tension.
There are various self care bath ideas you can use when healing from an injury, recovering from an illness, dealing with skin inflammation or irritation, or suffering from congestion.
- Add sea salt or Epsom salt
- Add healing herbs like basil or chamomile to relieve muscle spasms, decrease anxiety, and promote skin hydration
- Take ice baths to ease muscle soreness
- Baking soda, oats, bath oils can assist with reducing itchiness and dryness from psoriasis and eczema
Weight loss
An hour-long soak in the bathtub can contribute to weight loss overnight.
It’s not a joke, I’m being serious guys.
I wasn’t a believer either at first until I discovered that taking a hot bath burns just as many calories as a 30 minute walk.
Soaking in a hot tub at 100-105 degrees for 20-30 minutes a few hours before bed can contribute to weight loss and a deep relaxing sleep as well. The external heat to the body speeds up the fat burning process.
Hot baths shouldn’t replace daily exercise or a healthy diet, but it can definitely be an alternative for those individuals who may have suffered an injury or struggle with insomnia.
We need an adequate amount of rest for our bodies to rejuvenate instead of packing on the pounds late at night.
Recreation
Bath time can be fun for both children and adults.
I look forward to taking baths at night, because it’s the one place where I rarely get any disturbances.
I purposely put my phone on ‘do not disturb’ after nine o’clock. I also use half an hour to indulge in my body and skin care routine.
If I’m not reading a book, I’m closing my eyes for a quick nap, listening to soothing jazz music, watching a show I’d like to catch up on my iPad, or laughing at trending videos on social media.
For the women with kiddos, giving children baths right before bed is the ultimate key to helping them get a good night’s sleep aside from bedtime stories.
To avoid harsh chemicals, there are specific product lines for calming bubble baths with lavender that won’t irritate your baby’s sensitive skin.
Let’s leave the bath bombs, flowers, candles, and oils to the adults for the recreational bath routines.
There are plenty of fun toys and educational activities you can add to baths for babies and toddlers.
- Foam floating alphabet and numbers
- Rubber ducks
- Washcloth puppets
- Bath books, puzzles, and crayons
- Bath paints
- Plastic stacking cups
Add some color and create an experience for your little ones and they’ll look forward to bathing every night.
How can I make my bath more soothing?
As an adult, I’m all for making my nightly bath soaks luxurious.
There are plenty of luxurious bath accessories that you should own.
However, I’ve shared a list of my favorite self care bath products below. I use many of these items in my daily therapeutic bath routine.
Here are 15 self care bath products you can start implementing for a calmer, evening routine today!
1.Relaxing Bath Pillow
2. Bathtub Caddy Tray
3. Pebble Stone Bath Mat
4. Bath Bombs
5. Dual Jets Portable Bath Spa
6. Spa Bubble Bath Massager
7. Terry Cloth Robe
8. Luxury Bath Salts
9. Spa Candle
10. Essential Oil Diffuser
11. Silicone Wine Holder
12. Echo Show HD
13. Rose Petals
14. Clarifying Clay Mask
15. Plush Bath Towels
What are some self-care bath ideas?
Now that you’ve got the luxury bath product list, it’s time to create the full spa experience right in your very own home.
Self Care Bath Ideas – Lighting
Train your body to know when it’s time to wind down, relax, and not wake up with appropriate low lighting.
If you haven’t tried lighting a few candles and leaving the lights off completely while bathing, then you’re definitely missing out.
Soothing, scented candles are just enough to put your mind and body in an ultimate state of relaxation.
The steam, soft music, and tranquil lighting will put the mind at ease during a luxurious bath soak.
Take at least 10-15 minutes to close your eyes, reflect, and meditate. Set the alarm to take this time to rest, read a short ebook, listen to an audiobook, and sip on some of the finest wine.
You can turn on the lights for the rest of your bath soak and body care routine, but doing this will set the tone for a calmer, evening routine.
This is a great time to make use of a bath pillow or jets to massage your muscles.
Self Care Bath Ideas – Body Care
Complete your skincare routine in the bathtub, goal friends at least 1-2 times per week.
You can exfoliate, add healing salts, body oils, a body mask, eye patches, or throw on a facial mask.
The heat from the water opens up the pores on your skin, allowing the skincare products to penetrate deeply and long enough to be more effective than in the shower.
Exfoliation gloves, body brushes, and scrubs can remove dead skin cells and soften the outer layer of your skin, making it supple and smoother to touch.
Focus on body care and allowing all the oils and salts to moisturize
Self Care Bath Ideas – Healing
If you’re someone who exercises frequently or you are an athlete, there’s nothing worse than the feeling of painful muscles the following day.
Stretching may be the key to easing muscle tension, but ice therapy has a lot more benefits when implemented after a workout.
Can’t stand the cool temperature? Heat therapy works too!
Soak in a hot tub by pouring in herbs and healing salts to rid yourself of pain from an injury, increase your heart rate and blood flow, relax your muscles, and burn a few calories while you’re ahead.
How do I pamper myself in the bath?
My personal bath routine comprises a mixture of bath oils and salts. I love the way they make my skin feel as soft as silk right before I lay in my bed for a good night’s sleep.
I’m obsessed with candles! I reserve my bath times for candles with softer notes and essential oils in them to relax more.
Nest and Capri Blue candles are my go-to candle brands as of late. Particularly any candle scents that will make the bathroom feel and smell like a spa, including Eucalyptus, Lemon, Lavender, and Rose.
I turn the lights down low and cut out all the chatter. My phone remains on ‘do not disturb’ while I’m having ‘me’ time and I refrain from scrolling on social media.
When I’m pampering myself, my evening routine comprises dry brushing, exfoliating with a scrub, putting on a clay mask, with chilled water at my fingertips.
For entertainment, I’ll use the bath board to place my Kindle reader on there, some mixed fruit, or sweet treats.
I also like to take this time to journal for at least 20-minutes with Sade or some soft jazz playing in the background.
Depending on my mood, I’ll use my iPad to catch up on a television show, listen to a chapter of an audiobook, or a podcast episode.
Once my pampering routine ends, I like to step out into warmth with a plush towel or oversized terry robe wrapped around my skin.
Heated floors are a luxury I’ve experienced at hotels and Airbnbs, so I found a dupe that I now use in my master bathroom at home, which is a heated bath mat.
This is pretty much my pampering routine in a nutshell.
How do you pamper yourself in the bathtub?
While I’ve shared various benefits of a bath routine and self-care bath ideas, there’re tons of ways to spruce up your bath time. I’ve kept my list of self-care bath ideas budget-friendly, but don’t be afraid to splurge.
Whoever knew that indulging in self-care could be as easy as soaking in a bathtub for 30-minutes?
It’s the perfect self-care hack for busy moms and working professionals who need more time to maximize their weekdays.
Now you don’t have to skip out on giving your mind and body the self-care break it needs; one bath a week to relax and nurture yourself from head to toe will do the trick.
If you need more ideas on how to implement a lifestyle change, try a one month challenge.
Download the 31 Day Simple Living Challenge now available in the FREE RESOURCE LIBRARY!
I teach entrepreneurs how to simplify their life and business with less + own their time and maximize productivity towards their personal and monetary goals.
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