Healthy Habits: Exploring Mindfulness Routines and Rituals

Discover new healthy habits to enhance your wellness routines

Mindfulness is having a moment in the sun, and we’re here for it. Any practice in which we are encouraging ourselves and those around us to pause, to take a deep breath and to be gentle when it comes to productivity (or lack thereof), has us curious about how we can learn more. Before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s break down in very simple terms what we mean when we say ‘mindfulness’.

The Centre for Mindfulness Studies defines mindfulness as ‘a non-judgmental way of paying attention to the present moment’. We also like this explanation as laid out in a Harvard Health Article; ‘Mindfulness is the practice of purposely focusing your attention on the present moment—and accepting it without judgment’. Now that we have a better understanding of what we mean when referring to mindfulness, let’s explore the ways in which mindfulness can have many impactful and beneficial effects on the mind, body and spirit.

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

Healthy habits for the mind

In what can only be described as an unprecedented difficult, challenging and uncertain period of time, many issues have been raised in regards to caring properly for our collective mental health. If we’ve learned one thing through this last year it’s that cultivating and nurturing healthy habits to support our mind is the single most important way we can contribute to our overall good health and wellness. Here we want to explore some of the mindfulness practices you can partake in to ensure you’re making good on the commitments you’ve made to yourself towards developing and maintaining healthy habits.

1. Find stillness in meditation. The traditional definition of meditation typically includes the act of being in quiet contemplation, pondering or consideration, but we like to think that there is more than one way to find yourself in the quiet spaces. One of the most important tenets of mindfulness is showing up; meditation for you might be spending time in nature, an uninterrupted 30 minutes to yourself at the end of your workday, or a series of deep breaths when you feel your shoulders creeping towards your ears. Whatever helps you to calm and quiet your mind can absolutely be considered meditation.  

   

    

   A product we love: try adding a balancing and soothing product like our Unwind roll-on to your pulse points when your mind feels busy and is looking for stillness. Sweet and cheerful orange can help to ease restlessness and lavender is known to soothe the body and mind.

2. Early to bed, early to rise. For most people, waking up early in the morning is not something that comes naturally, or easily. This article shares many of the benefits of early rising, including our capacity for peak performance. Our brains tend to be more alert and focused in the morning, which means you can increase your chances of checking things off your to-do list if you make a concerted effort to get out of bed earlier. Their best tip? Starting slowly. You’ll set yourself up for failure if you try setting your alarm at 5am vs your regular 8am. Small, incremental shifts can make all the difference in sustaining this new healthy habit.

    

   

    

   A product we love: a good day starts the night before, which is why we recommend adding a natural product like our Sleep Well roll-on to your bedtime routine each night. Roll onto the wrists, throat, temples and pulse points about 30 minutes before you intend to climb into bed to give your body time to absorb the powerful essential oils of relaxing valerian, soothing roman chamomile and peaceful vetiver.

Healthy habits for the body

We know that taking care of our bodies is another one of the most beneficial ways we can build and sustain resilience in the face of challenges while maintaining optimal physical health. There is no shortage of strong evidence to support the ways in which exercise has been linked to improvements in our mental health, including stress relief, improvement in mood and reduced tiredness that can increase mental alertness.

Get moving. Find a way in which you love to move your body, and work to create consistency in adding this healthy habit to your life. We know that exercise is good for us, there are a number of reasons why we put off doing it, and there are as many valid reasons to make it a priority. Whether it’s HIIT, weightlifting or even mindful walking finding movement that you enjoy means you’re more likely to stick to it, thus creating a healthy habit.

A product we love: for many, stiffness, soreness, aches and pains are a deterrent to getting up and getting moving. Adding a product like Extra Strength, a pain relieving roll-on formulated for big relief with soothing, relieving and analgesic essential oils like peppermint, sweet birch and clove to your pre-workout routine can have a big impact on your pliability and flexibility before, during and after a sweaty workout.

Stretch it out. Yoga, one of the most beloved practices in the mindfulness community, is a way in which you can move your body and still your mind in tandem. Yoga has a long and celebrated history of helping to not only provide toning and lengthening of muscles, but also an encouragement to connect with your breath and work with your mind to overcome blocks and fears. Yoga is an excellent way to move your body on your own time, or in a (virtual) class where you have the added benefit of connecting with others.

A product we love: to help create consistency in your yoga routine, we suggest linking a scent to your habit. For example, try diffusing a grounding and harmonizing blend like Yoga, blended with earthy and peaceful patchouli, sweet and cheerful orange and floral and calming neroli, before you step on the mat each day to start training your brain to associate scent and activity.

Healthy habits for the spirit

The word spiritual, by definition, means ‘relating to or affecting the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things’. It stands to reason that there are as many benefits to looking after our spiritual, mental or emotional well-being as there are to be proactive regarding our physical health, because we know how intricately linked the two really are. When practiced regularly, different forms of mindfulness can help free us from the inner struggles and challenges we face that keep us from feeling truly connected to ourselves and others.

Common humanity. In part, common humanity refers to the idea that some form of suffering is universal, and that unpleasant and uncomfortable feelings are part of the human experience. The antidote to this suffering in many cases is true connectedness, and allowing authenticity and vulnerability to draw us closer to friends and loved ones. Connectedness is one of the many ways we can partner with others to face not only trials and tribulations, but to center in joy, love and celebration of the breadth of the human spirit.

A product we love: Scent is a powerful and unifying experience. The first step to connectedness with others is connection with ourselves, and what better way to celebrate yourself than with a product formulated with precious florals to invite self confidence, self compassion and self kindness? Goddess roll-on has been formulated with euphoric jasmine, comforting neroli and balancing rose, all essential oils known to have a positive impact on the spirit. Apply behind the ears, along the sides of the neck, in the elbow creases and on the wrists for a personal scent experience.

Breathwork. Though the term ‘breath work’ is now inclusive of a number of breathing exercises and techniques to help evoke stillness and calm, nothing beats a good old fashioned deep breath. Breath is life in each of us, and that ‘red thread’ that keeps each of us connected. Breathwork, referring to intentionally changing your breathing patterns, has been linked to many beneficial effects like reducing stress, creating feelings of openness and helping to thwart emotional blocks like fear and anger.

A product we love: our favorite way to use many of our roll-on’s at Saje is through what we call a Saje Breath. Done simply, it looks just like this: roll generously into the palm of your clean hand a roll-on of your choice; we love Stress Release for its balancing and soothing properties, formulated with lavender, geranium and clary sage. Rub hands together to warm and activate the essential oils, create a cup shape with the hands over the nose and mouth and breathe deeply. We encourage you to inhale slowly through the nose, hold for a few seconds at the top of your breath, and exhale slowly through your mouth. Repeat as needed.

Which healthy habits are you investing in?

There are no shortage of ways in which you can create healthy habits and invite enhanced health, wellness and well-being into your life everyday. From increasing your water intake to choosing consciously the foods you put into your body, from reducing your screen time to increasing your time in nature, mindfulness and healthy habits can be whatever you want them to be. We’ll leave you with three additional ways you can support your wellness each day:

Visualization. It’s said that your brain can’t tell the difference between a visualization and something it’s actually seeing, so go ahead and daydream your goals and aspirations into reality. Visualization helps to activate our subconscious mind, and can help move us one step closer to the realization of our hopes and dreams.

Journaling. Remember that the brain is a muscle and it needs exercise too! Many people find putting their thoughts onto paper a cathartic experience that allows for the release of ideas, feelings and feedback that often allow the mind to feel calmer and less cluttered afterwards.

Drinking water. The simplest of healthy habits is increasing our water content each day to truly hydrate in a way that allows both the brain and the physical body to function optimally. Digestion, absorption and circulation are just a few of the bodily systems that need a proper amount of water each day to function properly and keep your body in good health.

However you define a healthy habit, this is the year to make your dreams a reality! Investing in yourself is an investment in your community and the collective health and well-being of all.

— Mother Teresa