Summer Self Care Tips {+ a FREE Summer Self Care Challenge}

ad gifted // We all know I’m big on self care by now. And I think that seasonal self care is something we should really lean into more. The seasons of our lives are forever changing, just like the seasons of the Earth around us. Adapting out self care to reflect our needs in any given season makes sense, doesn’t it? Here we’re talking about summer self care tips.

I used to really hate Summer as the heat was always something that made my anxiety worse. I think there are lots of reasons to hate Summer and I’m certainly not the only person who’s had these thoughts. Summer can be a difficult time of year for a lot of people.

But the thing with seasons is that we can’t avoid them. Unless we’re perpetually moving around the globe to avoid the sun. So we either learn to enjoy the Summer or embrace the Summer self care tips to help make this season a little more comfortable.

And that’s the thing with self care as well, it’s a yearlong thing. It’s not just exclusively for when we’re going through a break up or when we’ve lost our job and are navigating a job search.

Self care is for ALL THE TIME and the more we practice that, the better. But of course the beauty is, is that it’s adaptable. To situations. Circumstances. To seasons.

So today I want to share some specific Summer self care tips that we should take on board this Summer, next Summer and every Summer after that!

Drink enough water. If you don’t like water – find something you do like!

Let’s start at the very basic level of self care here and talk about HYDRATION. Goddamn. I think a lot of people would find they feel much better in the Summer months if they upped their water intake. But it certainly can be a struggle for some. My Mum doesn’t like plain water – I don’t understand it myself but if you don’t like it, you don’t like it.

But in the Summer, when it reaches dizzying temperatures outside (anyone else remember the day of Summer 2019 that hit 38 degrees?) you HAVE to drink water. Like, you really don’t have a choice in the matter because dehydration is dangerous. A good option for those who don’t like plain water is water infusions, flavoured water or squash.

Take care of your skin

Boy oh boy, I could bang on about this point alllll day. Your skin is your biggest organ. It’s your canvas. Your bodies’ protector. Your skin does SO MUCH for you yet you repay it by letting it sizzle and dry up in the sun and accelerate it’s chances of getting a life-threatening illness? Heck no.

Seriously folks, look after your skin. A little Vitamin D never hurt anyone but be sensible with your sun exposure. Make sure you’re using the right sunscreen for you, staying out of the sun during the hottest parts of the day and checking your skin regularly. If you ARE desperate for a tan, fake tan is the way to go!

Which brings me nicely onto BALIBODY, the natural tanning oil and skincare brand so you can have that gorgeous glowing tan without damaging your skin at the same time!

I was kindly sent some BALIBODY products to try out and feature in this post and just for context, I am A HUGE FAKE TAN FAN. I’m from Essex, so what do you expect? I’ve loved fake tan ever since my teens and definitely went through a bit of an obsessive phase with it.

Luckily I came out of the other side of that and now I’m all about natural looking self tanning products that are easy to apply with a radiant finish. The products that I were sent were:

• BALIBODY Self Tannning Mousse: £25.95
• BALIBODY Face Tan Water: £25.95
• LUXE Tanning Mitt: £12.95

So I started with the self tanning mousse. Earlier in the day I shaved my legs, exfoliated and moisturized so I was all prepped for the tan. First of all, I have a confession. I’ve NEVER used a tanning mitt. So using this mitt was like seeing a unicorn for me.

The mitt is SO SOFT and makes applying tan so easy. The mousse itself is lovely to apply. It comes and by using the mitt in long, sweeping, motions, it avoids any unnecessary streaks.

The face tan water is great because you use it within your skincare routine like a toner and apply with a cotton pad. So there’s no extra time wasted applying this. It’s completely clear and develops over 6 hours and gave my face a lovely, subtle glow. I definitely looked like I’d been out in the sun.

I *may* have left the tanning mousse on for a little longer than suggested (like, 10 hours longer) so it came out VERY dark but I’m not mad because I love a good tan! There were a couple of patchy bits but I think that’s more down to my inexperience in using a mitt than anything else.

I love the colour and the finish and I will 100% be using this and purchasing this going forward. Definitely one of the best tans I’ve used and I’ve used a LOT.

Stay away from diet culture and content that makes you feel bad about yourself

Summer is a great time for magazines, publications and weight loss programs to drill into you the importance of getting “bikini body ready”. Well you know what? If you have a body and put it in a bikini… you’re bikini body ready. Diet culture is rife at two different times of year: January and Summer.

So if you suffer from low self esteem or are particularly affected by these things, it’s a good idea to limit what you see on social media, block, mute and un-follow anyone or anything that makes you feel bad about yourself.

Invest in a goddamn fan

A nice bit of practical advice here for you and that’s INVEST IN A FAN. Let this be your yearly reminder. God, I love a fan. We have like, a billion fans in our house. And here in Britain, the land of panic buying (see COVID 2k20 as an example), fans get out of stock pretty damn quick. So pick one up ASAP.

Wake up earlier in the Summer

A good Summer self care tip that I’m a big advocate for is waking up early. I’m an early bird anyway and spoke about my morning routine here – so hopefully that gives you some tips on how to wake up earlier. But I find the Summer is the perfect time to wake up early. When it’s cooler outside, it’s brighter in the morning and you’re able to really make the most of the day.

Slow down and give yourself time to do nothing

If and when you can, I urge you to slow down this Summer. We’re always so damn busy. Especially in Summer when everyone and their Nan are having a BBQ. Not having many plans one week is OKAY. And spending time in the garden, listening to a podcast or some music, sipping on cocktails, reading some great fiction books is OKAY. It’s okay to slow down and watch the world pass by in the Summer.

Follow along to a Summer self care challenge

If self care doesn’t come naturally to you, don’t worry, I got your back too. Below you’ll find a fun 30 day Summer self care challenge that you can follow along to, to ensure you’re fitting in at least one small self care activity every day during the Summer! This is great for anyone looking to take these summer self care tips even further!

Summer can be a wonderful time of year but not if you’re spending all day dehydrated, sunburnt and struggling with the heat. I feel like in comparison to Winter self care, you really have to be more proactive in the Summer to ensure you stay on top of your self care.

But if you have some simple but effective self care tools in place for the Summer months then you should be good to enjoy this season of the year (and of life) to the best of your ability!

How do YOU look after yourself more in the Summer? What Summer self care tips do you have to share? Will you be trying the Summer self care challenge? Let me know!