Sunday has long been regarded as the day of rest: After a week of early wake-ups and diligently checking off to-do lists, there finally comes the one day where doing nothing is not only socially acceptable—but actively encouraged.
Or so you thought.
More and more Americans are now optimizing their Sunday as a means of self-improvement. This might look like light cleaning and calendar organization. Or meal-prepping while marinating in an avocado face mask. Rather than rest, Sunday is now a day to reset for the week ahead.
While hardly groundbreaking, the idea has taken off online with almost a million videos tagged #sundayreset on TikTok. Searches for “Sunday reset list” have also surged 65% on Pinterest so far this year. It even has its own aesthetic—think cozy loungewear, Apple Airpods Max, and satisfying vacuum lines. Searches for “Sunday reset aesthetic” are up 55% this year, according to Pinterest data. Over half of Americans (53%) are now participating in some form of Sunday reset, according to a survey published in April by mattress company Amerisleep.
But there’s often a more foreboding compulsion laying beneath the cozy productivity.
“I don’t think people are suddenly more disciplined. I think they’re more overloaded,” psychologist Zelana Montminy tells Fast Company. “The week doesn’t really end anymore. There’s no clean stop. So Sunday has kind of become this moment where people try to catch their breath before it all starts again.”
It makes sense that so many feel like they need to be in “reset mode” on Sundays—countless workers spend Sunday already feeling anxious for the looming workweek ahead. And yet? Even if it comes from a place of restlessness, a Sunday reset appears to have tangible benefits. (Besides the cozy loungewear.)
Amerisleep found that those who reset on a Sunday outearn their peers by $25,000 per year, commanding an average salary of $73,000, compared with $48,000 for those who don’t. This was based on a survey of 1,001 Americans, made up of 50% millennials, 25% Gen Xers, 19% Gen Zers, and 6% boomers. Survey respondents were asked about their weekly routines, anxiety levels, productivity, and exposure to Sunday reset content on social media.
While this figure doesn’t prove causation, it does suggest that those who take the time to set themselves up for the week ahead emotionally, mentally, and logistically may reap the rewards at the office. (Those same type A qualities that cause them to spend their weekend cleaning and organizing—as opposed to vegging out on the sofa—might also help them excel at work.)
One 2023 study found that workers who engaged in a brief planning session at the start of the week went on to complete more tasks, ruminated less, and showed greater cognitive flexibility. Whether Sunday or first thing Monday morning (as was the case in this study), even a short window of intentional preparation before the week begins can have a huge impact.
A Sunday reset also offers some mental benefits. Among those who participate in a Sunday reset, 69% say that doing so reduces their anxiety levels and leaves them feeling productive, prepared, and focused.
A 2025 study found that proactive approaches, particularly planning and prevention, are more effective than reactive methods at managing stress. A systematic review published in 2025 also found that planning and proactive approaches reduced burnout and anxiety in workers and lowered job pressure and stress.
If that hasn’t sold you on the idea, almost half of those surveyed by Amerisleep (46%) say a reset keeps the dreaded “Sunday scaries” at bay—that anxious feeling you get toward the end of the weekend as Monday looms. “A lot of the Sunday scaries is just leftover stress meeting what’s coming next,” Montminy says.
Taking the edge off
For a successful Sunday reset, she recommends starting simple. “Get things out of your head—just write down what’s been sitting there so it’s not all swirling,” she says. “Look at the week and just be honest about it . . . busy, full, whatever it is. That takes some of the edge off.”
Resetting your space is also important to start off the week on the right note. Set aside 30 minutes to tidy the kitchen or tackle the laundry so that you head into Monday feeling on top of things. Once that’s out of the way, focus on intentional rest.
“Often [by the end of the week], we are so depleted that our rest looks more like recovery—sleeping for long hours and slothing around, too tired to do anything else,” Alexis Zahner, author and speaker on work-life and digital culture, tells Fast Company. “This often makes us feel like we’ve wasted the weekend.”
Instead, prioritize refilling your cup. That might look like a walk in nature, quality time with friends, or stepping away from screens.
“Avoid excessive technology use, especially on a Sunday evening,” Zahner says. “This will only prematurely stress you for the week ahead. Instead, read a book, do something creative, take time to cook a meal, or play an offline game with family and friends.”
A Sunday reset also shouldn’t take over your whole Sunday. “It’s important to avoid the urge to get a ‘head start’ on the working week,” Zahner notes. “This will only make the weekend feel shorter.”
Indeed, Sunday resets aren’t always positive. One in 10 of those surveyed by Amerisleep said that a Sunday reset actually increased their anxiety, while 43% said their Sunday reset is more about preparing for the workweek than enjoying time off. In addition, nearly 1 in 10 said that viewing reset content on social media made them feel like they’re “doing Sundays wrong.”
Lisane Basquiat, founder and CEO of Shaping Freedom, a personal growth organization and podcast, and a former corporate executive, says an effective Sunday reset is an opportunity to head off decision fatigue. Questions like “What am I going to eat?,” “What am I going to wear?,” and “When am I going to work out?” take up valuable brain real estate during the week.
“Contemplating these few questions provides two benefits,” Basquiat says. “Weekly life prep, and stepping into the demands of the week after putting yourself first.”
The most important step, however, is avoiding turning a Sunday reset into a job.
“People often see their Sunday reset as a start to their workweek. It isn’t,” she notes. “Your Sunday reset is the pause button between the busy and productive week you just accomplished, and the busy week to come.”
Or if you believe Sundays should remain as God intended . . . why not try a “French Sunday” instead?