Lisa Barlow Swears by This Surprising Self-Care Habit

E!: What makes cleaning the ultimate feel-good activity for you?
LB: I think it makes you feel like you can decompress. You can gather your thoughts, think through things, and process everything. I love to mentally organize while I’m cleaning.

For me, clean feels amazing. And I think when you’re crazy busy, you want to come home and have your space feel like a refuge from everything, and a clean house always makes you feel that way.

E!: Let’s talk more about your cleaning habits and rituals.
LB: I’m a nighttime cleaner—I wait until everyone goes to bed, and then I go through and make sure the baseboards are perfect, the bathrooms are clean, the kitchen countertops are spotless, and the tables and common areas are all in order. And then, I love making sure my bathroom feels like a sanctuary. 

E!: How do you instill the importance of cleanliness and self-care in your sons as they grow up?
LB: I’ve really instilled the importance of cleaning to them. I’ll say, “Someday you’re going to have kids, someday you’re going to have a wife, and you want to make sure you’re clean and that you’re an asset in the house, not the one making all the messes.”