What can I do to prepare for a day or two in advance? I'm basically asking what can I do if I sacrifice a whole day to make the day or two ahead better? Or how about two days sacrificed to make the next couple days/week better?
Rigidly schedule your plans, set up a compact regimen of all your responsibilities in the workweek (informing everyone else as well) and work in some recreation as well.
I have a friend who cleans, does laundry and cooks all his food for the week in one day and puts it all in the fridge, he calls it the shit day. Basically pick a day and do everything you don't want to do.