#Foititips: 3 breaks you need to take every day!
Based on the original text in Greek by Eleni Vasilopoulou
Translated by Maria Oikonomou
What we know about time
Nowadays, one of the most valuable things in life is time, which is earned only with short breaks. Practically, time can determine our day. But how is it related to our energy? Study has shown that human energy levels vary during the day and the time we have to do something affects our energy and therefore our performance. A typical finding of the study is that people have more energy at 8 o’ clock in the morning, probably because of caffeine. Gradually, however, and during the day, our energy levels decrease.
Do we need to take breaks?
However, another finding of the same study showed that just 5 minutes climbing stairs, increase our energy for more than an hour, thus helping our productivity and mood. Our mind will inevitably take breaks, in order to cope with things that we need to do. What would be more helpful are the short breaks during the day, as they stimulate our energy and we feel less tired. There are three kind of breaks we need to take and you will find them below.
The three basic breaks you need to take
Physical breaks
A walk in the neighborhood, a walk with the dog, running, jump rope, weight training. Anything that will help your body release stress and give the signal of relaxation to your brain.
Social breaks
The second one is the social break. The interaction with your social environment will be a change of scenery, which will help you to decompress from obligations, deadlines and anything else that your everyday life includes. This could be a coffee with a co-worker, a lunch with your partner and children, if you have one, or a phone call with a friend or relative you want to talk to.
Spiritual breaks
It may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you realize you need a break but it is just as important as the previous ones. Thoughts and behavior are directly related and therefore what makes you tired physically, inevitably, will affect your spirit or soul as well. Many spiritual activities can fit into a workday, meditation is the primary and the best one. Also reading a book, listening to music, engaging in anything that connects you to your spiritual self. An unexpected, but equally important, spiritual break is silence. Absolute silence, isolated from sounds like cars, music and even conversations, is essential during the day to protect your mental health.
Choose the kind of breaks that suits you
You can choose any of the above that you believe that suits you the best and adapt it to your daily schedule. The breaks can be short as, according to another study, breaks of 1.5 and 9 minutes are proved to be equally helpful. Surely we can all find 60 seconds to devote to ourselves during the day. After all, social media users spend an average of 2 hours a day on these sites even during work. Although this occupation is considered a break, it would be better to make a wise choice and not an occasional. Invest in your personal energy starting with one of the above.