The end of the academic year is nearing and Sport & Rec blogger Emma Paidra wants to remind you about the importance of recovery from mental exertion - with brain breaks and physical activity.
It’s the final push to the end of the academic year, which means burnout is pretty much inevitable. As we all put in the hours to make it to finish up the semester, it can be easy to forget about something that none of us can go without…recovery. Whether you’ve been hitting the books or heading out for a jog as a study break, properly recovering will carry you farther than you might think.
When it comes to mental recovery, it can be useful to take short brain breaks. Not only is a short break likely to boost your move, but it will also help with creativity. So, if you have been trying to come up with a thesis for the last 45 minutes to no avail, don’t be afraid to take a step away from your desk. Time management also plays an important role in brain breaks. Instead of budgeting multiple consecutive hours for work, and only a brief amount of time afterwards for recovering from all that mental exertion, try to plan short breaks along the way.
Another great way to step away from your desk is through physical activity. If you’re using workouts, walks, or jogs as a way to recalibrate after so much time in front of a screen, though, remember that recovery is also a key component of physical movement. It may not seem like much, but stretching will keep your muscles from progressively tightening each time you use them. Sitting in a char all day—as I’m sure many of us have been doing—can cause tightening in the hamstrings, too. So, whether you’re getting those active minutes in or not, stretching would be a valuable addition to your day.
In fact, combining physical recovery with mental recovery by taking brain breaks to stretch could be a useful way to refresh. Building a new habit is tough, though, and finding time to stretch and properly recover may not be an easy task. Beyond using brain breaks for stretching, my personal recommendation for fitting a stretching session into the day is to stretch right before bed or first thing in the morning.
Though it may not seem like it right now, the semester will be over sooner than later. Along the way to the conclusion of the academic year, make sure to properly recover and refresh from all the hard work you put in this term. We all deserve a little relaxation, after all!