There will be times when all those mundane and monotonous chores can leave us feeling exhausted and overwhelmed. Continuous and strenuous routines can damage our mental health extensively and make us feel disconnected entirely to ourselves and our surroundings. Days become gloomy, procrastination starts kicking in, and we finally, are at the brink of burnout.
While it is not always possible to escape from our regular duties, we can, however, put an effort to unplug from them now and then. There are plenty of productive activities you can include in your daily schedules and stay active throughout the day. On a side note, apart from extensive work, staying idle for long hours and boredom can also make you lazy and inactive. Whatever be the case, giving yourself a little burst of energy by doing new things is never a bad deal.
Physical Workout
Working out, whether at a gym or in your room, is probably one of the best activities to keep you both physically and mentally active. Dedicate a couple of minutes daily to stretch, jump, and skip to energize yourself for the rest of the day. A study by Briston University claims that people who exercise regularly are found to be 21% more productive at work.
You don’t need to have those fancy gym wear or branded equipment, grab a corner at your terrace, balcony, or in your cosy room and get going with some burpees or jumping jacks. You can even do yoga or Zumba through the music beats to fight away all the stress and blues.
Online games
Online games can also be a great way to cope with unproductive days and boost your brain to work actively. A colossal of games are available across the web that can be accessed easily through your smartphones. Whether it is a casual mystery game or a multi-player arcade, like Clash of clans, spending a little time playing games has proven records of improving productivity and reducing stress.
For instance, online rummy, poker the age-old cards game is known to enhance your cognitive skills and promote overall brain development. When you play rummy, you are continually thinking about your opponent’s moves while planning your next card display; which, in turn, is improving your concentration, memory power, and analytical skills. Moreover, with platforms like the MPL, an arena for almost all types of gaming genres, online games are at just a click away.
Reading/journaling
Inculcating a habit to read books is a beautiful retreat for your brain. Pick up fiction, non-fiction, sci-fi, self-help, or romance; anything of your interest is great to start from. With time, you won’t even realize how quickly you transitioned from reading a couple of pages in a day to swiftly finishing a book a day. Reading can be extremely addictive, a fantastic stress buster, and a great tool to enhance productivity.
In addition to reading books, journaling your day to day life is also an effective medium to de-clutter unnecessary thoughts from your mind. Once your brain is drained off all that is causing stress, it is empowered to work actively throughout the day. A fresh breath of early morning air and a diary to release the mental clutter is a beautiful combination to kick start a productive day.
Gardening
Being close to nature can do wonders for your mental health. And what could be better than growing all those greens in your backyard? Gardening or planting is a beautiful activity to uplift your mood and recharge all those productivity hormones in your brain. Plant seeds of all your favourite veggies, fruits, herbs, or flowers and watch them grow elegantly.
Don’t have a backyard? Then get going with vertical or indoor gardening ideas. Plenty of resources are available online to help you make your little garden of all your favourite plants.
Cooking
Roll out those chapattis and chop away the veggies, a mix-n-match of spices, and a delightful meal is ready. Cooking can serve as a great escape from your mundane routine. Hectic schedules have limited our lives to restaurant take-aways. Hence, putting a little effort into the kitchen will give you, both a healthy meal and a therapeutic experience. Don’t hesitate to surf through all the cooking videos and get to making cuisines from all around the world.
Learning new skills
Limiting yourself to do what seems to be comforting and easy can hinder your brain’s immense capacity to do wonders. Pushing yourself to learn additional skills for mere fun and recreation is essential to stay productive and active in the long run.
Singing, dancing, playing musical instruments, blogging, learning a new language, or practising yoga, the list is long to choose from. Grab hold of a niche that interests you the most and add it to your schedule. It will not only be super fun but also helps to discover your new self which you might have never found before.
Bonus tip – Put mobile notifications on silence
It requires a lot of effort, discipline, and interest to add a new activity to your everyday routine. Your desire to boost your productivity may be extreme, but it takes time to get away from distractions and work on your new to-do list. A little beep of notifications on your mobile, laptop, or PC can drive your focus elsewhere. So help yourself and put those notifications on silent mode to enjoy your time doing productive and healthy activities.
Takeaway – Stay Active and Stay healthy
In times where it is impossible to stay away from all the daily hustle and struggle, it becomes incredibly crucial to sneak in a couple of minutes for your mental and physical health. Stress, depression, anxiety, and many other such mental disorders can affect your life if you always surround yourself with repetitive work activities. Letting yourself free to indulge in some new pursuits for pure fun will keep your mind working productively. So, add some spice to your life and enjoy all the changes it brings along.
