6 Ways to Recharge During Your Next Day Off

Long nights and weekends in the office can really take their toll and drain your energy and productivity. Just like our phones, we need to be recharged when our battery is low. But the good news is, you have a day off!

While we all love a day off, very few of us are actually making the most of them. We typically pack them so full that we barely have time to think about what comes next, or we avoid all of our responsibilities to binge-watch that show all of our coworkers have been raving about. And while these types of days are inevitable, they won’t leave us feeling recharged and ready to conquer the next day. Instead, the day often feels wasted.

That’s why in this post, we are arming you with the tools you need to make the most out of your days off, to feel more refreshed, and to set yourself up for more productive days. Here are six ways to help you recharge and rejuvenate during your next day off:

Wake-up Naturally

Sometimes the best gift you can give yourself is more quality sleep.

Most day of the week, you set your alarm, and when it starts to buzz, you quickly hit snooze and hope that those few extra minutes of sleep will help you conquer your day. But on your day off, give yourself an alarm break. Take a few moments each night to turn the alarms off.

You might be thinking, well, how can I do that when the children need breakfast? While it isn’t always easy to skip the alarm when you have children, there are still ways to achieve this. Let your partner know that you are feeling drained and could use some extra sleep. You could even offer to handle morning duties on your next day off so that your partner can get some extra sleep.

Plan for “Deliberate Rest”

When we think about resting, usually the first thing that comes to mind is laying on the couch and binge-watching that new show you’ve wanted to watch. And while we all love time in front of the television, we sometimes find ourselves feeling guilty toward the end of the day for not being productive. Sound familiar?

That’s why we want to encourage you to start practicing deliberate rest. But what is it? Deliberate rest means engaging in activities or hobbies that actively engage your mind. While that may sound like a terrible idea when you feel like your brain is already feeling sluggish, learning new skills or hobbies will help you focus on the thing in front of you instead of your current stresses. It gives your mind a much-needed break.

Say No to Chores and Tasks

Most of us use our days off to catch up on the chores and tasks we don’t have time for during the week. But leaving these tasks to our days off can take all of our free-time away and leave us feeling like we never get a chance to relax. It will leave us longing for our next day off. While we would all love to just quit doing our errands and chores, it really isn’t practical. But, there are a few ways to get these tasks done without having them eat away at all of your free time.

The key to having more time on your day off is rearranging your weekly schedule to take care of most of the chores and errands during the week. This isn’t always easy to do, but consider stopping by the grocery store on your way home from work, spend a little time each night to take care of some pesky chores, and try to set yourself up for more fun during your days off.

Some of us may be able to make this work easily, but not everyone. Family commitments or unexpected late nights in the office can completely sabotage the week. If you find this happening frequently but still want more time for fun and relaxation, consider hiring a personal assistant to take care of all the tasks you don’t have time for. To learn more about LifeSquire personal assistant service, click here.

Get Outdoors and Move Around

You’ve probably heard or have even said that nature is good for the soul, so now is the time to start embracing it.

Use some of your time off to get outdoors, soak up some vitamin D, and get some low-stress exercise. Consider going to a local park for a hike or taking your pup for an extra-long walk. The key is to try to reconnect to nature, so leave the headphones at home and listen to the sounds around you, focus on your surroundings, and forget about work.

If the weather doesn’t permit, even getting out of the city for a long drive can be beneficial. Turn down the radio and crack open the windows or sunroof if you can.

Unplug and Disconnect

Studies have shown that using our phones even just to mindlessly scroll through social media can induce stress, whether we feel it right away or not. That’s why you always read about how important it is to take time to disconnect.

When you decide to disconnect, don’t think that you have put your phone away for a long period of time. Even a few hours can have outstanding benefits. So make it a goal each day off to take time away from your phone and other forms of technology.

Don’t Do Any Work

With all of the advanced technology in our world, it’s harder than ever to leave work. Sure, we may leave the building, but we don’t actually ever disconnect when our coworkers are messaging us, or we check our email throughout the day and night.

The best way to fully recharge on your day off is to not do any work at all. You might be thinking, I don’t do that now but think about that five minutes after dinner you used to check your email, or how you forgot to approve timecards, so you need to log-on real fast, or your notifications led you to check a message a coworker sent about a big project you’ve been working on. Even though doing this may not feel like working, you are putting yourself back into work-mode, and you’re constantly tethered to the office.

When it’s time for a “me day,” make sure you leave all of your work-related devices in the office and turn off any notifications for work-related apps. You’ll recharge your batteries, fight-off burnout, and return to the office feeling refreshed.

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Reading all of these tips may feel a little overwhelming at first, and we don’t expect you to do it all in one day. Instead, start implementing one or two things into your day until you can manage most or all of them.