Strategies For a Healthy Work Break

Depending on what your occupation is and if you work full-time, by law you are allowed a certain amount of time during your workday to take a break.

A work break is not only a chance to rejuvenate physically and mentally, but research has also shown they can be beneficial for your work performance.

As our work environments continue to evolve, it's important we continue to take quality breaks during the day whether you are working remotely or in a traditional workspace.

Why Taking Breaks Is Good For You

Experts with Psychology Today say that breaks can replenish the mental battery the becomes depleted from working hard, which can boost your energy and improve your work performance.

Even short breaks throughout your day can enhance your mental resources and increase the amount and quality of attention you devote to your work.

These breaks can be especially beneficial when performing a particularly tedious task as experts have found that our ability to focus and persist through the task becomes more and more difficult as time goes on.

This is likely unsurprising for many of us since we can often feel ourselves getting tired or drained during our day, even while completing tasks we love. However, not all breaks are created equal, and it is almost just as important to take a rewarding break as it is to take a break at all.

What Should We Do During Our Breaks?

The work break has historically been synonymous with the lunch break. It's afforded workers the chance to grab a bite to eat and perhaps catch up with their coworkers.

While these tasks are beneficial to you in different ways, it's also key that during your work break you achieve psychological detachment from your work. This means disengaging from your work thoughts. This shift in your focus helps us naturally recover from the fatigue work often causes us.

Additionally, strive to experience or work on something positive during your break. This can be done many ways but here are some tasks that may help.

• Meditate: Whether you prefer guided mediations or to simply sit quietly by yourself, meditation helps clear your mind and detach from work.
• Exercise: Try taking a short walk outside of your workspace, if possible, or start a new workout routine. This will help increase blood flow and give you a sense of accomplishment.
• Play a Game: Not only do games help us divert our focus away from our work tasks, but they also give us a positive sense of achievement.
• Learn Something New: Take your break to focus on learning a craft or a new language. This can boost your self-confidence while also helping you detach from work.

Other tasks you may consider are reading, completing a puzzle or sitting outside in nature. The amount of time you have for your break does not necessarily correspond to the quality of your break, but what you do with that time is most important.