When’s the last time you took some time for yourself? Hell, when’s the last time you got a good night’s sleep?
In December 2009, Science Magazine had an article about this, where it cited a study by two researchers from the Harvard Business School that showed that taking time off increased productivity, communication, job satisfaction, and a number of other benefits.
In my mind, I can break what we do into two general pieces. There are things we have to do and things we want to do. The things we have to do are usually not very enjoyable like going to work. Because we have to do these things, they tend to create pressure situations, raising stress levels. The more time you’re exposed to those pressure situations, the more that stress will go up. Stress is associated with plenty of documented health problems.
I feel like down time is doing the things you want to do, the things you’re passionate about. Reading, listening to music, working out,
There are also other benefits to taking time off from whatever you’re doing. People familiar with strength training have no doubt heard of a deload. A deload usually works in conjunction with a program built on increasing the training load, either raising weight or volume. Obviously, this can’t continue indefinitely and trying to do it that way is definitely not smart. By planning time off, you can reduce the physiological stress and recover from fatigue. A deload can either be doing some sort of active recovery or just staying out of the gym altogether. During this time, the muscles continue to rebuild.
This same process applies to how the brain works, a brief description of which appears in this article from MIT’s Sloan Review entitled The Neurological and Creative Toll of Digital Overload. When you’re working on something, taking time off from it solidifies those neural connections. Better connections means better retention. From the article, it also looks like it may increase neurological health.
I tend to notice a big difference in myself and my attitude when I’m able to get away. It doesn’t even necessitate a vacation, just a little bit of time. I used to check my email on my phone when I wasn’t near a computer and then I realized that was stupid. During my 12 day vacation, I logged into my work account once to look up some information. I enjoyed my vacation immensely because there wasn’t any time spent wondering whether there was anything new in there. It’s a very liberating feeling.
I still have problems with taking enough time for me. There’s always some sort of to do list laying around. Something needs cleaned or some errand needs run. It’s something I haven’t quite mastered yet but I’m working on it by being self monitoring and self correcting. I’ve worked out a handful of small steps I can take to keep it going.
- Unplug for at least an hour before bed; put the computer and phone away and read
- Take time twice a week (at least an hour) to sit, close my eyes, and just listen to music
- Spend more time walking and playing with my dog
I think that each of these things can be considered active recovery, in a sense. They’re not completely passive activities but they’re also not very intense, either physically or mentally. In addition to just being things I should probably do anyway, I expect it to have a multitude of benefits including better focus and a better sense of well being.
Of course, any benefit I may get isn’t anything that can be measured and so it might just be a placebo. Sometimes, however, we should take a win any way we can.
