Nobody knows the secret to modern happiness, but the first step seems to lie in getting your work/life balance in order.
With such demanding and hectic work schedules, many of us struggle to not only find free time but make the most of it when we do.
You can’t hope to move up the career ladder or find fulfilment in your work without some unwinding time to balance it out though. So, what are some of the best ways to unwind in 2020 and how do they work?
Challenge yourself by playing games
Games as a method of unwinding are nothing new, they’ve always been a way to rest your body and keep your mind sharp. It might be more relaxing to watch TV all night, but it doesn’t keep you engaged or demand attention quite like a competitive game.
Whether it’s traditional board games with a partner or roommate or modern video games, both are brilliant ways of disconnecting from work and enjoying the evening. Best of all, the advent of technology and the internet has given us more ways to challenge ourselves with puzzles and explore exotic worlds with our friends, virtually or in-person.
Online casinos such as 32Red have also emerged in recent years as great places for those with a competitive edge who need to feel an adrenaline rush to really wind down to make the most of their evenings. Whether it’s 32Red or one of its many competitors, avid and first-time gamblers can find great new ways to play classic games such as slot machines, poker or blackjack against genuine players.
A different way to disconnect from the trials of a working day, but an exciting one that might just make your pockets a little heavier.
Give yourself a full-body workout
Sometimes a day in the office can feel like a real workout.
You get home and your whole body aches. You want nothing more than to lie down in front of the TV for a couple of hours until it’s time to go to bed. The cycle begins all over again and you never feel truly refreshed.
It could be that relaxing is the last thing you need to really unwind from work, and a full-body workout could be just the solution.
Rather than heading straight home and wasting hours staring at your phone, take a detour to the gym and get a much-needed workout in to wind the day down. Much like casino games, if you’re a bit of an adrenaline junkie who needs to feel pressure to unwind, exercise will be perfect for you.
Lifting weights and running on the treadmill not your thing? Maybe you should consider more relaxing forms of exercise, such as yoga. Yoga and it’s many offshoots are perfect for not just getting a more toned, flexible physique but clearing your mind and giving you better control of your own breathing. It’s like a fresh start for your body.
Don’t scoff at the idea of a relaxing evening spent working up a sweat. It might just be the most satisfying way to wind down in the long run.
Step outside of your tech bubble
Surrounding ourselves with static and blue light day in, day out does more damage to our health than we might expect.
After a long day at a desk staring into a screen or constantly talking on the phone, the last thing you should look to do to help yourself unwind is browse Twitter for four straight hours. Too much exposure to blue light (the kind emitted from smartphones) has already been shown to negatively affect sleeping patterns according to the Sleep Foundation. Are you really unwinding if you feel worse afterwards?
To really unwind from work you need to completely disconnect yourself from it. Once you get home ignore all emails, lock your work social media accounts and resist the urge to watch hours and hours of YouTube clips.
Step outside of the tech bubble. That can mean literally going out for evenings walks (or weekend hikes for more long term unwinding) or even something as simple as reading a good book or training a creative skill. Anything to get you away from technology and it’s constant, draining hum for a few hours.
Invest time into cooking a good meal
Our working lives don’t exactly make it easy, but on the whole, we have pretty bad eating habits as a society.
How often have you walked past a fast-food restaurant on the way home and decided that actually, you can’t be bothered to cook tonight? While it’s good to treat yourself every now and then, it’s a slippery cycle to find yourself in and a bad way to perk yourself up after a hard day at work.
Cooking is like a form of therapy. Stop thinking of eating well as just a journey to turning heads in the gym and look at it as an enjoyable process to help you wind down in the evening. Maybe start with a vegetarian dish using ingredients recommended by us here at Feast.
For many, there’s nothing more therapeutic than chopping vegetables, finding new combinations and making sure the seasoning is just right. The satisfaction of seeing those ingredients come out as something fully formed and delicious is more satisfying than any greasy burger.
Cooking is such a good way to unwind because it gives you a purpose and a focus. It’s like a more relaxed version of work, with much more instant results. Gather up the ingredients, stick on a good podcast and get to work developing your own speciality.
So there you have it, four brilliant ways that working people can unwind once the daily grind is done. Find what works for you and fit it into your work and social schedules for a more relaxed and fulfilling existence.
