Don’t worry, don’t worry–so is working out!
But, just like you schedule your workouts, and have worked HARD to incorporate physical activity into your life, I think there’s always room to ask:
When do you rest?
…is it truly restorative? Is it stressful? Does your rest day consist of you taking care of a million little things, running from work to errands to making dinner quickly to other activities you feel obligated to attend?
This is something I think about frequently these days. Especially during our Destress Quest back in June, I noticed just how non-peaceful my bedtime routine had been prior to the Quest (we unplugged our phones and electronics one hour prior to bedtime). Oh yeah, buddies, there was a REASON to the madness… I needed to destress, too!
After the challenge ended, my phone came back into the nighttime. Back to checking facebook, back to reading articles, playing chicken with myself if I really want to check that new e-mail… etc. etc. I’ve realized that if my bedtime routine is so easily slanted away from restoration and rest… well, how about the days I set aside to be more restorative and relaxing in general? The ones where I’m not chipping away at new skills in the gym? My so called “rest days”?
Here’s one thing to think about. Rest days aren’t just about the physical, giving our muscles a break. Our minds are housed within our physical bodies, and guess what? They need rest days, too. Yes, like the weekends. But it might be time to check yourself…
You’ve got a gym routine integrated into your lifestyle (and that’s mega cool), but here’s the next step: what’s your NON-gym routine like?
Here are some ideas for more restorative rest days–on the days you aren’t coming into the gym, either for crossfit or mobility or what have you:
- Replace 15 minutes of that hour dedicated to working out to meditate. Have you tried the Headspace app yet?
- Take your dog for a walk. Have an anxious dog that makes you tense when you walk? Ok, walk them around the block, but then take yourself for a walk. Practice noticing what’s happening around you. How does it smell outside? What do you hear? What do you feel?
- Take your lunch break away from your desk–and without a screen.
- Take a lunch break, period!
- Assess what your downtime looks like. How are you spending it? No judgement, just noticing.
- Listen to a favorite tune, during any part of the day. Notice how you feel both before and after the song.
- Take time to do nothing. Really. Honestly. Let your mind wander. Do this under a tree. Do it on your couch. Do it somewhere that inspires you.
- Go somewhere you haven’t been in a while–take yourself out of your routine. Check out the new exhibit at the MIA, go to lake Nokomis, walk around a different neighborhood. It doesn’t have to be fancy.
What do you think? What are your rest days like? Are you running around all day, filling that hour of physical activity (an adaptive stressor) with maybe a maladaptive stressor? Are you just fine? Do you take time to yourself? What happens when you do?