7 Simple ways to relax at work!

Workplace stress is something we’ve all experienced, it often comes part and parcel with working. However, sometimes stress at work can pile on to a person and result in serious mental health issues. Therefore, it’s important that employees and employers alike are aware that relaxation at work is important for good health as well as allowing workers to be at their best.

Relaxing shouldn’t just be a case of just not doing work, relaxation and work can go hand in hand and work as a balance. It’s actually really easy to introduce relaxation into your daily work.

We’ve come up with seven simple things you or your employees can do daily to take the stress out of work and relax into it.

Breaks

One of the easiest and most obvious ways to de-stress at work is to take a break. Taking your mind off of your workload for a short amount of time can help your mind to declutter and you can return to your work with a clearer head, allowing you to tackle it better.

At most workplaces everyone will get a set amount of time for a break, such as an hour for lunch, so use this time to get away from your work and clam yourself. If you find yourself getting increasingly stressed throughout the day, then maybe separate your one break into smaller breaks or speak to your boss about being allowed extra breaks during the day.

Healthy snacks

There are certain types of food that can help you to combat stress, from avocados to oatmeal to oranges. So if you are experiencing workplace stress it is a good idea to start thinking about what you eat during the day, having lots of junk food makes you feel good in the moment but may actually be causing your stress to intensify.

Carefully plan what you are going to eat for your lunch to maximize those relaxed feelings. Think about what you can snack on during the day if you get peckish at your desk that can help soothe and revitalize you.

Calming drinks

Relaxation isn’t just about what you eat, you can also help yourself relax with a drink. Obviously drinking plenty of water is important to keep you hydrated and happy, so make sure you drink enough throughout the day. To combat stress and calm yourself, a nice hot drink during the day is ideal.

The best hot beverage to be drinking is herbal or green tea. While a hot coffee can be soothing and is many people’s work drink of choice to keep them alert, the caffeine can make you jittery, which isn’t very relaxing. Regular tea bags also have a small amount of caffeine in them so while they are better than coffee, they are still not ideal for relaxation.

Listen to music

Sometimes the stress of being at work can be amplified by your surroundings, the noise and the feeling of being in an office or whatever your workplace can add extra pressure or distract you. For this reason, relaxing into your work can be achieved by switching off from your surroundings using calming music.

It’s easy to find music or background sounds on the internet that you can play to help transport your mind to another place and work in peace. Pop your headphones in and let the music take you away and make you calm. Just remember to be aware that your colleagues may need to talk to you from time to time so don’t switch off too much.

Walking

Another way to cope with the stress that your workplace surroundings may cause is to leave them. Take the time on a break to go outside and walk around, going to a new location and getting some fresh air can help you to forget about work for a short time and bring on some much-needed relaxation.

Getting the exercise from walking can also help get some blood pumping around your brain which can help you with ideas when you come back to your work, it’s a win-win situation.

Conversation

There’s a common saying that teamwork makes the dream work, and that can be applied to relaxation. Sometimes the best way to relax yourself is to take some time to have a chat with your co-workers, you can have a little fun and help each other to relax.

If you are able to multitask you can chat at the same time as doing your work, just make sure not to distract everyone else too much. Even chatting about work and getting advice or help from colleagues is a great way to take the stress out of it. If you don’t want to or can’t talk to your co-workers for whatever reason, why not call up an available friend or family member during a break for a relaxing chin-wag.

Meditation

Finally, a brilliant way to combat stress and relax in the workplace is to practice meditation. This may seem like a bit of a daunting task, but meditation doesn’t have to be about sitting cross-legged on a yoga matt and saying ommm.

We’ve spoken before about how to easily meditate at work so make sure to check that blog post out for more information on how to use meditation to relax into your work.

Relaxing doesn’t mean being lazy. It means clearing your mind and having a calm and clear attitude to your situation, which is perfect for effective work. Follow our tips and you should be able to create a relaxing work environment for yourself as well as for your colleagues.