Have you noticed how busyness has become a marker of success? A packed calendar, a ‘5-9 before your 9-5’, all romanticised and seen as indicators of thriving. Sometimes my friends and I will laugh about struggling to find one evening or day in a whole month when we’re all free at the same time to meet up. Walk through a tube station on any given day and find yourself swept up in a stream of people rushing to get to where they need to be. But I’ve really learnt the importance of rest this year. Burnout is so common and it’s definitely something I’ve struggled with while juggling work, quality time with loved ones, staying healthy and making time for hobbies. I wrote about being in a transition period over on my substack and it has got me thinking about how to include rest in my routine to avoid burnout.
Types of rest
When someone asks me what I’m doing at the weekend and I don’t have plans I sometimes find it difficult to say ‘nothing’. I actually don’t think downtime means doing nothing. Sometimes a weekend on the sofa watching rom-coms might be exactly what you need but, for me, rest looks like a lot of different things. It could be going for a run, switching off to work on a hobby, reading, getting outside for a walk or spending time with others. Finding what recharges you and prioritising that is the key to feeling more balanced.
My perfect Friday night looks like a run or gym work out, cleaning my space and cooking a nice meal. It might sound boring to some but starting the weekend feeling fresh is an unmatched feeling. It also means I show up energised and excited to see my loved ones when I do have plans, instead of tired and thinking about all the other things I should be doing. Scheduling in downtime is important but spending time with others is a reset too, which brings me to…
Being intentional
In my early twenties I’d often find myself thinking ‘Why am I here?’ Being intentional with your time means doing things because you want to and bringing your best self. It takes really getting to know what you enjoy doing to be able to do this. For me this has come with age I know myself far better at 27 than I did at 22, and also being lucky enough to find people that share my favourite activities; a long walk with a coffee and cake stop, a meal out, a cinema trip or gallery date. That’s not to say that there won’t be times when you have to do things you don’t want to for the sake of others, or that you should never get out of your comfort zone and try something different. It’s all about balance and being able to say no when you need to.
Sitting with feelings
The society we live in conditions us to always be doing. Resisting this can bring up all sorts of feelings of guilt, FOMO, restlessness and boredom. Sitting with those feelings, treating yourself as you would a friend and reminding yourself that you are more than your productive output helps to let go of this idea of being ‘always on’. Meditation, journalling and embracing mindfulness can also help you to be present in the moment instead of worrying about what you think you should be doing.
Listening to your body
As a runner, this has become extra important to me in the last year where I’ve been working towards hitting big running goals. When following a training plan it’s easy to feel you should tick every planned run off but ignoring injury or illness is only going to set you back. I’ve also read a lot about how the hormonal cycle impacts energy levels – something that is not talked about in women’s sport nearly enough but is fascinating. This reflects in my training where I’ll want to do less intensive exercise, like yoga or swimming, and dial down the miles when my energy levels dip. The general rule I follow now is if I don’t think it’ll make me feel better, I’m not going to force it. This applies to non-runners too – your body knows best, try and tune in to what it’s saying.
I’d love to know how you include rest in your every day? Particularly in the busy run up to Christmas!
