The Stress Free Guide - Part 2

There is ample evidence that concentrating can be tiring, and that taking breaks from long stretches of sitting is essential to having the energy for optimal mental performance each day. How we alternate between controlled mental processes and automatic mental processes plays an important role in how the brain tires. But there are ways to influence your brain and build brain energy in order to feel good, perform better, and feel less stressed. Not everyone is aware that what they do during their leisure time can play a role in how the brain feels and performs. Having fun, exercising, and being outdoors are all things that positively affect our brain energy and how we feel.

Leisure time
What you do during your spare time affects the brain’s recovery. It may be spending time on a hobby, talking to a friend, or playing with your children. Recovery occurs when the brain does not need to make a cognitive effort, instead allowing it to react spontaneously and pleasurably. In other words: your leisure time should be fun. When we have too much to do in our everyday lives, we often cut back on the very activities that can assist in recovery. If you have too much to do, it is important to cut down on your working hours and pressures in order to find time for recovery.

Staying in nature
A simple way of allowing the brain to recover and to gather new energy is to spend some time outdoors. Research shows that being outdoors and spending time in green spaces can aid brain recovery as it stimulates our brain’s automated processes. Natural sounds like birds and water also have a restorative effect on our brain and a walk in the woods after work is a great way to unwind and recharge the brain. Try to resist using your cell phone and enjoy the moment.

Meditate
Today there is a lot of research about the beneficial effects meditation has on our health, stress levels, and concentration. Simply put, meditation is a way to focus on the here and now and to empty the mind. It also allows us to focus on what we ought to do more of everyday: be more attentive to our thoughts and learn to control what we focus on. Meditation, combined with deep and quiet breathing, is great if you are stressed. Stressed breathing is shallow and your body does not receive enough oxygen. You can gain health benefits from meditating for as little as 10 minutes a day, and to help you there is a wide range of meditation apps available.

Exercise
Physical exercise triggers processes in the brain that affect brain function and well-being. Many of these processes have an evolutionary background and have helped us survive. A clear example of the survival instinct is still apparent today after we have run for about an hour; many people get a feeling of lightness and euphoria. Many scientists agree that this is a function to encourage us to continue running in order to tire out our prey.

But you don’t have to run for miles and miles to have a positive effect on your brain. A brisk walk can suffice in increasing your heart rate. When the heart pumps faster, more oxygen is delivered to the blood, with the brain receiving more oxygen and increasing our alertness levels. When your heart rate increases, you become short of breath, secreting a hormone that has an impact on mood, concentration, and learning. Exercise also makes the brain more resilient by increasing the body’s basic levels of stress hormone secretion. There are several studies that show that daily exercise can have a major effect on our health from a ‘whole life’ perspective. Exercise also has an influence on our lifespan: people who run between two and three times a week can prolong their lives by between five and six years.