How To Use Your Lunch Break To Increase Work Productivity
Lunchtime breaks up the day and if used wisely allows you to return to work feeling refreshed, energized, and clear-minded. In fact, what you do (or don’t do) during your lunch break can easily dictate the rest of your day.
It’s a common misconception that to get more work done it’s better to plow straight through and continue working without taking a break. This often results in low productivity due to fatigue, stress, and unclear thought processes.
Being more strategic with what you do during your lunch break not only leads to you being more at productive it’s also a golden opportunity to add more health, wellness, and balance in your life. There is a lot of good you can create in one hour built over a daily basis. By choosing to not take a lunch break or to just sit at your desk eating and surfing the internet is a wasted opportunity to do something beneficial for yourself.
As a big believer in taking lunch breaks, I’ve been able to excel at my daily work tasks while also getting fit and healthy on the side. Here are some lunch break ideas and activities that helped me create more productivity and will work for you too.
Meditate.
Just as we take a shower to clean our body, meditation is an ideal way to clean our mind. Whether it’s through simple breathing exercises or using a focus point technique, meditation allows us to clear the subconscious junk in our mind such as worries, past traumatic events, and negative thoughts.
During your lunch break find a park or somewhere quiet where you can spend 10 – 30 minutes to sit still and focus on your breath, listen to a guided meditation, or focus on an object while reciting an affirmation.
Exercise.
Exercise boosts our serotonin levels and pumps us full of happy chemicals. This elevates our mood and provides us with more focus which leads to better quality work. If you have a shower available at your workplace go for a run or bike ride out in nature. Alternatively you can hit the gym and do a spin class or pump some iron.
Getting your heart rate up at lunchtime increases your fitness, burns away stress and clears your mind so you can work more efficiently. Lunchtime exercise is also a good way to add activity to a sedentary lifestyle focused around sitting at desks and in front of a computer all day.
Join a yoga class.
Yoga not only strengthens and stretches our physical body, it also calms the mind, reduces stress, and slows down our thoughts. Many yoga studios offer 45-minute lunchtime classes, so you still have time to grab lunch before you return to work in a calmer and clearer state.
Drink a green juice.
Before you eat your lunch drink a freshly squeezed organic green juice or find a high quality cold pressed version. The infusion of vitamins, minerals, and enzymes will give you an energy boost, allowing you to get more focused, efficient, and productive. Drink a green juice any time during your work day when you need an instant brain boost. Choose a green juice over coffee or sugar-laden snacks and notice the difference.
Go on a gratitude walk.
Making a daily list of what you are grateful for will change your life. The energy behind being appreciative of what you already have opens you up to receive more of what you want. Find a park, area with water, or walk down the street and make mental notes of everything you are grateful for in life. Whether it’s the weather, having a safe roof over your head, or a fulfilling career, being in gratitude elevates your mood and allows you to be more happy and productive when you return to work.
Featured photo credit: Tim Gouw via unsplash.com
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