Picture this, you’ve made it through another day of work, the clock hits 5pm and you’re dashing out the door to get home.
Once you get in, you cook up some tea, have a shower and struggle to get yourself out of ‘work mode’.
Your go-to chill session is to curl up on the couch and disassociate slightly whilst watching Netflix, right?
You might feel too tired or drained to do anything when you get in, or you don’t see the point in doing much on a midweek evening – we all relate to this!
Although, there are other things you can do to chill after work.
Find out within our blog post with 8 tips to help young professionals.
Why You Should Chill After Work
As you know, chilling after work is important to ensure you take time to focus on your personal life and have a good work-life balance.
But what are the other mental and physical benefits? Find out below.
- Helps reduce stress
- Reduces feelings of anxiety and depression
- Improves brain function and memory
- Lowers heart rate and blood pressure
- Improves sleep quality
- Reduces fatigue
- Lessens anger or frustration
- Makes you more productive
Tips For Chilling After A Busy Day
Do you struggle with being able to unwind and take time to chill after getting home from a busy day at work? You’re not the only one!
If that’s the case for you, don’t worry, we’ve put together 8 tips which will help you out.
1. Read A Book
As we mentioned earlier, watching telly is an easy way to chill after work, it’s simple and helps us escape into another world as we engage in our fave shows and films. Well, reading a book does the same!
It may require more concentration to get yourself into the story, but if you’re wanting to relax and unwind why not pick up a good read?
Studies suggest that stress levels can reduce by 68% when reading, especially fiction books.
Not only does reading help you de-stress, but you can learn new ideas and gain inspiration.
It’s especially good if you feel bored or lazy when you sit in front of the telly after work.
If you don’t feel like reading after work, perhaps because you have so much required reading to do daily for your job, then there’s nothing wrong with whacking on the TV either.
If it helps you chill out, then do it!
2. Go On A Walk Or Run
Another great way to chill after work is to go for a walk or run and get some fresh air.
We know, it can be hard to convince yourself to get out and about when you’re knackered after a busy day, but the benefits are worth it.
Not only will you feel happier when you fit in some exercise to your daily routine due to the release of endorphins, you’ll also feel less fatigued and have more energy to be productive in your free time.
We’re not saying you must spend ages exercising, but even a 10-minute walk or run will make a difference.
If you commute to work, you could take the long way home and walk a little further.
Taking the time to exercise and get out the house is especially good if you work remotely as it can be hard to unwind if your office space is also your home!
So, make sure you get out of the house at least once a day and do some physical activity if you’re able to, you’ll notice some positive changes.
3. Listen To Music Or A Podcast
Another way to relax when you get home from work is to listen to your favourite music, or if you’re fed up of the same old same old on your Spotify library, listen to a podcast instead.
Doing either of these things will help you unwind after a busy day before you hit the hay stack because they relieve stress and anxiety levels.
They can also help improve our moods and reduce the likelihood of suffering with burnout.
Whilst we know you probably learn enough at work, listening to a podcast can also make you more knowledgeable on a particular subject topic too!
The best part is, you can listen to music or a podcast on the go, so you could go for a walk or run with your headphones in – two bird’s and one stone as they say!
4. Make Plans With Friends
After a long day, making plans may feel like the worst idea and even more so when it’s mid week.
Instead, you may want a date with your couch, especially when the weather isn’t great.
Although, carving out time for your personal life and spending time with friends is important.
Why not bring in the chilled vibes and go out for a bite to eat with your pals when you leave work?
Or, make some plans for the weekend when you don’t have work the next day and catch up with some drinks.
You could even plan in a little weekend get-away!
You may not feel up for socialising after a busy working day, but leisure time can help you unwind and make you feel more connected to those in your life.
Plus, having a laugh with your mates is the best really, ain’t it?
5. Speak To Family & Friends
If you’re not able to make plans with family or friends after you finish work, perhaps because you live away, spend some time catching up with them over the phone or on social-media.
Putting in the time to speak to your loved ones is a great way to chill out and relax after work.
Whether it’s giving your parents a quick call to talk about what you’re making for tea, or chatting to a friend about something funny you’ve seen, sometimes you really just need to spark up conversations with people.
This is so important if you’re feeling overwhelmed!
If you’re a digital nomad, we’d really recommend taking some time to talk to people when you finish work, so you don’t feel isolated.
5. Unplug From Your Devices
Next up within our post on tips to chill after work is to unplug from your devices.
Sure, social-media can help us feel more connected to those around us and scrolling through TikTok can be super fun.
However, to fully re-charge your batteries after a busy day you need to try to reduce your screen time.
Think about it, if you use devices on a daily basis in work, and you get home and plonk yourself in front of the telly or scroll aimlessly on social-media, you’re not going to feel the most calming effect, are you?
Instead, opt to do more fulfilling activities which actually make you feel productive and help you switch off from stressors.
If you live in co-living accommodation, head down to the communal spaces within your building rather than sitting in your room on your laptop.
You’ll meet new people and keep yourself busy!
6. Take Up A New Hobby
As we’ve just discussed, reducing your screen time and finding more fulfilling activities to do are important to help you relax after work, and make you feel happier and more productive.
Some of the hobbies or interests you could take up include learning a new language on Duolingo, making jewelry, practicing your cooking skills or gaming to name a few. It really can be any activity that interests you!
If you spend a lot of your time during the week at work, you may feel like you don’t have enough hours in the day to do fun things, but try fitting in the time.
Even if it’s just fitting an hour a day to your schedule to do things you like doing, you’ll notice the benefits.
7. Practice Meditating
Next up on our list of ways to relax and chill after work is to practice meditating and breathing techniques.
Meditation helps relieve the tension and stress that builds up in our mind and body after a busy day.
Even meditating for 5-10 minutes can improve your mood, help you get a good night’s sleep and ensure you leave your stress at work, rather than bringing it home with you.
If you’re unsure how to incorporate meditating into your daily life, why not watch some online videos to help you?
We reckon one of the best ways to chill after work is to meditate with some relaxing aromas and essential oils – lavender is a godsend!
8. Have A Hot Shower Or Bath
Our final tip for chilling after work is to take a hot shower or bath.
If you’re anything like us, you don’t need anyone to tell you how good they are for helping you relax when you’ve got a lot on your mind.
Hot showers and baths really do wonders for our stress levels and it’s an essential step in our self-care routine, especially if you add in a bath bomb or epsom salts!
The science behind this is that the hot water and steam can relax both your thoughts and your muscles, due to your brain releasing a hormone called oxytocin.
They can also reduce your muscle tension and lower your blood pressure too.
You sleep better and feel more calm after taking a nice bath or shower – don’t you think?
Plus, you’ll feel better once your head hits the pillow!
That’s it, the end of our blog post on tips for bringing in the all-important chill vibes after a hard day of work.
We hope this guide has been useful for you!
What’s the best way for you to take a chill pill and relax after work? Let us know @weareoneliving.
Are you on the hunt for the perfect co-living accommodation close by to your place of work? Take a look at our One Living properties today.