Day Twenty Three - Nutrition
“Time isn’t the main thing. It’s the only thing.” Miles Davis
Today's challenge is to take a restorative break. If you are a morning person like me, you are likely to be more vigilant and productive at the start of the day, and as the day progresses, this may begin to wain unless you take a break.
As knowledge workers, this drop in vigilance translates into a loss of productivity, but it can be far more serious in other industries. Take, for example, a study of handwashing across three dozen US hospitals in 2015 using data from sanitizing dispensers equipped with radio frequency identification to communicate with the chips on employee badges. Researchers monitored 4000 caregivers to understand handwashing as the day progressed, and they found that handwashing decreased in the afternoon as much as 38%.1
The results of this simple hand washing experiment is are known as a decline in vigilance, so what might we learn from this to help make our days a productive as possible:
Add breaks to your task list. Identify and schedule three breaks into your working day.
Consider a nap. A 20-minute nap can provide a measurable boost in alertness and mental function.
Restorative breaks. There five types of breaks that might help you restore according to the Time Hackers Handbook called Microbreaks they are short, but they can pay dividends2
20:20:20 eye rule, water break, or standing break, which are all under 60 seconds in duration.
Movement breaks. Increasing we are becoming more sedentary, try taking a 5-minute walk every hour or even try marching on the spot for 60 seconds.
Nature breaks. Walk outside, go outside or pretend your outside, natures restorative power is a beautiful thing.
Social breaks. Connect with a friend in person, virtually, or on the phone.
Mental gear shifting breaks. Meditation, diaphragmatic breathing, singing, or laughter all help engage the parasympathetic system.
So, what three breaks will you plan today?
Reference
The impact of time at work and time off work. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Micro breaks matter www.researchgate.net
Further reading
Read: When: The scientific secrets of perfect timing. Daniel H Pink 2018
Listen: Tim Ferris / Daniel Pink the-tim-ferris-show
Watch: Daniel Pink www.youtube.com
** Disclaimer – Part of the Build Your Ideal Day Program – 30 Day challenge by Duncan Young. All content and media on the Build Your Ideal Day Website is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice and should not be relied on as health or personal advice.
