How to Enjoy your Holiday
Decompressing from life
With summer looming, it’s time to think about holidays!
Holidays play an important part in our busy lives, not only do they allow us to decompress from our daily busy lives but they give us a chance to reconnect with our loved ones. Here are some tips on how to get in the holiday mode before you go so that you get the best out of your time away…
1. Plan to have work tied up and handed over by the middle of the day before the day before you start your holiday – that’s not a typo! By being prepared a day in advance you can spend the last day before you go sorting out any last minute issues which may arise, or enjoy a more relaxed day if nothing comes up.
2. Get your head in the right place, once everything is organised at work and home close the door and enjoy being with you family or friends. Try to be in the present rather than worrying about what you’ve left behind and especially as the holiday draws to a close, don’t start imagining the pile of work waiting for you when you get back or the laundry to be done, it will be there whether you worry about it or not!
3. Book the holiday accommodation that suits you, if you can’t live without logging on to check emails then make sure you have wifi available. It is far better to spend a short amount of time daily checking emails to your ease of mind (as long as it is short) so that you can focus on your family for the rest of the time – but this does not apply to social media, leave it at home.
4. If you enjoy exercising at home there’s no reason why you can’t do it on holiday, just pick a time that works around the holiday and accept that you will ease back a bit. If you go to the gym for an hour 5 times a week, download a HIIT programme which takes 20 minutes and do it 3 times a week on holiday around the family activities, that way you still get your fix but it doesn’t take too much time away from the family. Or go for a shorter 30 minute run instead of the usual hour. It can also be an opportunity to do some exercise together, fun swimming races (as long as it doesn’t get too competitive with the kids!), or a mini group yoga session.
5. Sleep! Use the time on holiday to get plenty of good quality sleep during the night and naps during the day. Sleep is the most under-rated of the 4 pillars of health, without it we simply can’t function so luxuriate in earlier nights or lazier mornings.
6. Forget any expectations you might have, don’t go away thinking this is going to be the best holiday ever… we’re going to do this and that… just accept what happens.
7. Compromise. If one of you wants to go on lots of excursions but some one else wants to laze by the pool, work out a compromise either agreeing you’ll do your different activities separately or you’ll each spend time doing what the other wants to do.
8. Enjoy the food but don’t go overboard, it’s just a holiday. You don’t want to pile on weight which becomes a stresser when you return to the ‘real world’.
9. Don’t forget to drink water especially if it’s not quite so readily available as when at home (i.e. from the tap), make sure you have plenty of bottled water.
10. You are not responsible for other people’s happiness – if you’re used to organising everything, ease back a little and let whatever happens happen. You don’t have to fill every day with activities, just kick back, relax and allow other people to make decisions.
If you’d like more hints and tips, click the link (our top tip is on page 4 under ‘Communication’, no 6)
http://www.hayesandjarvis.co.uk/four-pillars-of-holiday-relaxation