by Michael Tulak

Taking a day off to take care of your mental and emotional health increases your potential for success. Athletes regularly take a day off to recover, many diets allow for a cheat day, and many religions have a day of rest.

Students should do the same because working and studying all week is mentally exhausting. A day off doesn’t mean you do nothing; it just means you do anything except study or work.

Why will a leisure day help you?

Reduce Stress: A day off will give you time to slow down, relax, meditate, or read, and forget about work and school.

Exercise: Staying active will improve not only your physical health, but also your mental well-being; a leisure day is the perfect time to get out and walk, run, hike, play a sport, or work out.

Sleep: Most students don’t get enough sleep. Your day off is your day to sleep in, take a nap, or go to bed early.

Relationships: Spending time with friends and family is very important, but it can be hard to find time with a hectic schedule. A leisure day will allow you to maintain relationships with people you care about.

Hobbies: Your day off is a day to cultivate interests that aren’t related to school. Doing things that give you pleasure is good for your mind.

Organization: You can use a leisure day to organize your house, prepare meals for the week, or make a to do list. This will reduce your stress the following week.

If you want to have a day off, you will need to manage your time effectively. If you are a procrastinator, learn methods on how to overcome it. If you can’t remember things you need to do, learn organization skills.

There are many online resources that can help you with time management. However, if you have too much to do, you may need to reduce the number of courses you are taking, or hours that you are working. If you don’t, the consequences can be burnout.