Studying takes a lot of energy and often depletes us more than physical labor. Writing lab reports, essays, reading piles of literature, and other homework often exhausts young people and leaves them with no energy for studying and leisure activities. Together with GPALabs service, we offer you tips to help you find a balance between study and leisure, resulting in faster coping with homework.
Why is it important to rest from studying?
Do not deny yourself rest because it is considered a waste of time. On the contrary, you will only rest and allow yourself to consolidate the material you have learned and gain new impressions.
Thus, there are important processes of information processing in the brain during sleep. Neural networks sort information into important and useless, build associations and fix motor skills. However, real rest for the brain is neither sleep nor passive staying awake.
The brain rests when different parts of it work. After a long load on the visual zone, it is useful to move actively; after playing musical instruments, it is good to do, for example, cooking to involve gustatory and olfactory areas.
When you do work not related to lessons: skating, arranging general cleaning in the room, watching a play, or climbing a mountain, you do not forget what you have learned. Taking a break from studying helps the brain digest information, structure it, and really remember it.
How to relax from studying?
Physical activity
Exercise is good for your physical and mental health and helps relieve stress and anxiety. During physical activity, the brain produces endorphins, which are responsible for a good mood. Jogging or swimming is a great way to start the day. They give clarity of thought and improve well-being. The amount of oxygen in the body, including the brain, increases.
This helps to improve its function. If you do not want to run alone, you can ask your friends to keep you company. Running together is more fun, and there is a better chance of not quitting.
Take a break
You can’t run a car at top speed forever: you need to fill it up from time to time. The same is true for people who study or work. The consequence of excessive strain is forgetfulness, fatigue, and anxiety. It is necessary to take breaks to replenish the energy expenditure.
Teenagers are able to concentrate for 45-60 minutes, after which a 15-minute break is necessary. Breaks give the brain time to process information and help maintain concentration. During the break, you can do eye exercises.
Active weekends
Active weekends away from school are full-day excursions, sports, music, or cooking classes (or another hobby). People are usually full of energy and new ideas after doing what they love or hanging out with friends.
Passive learning
Sometimes walking or traveling helps not only to rest but also to connect knowledge with real life. Visiting museums and sightseeing are useful in learning about history. Walking in a park, forest, or zoo is a kind of hands-on biology lesson. Many cities have science museums with interactive exhibits and experiments.
Relaxation
Relaxation stimulates the mind and makes you feel better. Many people sit too long in class, get tired, and lose their ability to concentrate. To help your body and brain recover, you should take a bath or shower after a busy day at school. Everyone has their own ways of relaxing. Here are some more ideas: take a nap, meditate, focus on breathing, listen to calm music, practice yoga, draw, dream, realize yourself here and now.
Quality sleep
Every person has different needs for sleep. On average, adults need eight hours of sleep. The brain of a sleep-deprived person works less efficiently. It becomes difficult to concentrate; it has a bad effect on mental activity and decision making.
Sometimes, it is difficult to relieve tension at the end of the day. Turn off electronic devices (even cell phones) an hour before bedtime to help the brain rest. Light-tight curtains also help, especially in the summer.
Healthy eating and proper snacking
The brain uses 20% of our energy and needs regular nourishment. Without it, it can’t function at its full potential. It’s important for students not to overindulge in junk food. You need to eat right, have a balanced diet, and eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. Here are some simple tips:
- Eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day.
- Snack on fruit, not chips and candy.
- Do not drink a lot of coffee or tea, especially before going to bed. They contain caffeine, which makes it hard to fall asleep.
How to study and do lab reports faster?
Now that you know how to take a proper break from studying, we will give you some tips, the application of which every day can, in the long run, accelerate your learning process.
Manage your focus
The more responsibilities you have, the harder it is to carve out an extra hour to study.
Remember, every spare minute counts. If your smartphone isn’t useful in your studies, put it away. The same goes for social media and email. The more often you disperse your attention, the longer it will take you to focus on your work each time. At best, you’ll lose a few minutes, and at worst, you won’t get results. To avoid this, choose a time when you are most productive, and set a schedule for checking email and messengers — for example, 10 minutes in the morning or the afternoon.
Split up tasks
Try dividing your tasks into two lists using the method of American billionaire investor Warren Buffett. Write down the 30 things you have planned for the coming week, and choose the five most important ones out of them. They will make up the first list, and the rest will go into the second. Forget about it until you complete the priority tasks and take on secondary matters. The same principle works in education. Understand what you need to learn first, and the rest can wait.
Write thoughtfully and draw
At school, we were told that while we write, we automatically remember some of the new information. Alas, this is not always true. Without the thought process, we are only wasting paper. If you become a creative editor of your outline, much more information stays in your memory. To do this, you need to learn how to sift out unnecessary information, reduce it, and write down your own conclusions. If you add some imagination to the process and connect the new knowledge and your experiences, the information will stay for a long time.
Repeat and retell
Memorizing everything at once is unrealistic because the brain processes new knowledge and connects it to existing knowledge. There is a new associative chain in memory, and this requires time, at least one day. Therefore, the information must be repeated at intervals. On the first day, repeat the material immediately after learning, then after 15-20 minutes and after 6-8 hours, preferably before going to bed. Don’t forget to go back to the material you’ve learned within a week.
