Wellness Weekend Guide: 10 Ways to Reset & Recharge

Do you feel stressed out all the time? Do you have low energy or mood?

From time to time, everyone encounters periods of exhaustion. There could be any number of reasons for your physical or emotional slump. Fortunately, there are also plenty of potential solutions to your burnout blues.

The Busyness Trap

In today’s fast-paced society, everyone is busy. In fact, we’re too busy. On average, Americans work harder and take fewer vacation days than people in many other countries around the world.

Taking a vacation can increase your workload, making your return to work even more stressful. Due to this compounding of tasks, coupled with the added hassles and expenses of travel, many people never request time off from work.

If taking a vacation isn’t feasible in the foreseeable future, it’s imperative that you get the R&R you need during the weekend. Whether you leave town or just chill out at home, taking the time to recharge your batteries is crucial to staying centered in our hectic world.

So, when was the last time you made some time for yourself? If you’re past due for a mind/body reset, here are the top 10 things to consider when planning a Wellness Weekend…

10 Things to Do For A Wellness Weekend

Maintain a Healthy Diet – Since people tend to consume more calories during the weekend, resist the temptation to stray from your well-established diet. Pack healthy foods for a picnic or plan out healthy places to eat when heading out of town. Always make sure that you have emergency rations handy to fend off a snack attack. Eating the right foods can help you have more energy, a better mood, and more mental sharpness.

Listen to Soothing Tunes – It’s no surprise that listening to music can increase pleasurable feelings, improve mood, boost energy, raise dopamine levels and help with focus and concentration. Remaining in a relaxed state of mind is easier to accomplish when you have a happy tune running through your head. Listen to brain-enhancing music specifically composed to enhance mood, gratitude, motivation, and inspiration.

Get Quality Sleep – Good sleep is essential for optimal brain and body health. Sleep helps repair and renew all the cells in the body. It gives the brain a chance to wash away toxins that build up during the day. It’s recommended that you get 7-9 hours of sleep each night. For consistent energy, be sure maintain your regular sleep schedule over the weekend.

Keep Pleasure Centers Healthy – Deep inside your brain, your pleasure centers respond to several neurotransmitters, particularly dopamine. When dopamine is low, depression and low motivation are much more common – it can be harder to find your sense of joy and lift yourself out of a funk. Increase dopamine naturally by engaging in meaningful and beneficial activities on a regular basis. Do work that you enjoy and take time to have fun with your loved ones. It’s equally important to avoid wearing out your pleasure centers with substance abuse, gambling, video games, and compulsive eating or shopping.

Burn Some Calories – Physical exercise is perhaps the single most important thing you can do to keep your brain healthy. Exercise can boost blood flow and other positive nutrients to the brain, increase your levels of dopamine and generate new brain cells that can help the brain self-regulate and calm down. Walking can help you clear your mind, decrease anxiety, improve your mood and burn some calories all at the same time.

Take a Tech Break – Taking a break from emailing, texting, browsing the internet and posting content on social media will help your brain unwind. Rather than sitting around staring at a screen all day, spend some time working on a hobby, participating in a quality conversation with friends and family or enjoying the beauty of nature. Or, find a comfortable chair and pick up that book you’ve been meaning to finish. You might be surprised at how many things you can do, and how much fun you can have while taking a break from your devices.

Pamper Yourself – Getting a massage can do more than just improve your physical function. Clinical studies indicate that a massage is beneficial for improving mood and coping with stress. Massages can help to reduce the stress hormone cortisol and increase the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin.

Enjoy the Great Outdoors – Engaging in outdoor activities is important for everyone, especially for those who work a desk job. Whether you enjoy hiking, biking, horseback riding or just taking a walk with a friend, being outdoors has an overall positive effect on vitality. While enjoying the great outdoors, you’ll get the added benefit of natural sunlight. Daily exposure to appropriate levels (just 10 to 30 minutes a day) of direct sunlight can boost vitamin D3 levels which can help improve your mood.

Preserve Cherished Memories – If it’s been a while since you worked on a scrapbook or photo album, the weekend is a perfect time to preserve your memories (especially if the weather isn’t so nice). Also, editing, archiving and watching old family videos can serve the double purpose of providing hours of enjoyment working on a hobby while also reminding you of some of the happier moments in your life.

Get Some Nutritional Support – Whether you find yourself having negative or anxious thoughts, or if you feel that your stress levels have nearly reached the breaking point, BrainMD offers a range of powerful supplements for mood and stress that can help turn your day around. These brain-directed supplements have been formulated with the highest quality nutrients and ingredients that can help you feel calm, content, and able to manage stress or mental strain.

GABA Calming Support

In some regions of the brain, lower levels of the neurotransmitter GABA have been linked to mood challenges, difficulties with self-control, and excessive worry. When you’re calm and collected, you’re less inclined to overreact to the inevitable setbacks of life, and far more likely to think clearly and respond appropriately to those challenges. If your chaotic schedule is causing you too much aggravation, frustration, and irritability, take a deep breath and try GABA Calming Support.

GABA Calming Support can help stimulate the production of calming brain waves, correct stress-causing nutritional deficiencies, and promote relaxation. This formula provides a generous allowance of authentic GABA, the brain’s main calming transmitter.

This comprehensive relaxation formula includes vitamin B6 and magnesium, as well as lemon balm, an herb traditionally known for its calming effects. GABA Calming Support also has mild relaxation properties that can support a balanced mood and restful sleep.

Serotonin Mood Support

Our brain produces the naturally soothing neurotransmitter called serotonin. Serotonin plays many important roles in the brain’s biochemistry and is involved in maintaining healthy mood and promoting feelings of calmness. Serotonin also can help control late-night appetite. Serotonin Mood Support was developed to promote serotonin activity in the brain. This formula includes:

5-HTP, a nutrient that the brain can readily convert into serotonin.
Saffron, the world’s most expensive herb, has a long history of traditional use for “inducing happiness.” Saffron has consistently improved mood in many clinical trials.
Vitamin B6 is an essential cofactor for enzymes that make serotonin and other key transmitters.
Methylfolate, the pre-activated and most readily utilized form of the folate vitamin. Methylfolate is paired with methyl-vitamin B12 to help ensure the brain makes sufficient melatonin (our sleep hormone) and has the biochemical tools for renewing and maintaining its nearly 200 billion cells.

Lifestyle habits such as consuming “smart” carbohydrates in moderation and taking a dietary supplement like Serotonin Mood Support can work together to elevate mood and promote calm.

Following these stress-reducing techniques can help to improve your overall well-being so that you can live life to the fullest. Enjoy your Wellness Weekend!

For more information about GABA Calming Support, Serotonin Mood Support or our full catalog of brain healthy supplements, visit the online store at BrainMD.

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Keith Rowe

Keith has been a member of the BrainMD team for several years, providing his research and writing talents. Keith is grateful to have the opportunity to write about supplements since many of them have made a dramatic difference in his life. He is often heard around the office saying, “We have supplements for that.”