Wondering How to Relax After Work? Here’s Five Proven Ways to Decompress

You’re at your limit. That coworker you dislike? Intolerable today.

Your manager? Acting a bit passive-aggressive.

Emails? They’re piling up.

You’re right on the edge and you need to decompress. However, you feel so stressed that you feel you can’t catch a break and snap out of it.

We’ve got you; here are 5 proven ways to relax after work. Keep reading and we’ll teach you how to relax after work and build habits for emotional regulation that will decrease stress in the long term.

1. Do a Challenging Exercise

We don’t mean mindless jogging on the treadmill. That won’t help you truly decompress after work because your mind will just wander back to the intrusive thoughts stressing you out.

We mean really seek out a challenging workout and do it.

Resistance training uses major muscle groups and progressive overload so you really feel each one of your muscles. 

Try sprinting up a hill. Try rock climbing. Try swimming or badminton or join a group sport.

Exercises that engage your mind and your body are wonderful for helping you destress because they take your mind off the source of stress and they refocus you on the present.

Trust us, that mental reset is what you need.

2. Take a Warm Shower or Bath

Turn off your phone. Run yourself a shower or bath. Invest in some nice bath salts to soothe the aches you got from tensing your muscles throughout the day.

If you’re stressed, there’s a 100% chance that you have tension in your muscles. Even if you’re not aware of where the tension is, we promise you it’s there.

When you’re in the bath, get in touch with your body. Progressively relax each muscle you can feel from the tip of your head to your toes. Make a conscious effort to relax those muscles; you may not even realize you’re clenching them.

Focus on your jaw, your fists, and your shoulders; these muscles bear a lot of tension when you get stressed out. Tense and relax them. The warm water will help.

3. Make Sure You’re Well-Hydrated and Nourished

Check in with yourself. What was the last thing you ate? And when?

If you’ve been stressed at work, there’s a chance that you haven’t taken the time to eat properly and drink water.

If you’re too tired to make food for yourself, get takeout. Just make sure it has protein and vegetables so you can nourish your body. Part of the stress may just be you being hangry, and you may not even realize it.

In the same vein, try to drink some water. Water is critical to bodily functions and your mental wellbeing!

4. Schedule Massages

Massages are truly wonderful ways to decompress. If you don’t want to go to a professional masseuse, there’s the option to get a full body massage chair.

Massages reduce your resting heart rate, release muscle tension, and help you regulate your emotions and reset.

Your body releases beneficial hormones like serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins while you’re getting a massage, and these hormones counteract cortisol (the stress hormone).

5. Disconnect from Media and Head to Bed

Sleep! Sleep is critical for a mental reset, and we promise that once you put a night between what’s stressing you out and yourself in the morning, things won’t look so bad at all.

This is your chance to practice sleep hygiene. Silence those emails. Get the blackout shades.

Rest, and recover.

How to Relax After Work: Practice These Habits!

How to relax after work? Practice the habits we just shared with you, and reap the rewards.

Here’s your cue to just do the things we told you to do. They help, we promise. They’ll help you clear your mind and nourish your body. Sometimes, that’s the baseline you absolutely need to de-stress.

For more tips, check out our trove of popular articles!