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Add Breaks to Your Day

Stepping away for a short pause is worth the time

By

Staying Sharp

Updated April 20, 2023

Updated April 20, 2023

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Quick Win

Temporarily walking away from a task helps your brain to refocus when you get back to work.

Try This Today

Write out tomorrow’s schedule tonight, including work-related appointments and household obligations.
Find places in the day to work in breaks that recharge you. Five minutes between meetings to stand and stretch or meditate; 10 minutes to call a friend or take a quick walk.
Set an alert on your phone to remind you when it’s break time.

Why

Focusing for long periods of time can reduce your ability to concentrate, weakening your performance in the process. Letting your mind wander can refuel your focus, spark creativity and strengthen critical thinking skills, points made in a review published in 2017 in Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience. In one study of 30 healthy volunteers learning a new skill, brain scans showed the skill got “baked in” during short rest times rather than practice times, as reported in 2021 in Cell Reports.

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Legal Disclaimer: Staying Sharp, including all content and features, is offered for informational purposes and to educate users on brain health care and medical issues that may affect their daily lives. Staying Sharp is based on a holistic, lifestyle approach to brain health that encourages users to incorporate into their daily lives activities that are associated with general wellness. Nothing in the service should be considered, or used as a substitute for, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Features including the Cognitive Assessment and Lifestyle Check-Ins, Additional Tests, exercises, and challenges assess performance at a particular moment in time on certain discrete cognitive tasks. Staying Sharp games are intended for entertainment and recreational purposes only. Various factors may affect performance, including sleep, tiredness, focus, and other social, environmental, or emotional factors. Performance is not indicative of cognitive health and not predictive of future performance or medical conditions.

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