I remember the classroom like it was yesterday. It was an evening grad class and I was studying the foundation and elements of leisure. This was one of my first graduate level classes as a Recreation grad student and I had just worked a full day at my job. My professor was educating us on what a leisure lifestyle could be, either positive or negative, and I recall feeling depleted of all energy reserves and starving for dinner. My professor made mention that people have the opportunity to experience leisure throughout the day to which I strongly disagreed and a debate ensued.
I pleaded my case and explained why leisure could not possibly fit into my daily schedule, there was simply no more room to cram an ounce of activity on my plate. I argued that although I felt overworked and could not see the proverbial end of the graduate school tunnel. My professor hit me with a curve ball from leisure land and said, “Well, you can listen to music and practice deep breathing on your commute, can’t you?”. YIKES! She got me! I had no more to say after that. I was so resistant to hearing how I could not improve my leisure lifestyle (and had a list of excuses to prove it) that the answer was so simple and yet so meaningful to me.
After that debate, I finally felt some relief and I was certain I was slowly gaining control of my life again. The overwhelming emotions changed to just “whelming” and I began my practice of decompressing on Highway 50 in between work and evening school. This lesson has been integral to my development as an adult and now my plate is more piled on than it was during grad school. I continue to develop ways to experience leisure in my everyday life, especially my commute. Here is a small list of things that work for me during my commute and I hope you can take/leave some ideas to improve your daily routine and overall well-being.
- Podcasts!!
- Audible
- Talking to family and friends via blue tooth
- Deep breathing
- Self reflection
- Essential oils
- Progressive muscle relaxation
- Coloring
- Playing with my son
- Positive reframing
What suggestions do you have that increase your positive leisure lifestyle?