Since the pandemic many of us have noticed our social batteries are running lower than usual. As we have acclimatised back to the normal runnings of the world over the past year many of us have felt that we have over socialised, and seeing our friends is becoming an exhausting chore. But how can we recharge our social batteries ahead of summer plans?
Here are are a couple of the best exercises to do when you are feeling social burnout and partnered with experts to reveal how to cope with a social hangover.
What is social burnout?
Burnout can present itself in fatigue which affects people mentally, physically, and emotionally. With summer plans on the horizon the possibility of social burnout is higher than ever.
Joe Mitton, founder of Mittfit, says; exercising can help alleviate burnout and reduce stress as exercise “releases dopamine and serotonin which help in improving mood and sleep” which can in turn reduce burnout. But what are the best exercises to do when you feel burnt out?
What exercises can help with social burnout?
Yoga
Yoga is an excellent stress-relief exercise, which involves a series of moving meditations, stationary poses, or postures, which are further combined with deep breathing techniques.
Yoga helps to bring awareness to our breathing which has both physical and psychological benefits. When we are stressed, we often shorten our breathing. Learning how to regulate your breathing calmly is a great transferable skill you can incorporate into your everyday life.
Walking
Walking helps to stretch muscles and is also “beneficial for the hippocampus – which is the part of the brain that acts like a brake on the stress response”, says Ruth Cooper-Dickson, Positive Psychologist. If you are feeling anxious, why not try walking to your plans?
This will reduce your stress and also provide you with some essential ‘me’ time that will redirect some of your energy to yourself instead of others.
Dancing
Dancing is a great exercise “for activating GABBA (Gamma-aminobutyric acid) — this is an amino acid whose purpose is to calm the brain to enable brain cells to suppress activities.” says Ruth Cooper-Dickson. If you want to incorporate this into your social plans you can go out dancing with your friends this summer. There are various bottomless brunches and garden parties across the country that can offer this to you and your friendship group.
HIIT
The most effective exercise to cope with social burnout is high intensity interval training. Exercises that produce the sweat are the best because of their high intensity, and the mental and physical challenge they place upon the body. Try out this set of exercises after 3 mins of dynamic stretching. The exercise should take 12 mins to complete with 20 secs working out, 10 secs resting between each exercise, and two sets being done per exercise:
- Pop Squats
- High Knees
- Walk Downs
- Burpee
- Lateral Jumps
- Star Jumps
Boxing
Boxing is effective at reducing social burnout as it requires our full concentration which encourages you to switch off from the outside world. Boxing also reduces stress by teaching you proper breathing techniques, building confidence, and giving you an instant energy boost.
Punching helps relieve muscle tension and improve confidence, making you more capable to deal with stressful situations. Social burnout can present itself in many ways and it is vital that we recognise when we need to take a step back and concentrate our time on ourselves.
Exercising is a great way to detach because it requires your full attention, relieves stress, and also leads to a more clearer mindset. However, you can also reduce these feelings by taking a few minutes for yourself throughout the day when you are mentally exhausted.
This article as initially published in the Reebok blog.
Farren Morgan is a soldier and head coach at The Tactical Athlete.
