(201) Health 2018 Edition | Page 37

5 WAYS TO GET MORE REST AND RELAXATION IN YOUR LIFE T here’s a meme on social media that says, “You have as many hours in your day as BEYONCE.” It’s supposed to be motivational and gives the impression that if Beyonce can do as much as she d oes in 24 hours, there’s no reason why you can’t get as much done. Of course, Beyonce has personal assistants, childcare, chauffeurs and all manner of hired help who take care of many of her day-to-day tasks. Good for Beyonce. She is able to dedicate her time to creativity and charitable causes, as well as rest and relaxation. But, let’s be honest. Although everyone has the same 24 hours a day as Beyonce and other celebrities, not everyone can use them the same way. That doesn’t mean there’s no way to eliminate some time sucks and create extra hours for downtime. 1 WEEKLY MEAL PREP Planning your weekly meals in advance takes a little time on the weekend, but it saves time on the weeknights when you have the least to spare. Choose five or six nights’ worth of recipes that can be prepped in a few hours. Create your grocery list, shop, and get to work in the kitchen. Chop, produce, pre-cook anything appropriate, put uncooked meats in marinades, pre-combine spices for each recipe — do any- thing that can be done ahead of time. If you can do it with your partner or older kids, it can also be a fun activity to do together. 2 ERADICATE FACEBOOK It’s no secret that a quick check-in on Facebook can lead to a half-hour or more of scrolling through cute dog videos and politi- cal debates. You can log out of Facebook, but logging back in is easy. It’s more diffi- cult to log back in if you use an app meant to keep you off the social media site. If you use the Chrome operating system on your computer, the News Feed Eradicator for Facebook may be what’s needed. The Eradicator replaces your newsfeed with an inspirational quote, while allowing you to still see messages, notifications, groups and events. If you work on a Mac, there’s an application called SelfControl that lets you set times when Facebook and other sites are unreachable from your computer. 3 GET ORGANIZED The makers of the Pixie device did a survey that found that on average, Americans spend 2.5 days every year looking for things they can’t find. TV remotes, cell phones, keys, glasses and shoes topped the list of things we misplace most frequently. The mantra of highly organized people — a place for everything and everything in its place — can help here. Create specific storage spots for the things you misplace the most. Put hooks near the front door for your keys, and hang them the moment you walk in the door. Have a specific place for your glasses and phone. When you’re finished watching television, put the remote in its place. Not only will you gain back precious time, you’ll probably get rid of a little stress, too. 4 CREATE A SCHEDULE, NOT A TO-DO LIST To-do lists seem to be never ending, and the entire day can be spent checking off one item after another. Instead of creating a to-do list with no time limitations for each task, create a timed schedule for the day. Plug the most important items into the schedule with time limitations for each task. Less-important tasks can go on anoth- er day’s schedule. This allows you to finish your workday or a day of housework and errands at a specific time, while still having the satisfaction that you accomplished a lot. Your tasks won’t spill out into your rightly-deserved rest and relaxation time. 5 CURB THE BINGE-WATCHING A 2017 survey by Deloitte found that 73 percent of us are binge-watching TV series on a regular basis. Those ages 14-33 tend to binge-watch an average of five-hours in one sitting. While we may be doing other things while binge- watching like texting or checking social media, the time now spent watching and re-watching consecutive hours of one television show is tak- ing away from other activities that rejuvenate us. 6 1 WAYS TO LEAVE WORRY BEHIND THIS SUMMER OUTDOOR FUN New Jersey may be small, but we’re big when it comes to the range of things to do here. If you wanted to, you could ski, hike and surf in the same day (although who would want to?). Plus, there are many opportunities to camp, fish and hunt, and our extensive parks system offers miles and miles of trails and more. For as little as $50 (free for seniors), you can enjoy unlimited entrance to the state’s parks in 2018. 2 HISTORY Our traditions and history run deep, and there’s no shortage of ways to learn about and celebrate it. Civil War re- enactments, tours, holiday events, hands-on opportunities and more happen every month of the year all across the state. 3 LOCAL PRODUCE We’re not called the Garden State for nothing! We produce more than 100 different kinds of fruits and vegetables on 9,000 farms statewide, according to 2017 figures from the Department of Agriculture. From sweet corn to tomatoes to cranberries, blueberries and peaches, the tastes of New Jersey are a delight year-round. 4 SUMMER DOWN THE SHORE Days of sun-kissed sand, salty air, boardwalk arcades, funnel cake, fries and ice cream cones are here. 5 SPORTS In addition to our professional sports teams, there are plenty of opportunities to take in a game, from great high school football rivalries to family-friendly minor league baseball throughout the state. Everything from rec and instructional leagues for kids to club and pick-up teams for adults and seniors is available in every sport under the sun — including one of the state’s newest crazes, pickleball. 6 FAIRS AND FESTIVALS Another great Jersey tradition that’s right around the corner is fair season. They’re all fun, from the more rural farm-focused 4H county fairs to ones that include midways, Ferris wheels, fireworks and other spectacles, and up to the giant State Fair that takes over the Meadowlands each year. — Ilana Keller — Robin Shreeves (201) HEALTH | 2018 EDITION 35