Dec 25, 2025 12:10:00

It might be better to be active during the holidays rather than lazing around on the couch.

During long holidays such as the New Year holidays, many people will spend their time lying in bed or on the sofa browsing social media or simply sleeping. However, in order to recover both physically and mentally and replenish your energy during the holidays, it is better to stay active rather than just lazing around.

Stacey Shaw , a psychologist at Worcester Polytechnic Institute , explains how to get effective rest during the holidays.

Rest is essential during the holidays, but it may mean getting active, not crashing on the couch
https://theconversation.com/rest-is-essential-during-the-holidays-but-it-may-mean-getting-active-not-crashing-on-the-couch-270396

When most people think of 'rest,' they think of sleep, but humans need 'active rest' not just while asleep but also while awake. Active rest goes beyond staring blankly at your phone on the couch and includes the physical, social, and creative experiences that occur throughout the day.

'Getting the most out of rest and leisure involves more than lazy mornings and cups of hot cocoa,' says Shaw. 'It's also important to intentionally schedule active recovery time that leaves you feeling energized and restored.'

First of all, just because you're off work during the holiday season doesn't mean you won't experience stress. There are many different types of stress felt during the holiday season, including not having enough money, not having family or a significant other to spend time with, the pressure to make the holidays special, not having enough time to spend with loved ones, and strained family relationships.

To alleviate this stress, Shaw argues that it is important to take quality rest during your vacation to

reduce psychological strain and promote sustained positive emotions when you return to work.

Effective rest can include going for a walk, engaging in social activities, listening to music, or engaging in a creative hobby. These may seem like simple distractions, but they actually play an important role in mental health.

For example, walking in nature has been shown to reduce activity in the amygdala, a brain region associated with stress, and to reduce activity in brain regions linked to sadness and rumination , resulting in lower stress hormones and improved mood . Other studies have also shown that activities such as playing the piano and calligraphy significantly reduce stress hormones .

One of the things psychologists who study leisure have discovered is that the effectiveness of breaks depends on

how satisfied an individual is with them . This may seem obvious at first glance, but people often spend their free time on things that don't bring them satisfaction.

A 2002 survey found that the most popular leisure activity was 'watching television,' but respondents rated it as the least enjoyable activity, and those who watched more than four hours of television per day rated it as even less enjoyable than those who watched less than two hours per day.

In addition, a study published by Shaw et al. in 2025 found that students tend to distract themselves with meaningless things like social media at the end of the day, but this does not rejuvenate or restore their spirits.

To get effective rest, it is recommended to actively plan and practice enjoyable activities, and these actions have also been reported to be effective in reducing the symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders . For example, there are various ways to get active rest, such as taking time to recover by reading in a quiet place after an afternoon of shopping, or going for a walk after opening a present rather than immediately putting away the wrapping paper.

As mentioned above, it is recommended to take various active rest activities during vacation, but sometimes you may feel anxious, wondering, 'Am I doing the right thing?' or 'Should I be doing something more productive?' This psychological concept, known as 'leisure guilt,' reduces the enjoyment of leisure time and weakens the mechanism that links rest and happiness.

Based on his own experience, Shaw offers three ways to reduce leisure guilt:

1. Set low expectations
Convince yourself and your family to lower your expectations of the season. For example, you don't need to decorate every cookie baked at Christmas, tie the bows perfectly on every gift, or make a fancy New Year's feast with every auspicious item. Lowering these expectations will help you avoid taking on unnecessary work and feeling guilty about 'trying harder.'

◆2: Work on something you are highly immersed in
Playing video games, going for a walk, or hanging out with your young nieces and nephews is more restorative than scrolling through your phone or watching TV on the couch, as these activities require your full concentration and take your mind off things like your work inbox or undone household chores.

◆3: Accept the guilt
If you find yourself experiencing leisure guilt, try to accept it rather than ignore it and move forward. In stressful situations, embracing negative emotions rather than avoiding them can reduce depressive symptoms .