Rest And Relaxation At Home 101

Our homes are our own little kingdoms. They’re the place where we can escape the often gruelling demands of our 9-to-5 lives.

Because they offer such respite, our homes are the ideal place for a little rest and relaxation.

When we think of rest and relaxation, our minds often turn to an expensive beach holiday, a guided meditation session or a Sunday yoga class.

Although these are fine ways to relax, destress and unwind, it’s just as easy to create the same effect in our own homes.

Here, we take a look at why it’s important to create a relaxing home atmosphere and show you some simple ways to do just that.

The benefits of unwinding and taking some time out are well-known.

In fact, rest and relaxation can actually improve your productivity and mental acuity, making you more capable when it comes to those hard working days.

The good news for us all, is that these benefits are simple and enjoyable to obtain.

Relaxing at home doesn’t have to mean finding your Zen, taking a nap or hiding from the kids! It can also take the form of entertainment and enjoyment; think music, games, family time… The possibilities are endless.

More often than not, we share our homes with loved ones.

They too face stresses and demands in their busy days and they too can reap the rewards of a relaxing home atmosphere, after all, home is where the heart is.

We all gain our peace and tranquillity in different ways. For some the perfect meditation music might be high-decibel heavy metal, others may prefer a more harmonious approach.

If your teen prefers the former, consider furnishing them with a good-quality set of headphones so that they can enjoy their downtime without the rest of the family suffering!

Small children often enjoy music and having a dance with mum, dad, or both together, is guaranteed to put a smile on their faces.

These days, good music setups for family rooms are small and compact, are often without all the annoying cables of their predecessors.

Kids in bed? How about a romantic turn about the living room floor with your partner?

Or if you love nothing more than a long hot shower or bath with your favourite music on, consider investing in a water-proof shower speaker.

For many of us, reading is the perfect way to relax and unwind.

These days, with such a high volume of titles available in digital format, it couldn’t be easier to kick-back with a favourite book.

Did you know that Project Gutenburg offers around 50,000 classic works for free?

Armed with that knowledge and a good eReader it couldn’t be easier to source and enjoy all your favourites.

From Austin to De Quincey and many more in between, readers have a wealth of great free literature to choose from.

More modern and contemporary titles are also readily available at a good price with just a click of a button and are delivered wirelessly to your device.

Prefer the physical weight of a book in your hand? Many of us do, yet as the serious readers among us know too well, it can be tiring to strain when the light gets dimmer.

Look after your eyes, make sure the lighting is suitable to read by.

Speaking of lighting, you can also try relaxing to the smooth shades of ambience.

There’s no denying the joy of sinking into a big squishy sofa after a long day at work.

Comfort at home is key to our rest and relaxation but that big plump couch isn’t the only way to achieve it.

Beanbags make for a fun and cosy way to snuggle up with loved ones. They also make an ideal reading chair for you and a small child. Plus, the kids will get a kick out of playing with them!

Likewise, in the warmer months, nothing beats sinking into a hammock in the garden or on the front porch.

Top tip: they’re even more fun when you can fit two people in them!

Did you know that what we sleep on can make a big difference to our bodies?

Studies have shown that having a comfortable, ergonomic bed makes for better sleep patterns and in turn can directly affect our overall health.

Make sure that your bed is a true place of rest and respite.

We might not all love it but there’s no denying the benefits of regular exercise.

For many of us exercise is a great way, not only to stay healthy, but also to distress and clear our minds.

There are plenty of choices when it comes to exercise.

For some it’s yoga or pilates, for others it’s a gruelling 5k run.

There is a wealth of exercises that you can do at home.

For double the fun, consider getting some family members together for a group work out.

This can be as simple as hanging up a few gently clinking wind chimes or opening up all the windows on a sunny day.

House plants can also help with this. Recent studies have even suggested that house plants can make us feel better.

As an added benefit, they do a fantastic job of purifying our air and generating oxygen for us.

This may not sound much like rest and relaxation, but bear with us.

We all understand the pleasure derived from a job completed, especially those which have a tangible result such as cooking and cleaning.

Simple tasks such as preparing a simple homely meal can be a form of meditation in themselves.

This is particularly true if you have some music playing in the background; you can zone out and just focus on the task at hand.

It’s OK to put your feet up and do absolutely nothing every now and again; chilling out with the family is the perfect way to do that.

Perhaps you have a favourite movie or a TV show that you like to watch together, or maybe yours is a chatty family who enjoys nothing as much as a bit of sofa-side banter.

Some families like to gather for a night of card and board games.

It’s a great way to get in some quality family time too, which contributes to a relaxed and easy-going communal home atmosphere.

No matter what your relaxation strategies are, we’re sure that you’ll be able to take them and make them an integral part of your home life.

Stress management can start at home in our own little kingdoms.

How do you relax and unwind with your family?

Let us know in the comments below or on our social media pages using the hashtags #MHV #MHVlife and #MyHomeVitality.