Productive Ways to Relieve Stress

We all feel stressed out at some point in our lives. Maybe our job overwhelms us. Or our family jumps from one crisis to another. Whatever the cause of stress might be, there are lots of different ways to deal with it.

While there are well-known ways of relieving stress, like taking a bubble bath, or reading a good book, there are also some productive ways you can relieve your stress. Try some of these ideas the next time you’re feeling stressed to the max.

1) Plant, or work in, a garden. Whether it’s a flower garden or a vegetable garden, you will find many great benefits of having your own garden to tend to. Digging in the soil and pulling weeds are terrific stress relievers. Then seeing the final fruition of all your hard work will be rewarding as well.

2) Volunteer to help a teacher. Many teachers often complain about not having enough active, involved parents to help out. If you have children in school, this is a great way to not only get to know your child’s teacher better, but become actively involved in your child’s educational process. Plus, kids can be a blast to work with.

3) Wash and detail your car. The next time you feel stressed, grab a bucket and a hose and set to scrubbing your car. Washing and waxing your car should take about an hour, maybe a little longer, depending on how fast you work. When that’s done, give the inside a good detail, too. By the time you’ve finished cleaning your car, you will have worked out all your stress.

4) Take a karate class. Actually, any self-defense class will do just fine. You’ll solve two problems at once—work out your stress, and learn how to defend yourself.

5) Go for a workout. If you have a gym membership, put it to good use. Many people find that going for a solid workout 3-5 times per week do wonders to help relieving their stress. Make sure you make good use of the punching bag while you’re there!

6) Walk a couple of miles. One of the easiest ways to productively relieve stress is to go for a long, brisk walk. Walking helps clear your mind. When your stress level is so high that you feel like you could blow a stack, slip on your shoes and get outside for a good walk.

7) Do an elderly neighbor’s yard work. Another really great way to productively work off some steam is to offer to do an elderly neighbor’s yard work. Find someone who is sick or isn’t able to mow their lawn and do it for them. Clean up the trash around their driveway. Pick their vegetable garden for them. Offer to do their grocery shopping this week.

There are many more productive ways you can burn energy when you feel overwhelmed with stress. The main thing to do is ask yourself what you can do to help others, or how you can apply that energy in a productive, rather than destructive, manner.