Exercise
Aerobic exercise – activity that raises your heart rate and makes you sweat – is a hugely effective way to lift your mood, increase energy, sharpen focus, and relax both the mind and body.
Rhythmic movement is especially soothing for the nervous system. For maximum stress relief, try to get at least 30 minutes of activity on most days.
When stress is mounting at work, try to take a break and move away from the stressful situation. Take a stroll outside the workplace if possible.
Physical movement can help you regain your balance.
Food
Yoga and meditation have been proven to help with stress reduction too.
Your food choices can have a huge impact on how you feel during the work day. Eating small, frequent and healthy meals, for example, can help your body maintain an even level of blood sugar. This maintains your energy and focus, and prevents mood swings. Low blood sugar can make you anxious and irritable, while eating too much can make you lethargic.
Minimize sugar and refined carbs. When you’re stressed, you may crave sugary snacks, baked goods, or comfort foods. But these feel good foods quickly lead to a crash in mood and energy, making symptoms of stress worse, not better.
Reduce your intake of foods that can adversely affect your mood.
Eat more omega 3 fatty acids to give your mood a boost.
Plants
A study from the UK found that bringing plants into workplace not only increased productivity by 15%, but also increased concentration and workplace satisfaction.
Research finds that just 40s of staring at a flowering meadow green roof boosts sub-cortisol arousal and cortical attention control.
Several other experiments and studies that included sounds of running water and forest smells also show that exposure to nature not only improved subjective measures of stress, but also physiological factors like heart rates and blood pressure.