In sports, most commonly endurance sports, there’s this concept of “hitting the wall.” It is a point in your exertion where your body shuts down and can no longer function at full capacity. Your pace slows and you muscle clamp down. “The wall” is then following by “the second wind.” The wall itself is actually a good thing to get your body much needed forced relaxation in order for you to perform at a high level again. Try these methods as ways to get a “second wind” in all aspects of your life.

1. Take a 2 minute cat nap. Remember when grandpa said he was just shutting his eyes? Closing your eyes effectively rests your nervous system even when you don’t have time to sleep. You can shut your eyes for 2 minutes sitting at your kitchen table or your desk. 
2. Tense and release each muscle in your body. Very often we don’t notice the tension in our muscles till we tense them more. Go through from head to toe squeezing then relaxing each individual muscle. Afterwards you may notice a runner’s high-like peace.
3. Exhale deeply from your belly. High carbon-dioxide in the blood correlates with anxiety and tension. Many persons breathe with their chest so that stale carbon dioxide-rich air stays and recirculates into the bloodstream, inciting further tense feelings. Exhaling all that out allows you to reduce your blood’s CO2 levels promoting relaxation.
4. Laugh. Laughter sends oxygen to the brain, releases dopamine and endorphins which make you healthier overall, let alone relaxed. Even if you feel downtrodden and can’t find something to laugh about, a forced laughter has the same effect.
5. Hug someone. The Japanese healing form of reiki bases its work on the truth that human beings need touch in order to relax. Oxytocin is an important neuro chemical that is only released in connecting to other life forms. If you can’t find a person to hug, pet a dog!

As the work day approaches the final trimester we all get hit with fatigue. Here are some ways to power through till close time:

1. Get your eyes of the computer. Your mom told you not to stare at the TV too long for a reason. Too much artificial light exposure can cause fatigue symptoms such as eye twitching and jitteriness. You probably need your computer to work so instead of taking “recreational breaks” on Facebook or browsing the web, take 5 to put your attention offline. Brainstorming work can be done with the good old paper and pen.
2. Jump up and down. Yes it’s silly. Yes it’s obvious. Yes it works. Physical activity re-calibrates your body to create energy rather than deplete it. Get your heartbeat up so your blood starts flowing.
3. Eat some energy food. Nuts, fruit, granola. Anything that is easy to digest and free of heavy nutrients. The idea is not to fill up, but to throw some fuel on the fire.
4. Hydrate. Yes you certainly can reach for the coffee, yet caffeine in the morning is probably what has you crashing in the afternoon anyway. Water on the hand is the body’s transmission fluid. Water is the elixir of life. Tiredness can often come from dehydration. Studies have shown that a glass of water before a school examination raises average test marks.
5. List the have-to-do tasks for the rest of the day. When we know the end, it’s easier to start. List out all the things you want to accomplish for the rest of the day then just cross them off one by one. A journey of thousand miles start with one step.

1. Write out or review your schedule the night beforehand. The biggest time-wasters are in those gaps between scheduled activities. That doesn’t mean you have to be strict about being productive every minute. The purpose is to be aware of moments you CAN be productive. For instance, that call you need to make to the insurance company or doctor’s office may fit perfectly in between dropping off your kids at school and starting work. It may not take very long, but it will be one less distraction during your work day.
2. Standardize your daily chores. Are there certain mundane tasks you do every day? Find a way to standardiz them. We standardize most every day tasks already. You likely brush your teeth exactly the same way every time. You probably drive the grocery store the same way. That’s because once we find the best way to do something, you might as well keep doing it that way till it becomes second nature. Try to find other areas of your life you can standardize, like say cleaning the house.
3. Batch similar activities. Some things we do throughout the day can be “batched,” or all done at once. Imagine how much time and energy a factory would waster if it started and stopped its generator for each widget it made. It would be better to just start the machine once and make all the widgets in one “batch.” The common time-waster for most people is how often they check email. Every time you stop one activity to start to check email, you are wasting stop-start time. Most email can wait a day. If your work requires timely communication, tell people to text you instead.
4. Also  tell people to only text you when it’s important. The biggest part of time management is avoiding interruptions. Productive time is productive time. Stick to the schedule so you can get the “Have to do” actions done as quickly as possible. That way you can get in more “want to do” actions.
5. Time management is only half the equation of doing more of what you want in a day. The other half is deciding what you want to do. most people think they don’t have time for hobbies. That’s just because they don’t make time. Pick one new thing you want to do every day. Schedule it in and stick to that schedule as strictly as you would for work. It works.