6 Tips to Stay Healthy and Happy During Finals Week!
By: Amanda Mehall
With finals week approaching, we’re all preparing to learn more in the next three days than we have allsemester. During this time of insanity and madness, there’s a few things you can do for yourself to comeout on top, (both in studying and to stay feeling good!) Here are six tips to keep you healthy that resultin straight A’s:
1. Stay hydrated and focused. It’s easy to constantly turn to caffeinated beverages for ample studying,but what your body actually needs is water and antioxidants. Dehydration can make you sleepy andunfocused, so perk up with a big glass of H2O while studying. Also, sip on herbal tea during the day, likegreen or peppermint. The antioxidants found in tea will keep you healthy and energized!
2. Eat smart. Certain foods seriously boost brainpower and productivity. Avoid the snack aisle whileshopping, and instead go for leafy green vegetables, nuts, avocados, whole grains and dark chocolate(that one in moderation.) All of these foods are proven to help with your memory and keep your brainhealthy.
3. Make sleep a priority. Getting a good night’s rest before your exams makes them that much easierthe next day. In fact, studying before sleeping helps seal the information in your head. Sometimes youeven dream about it! So don’t be afraid to take a catnap after an intense study session either.
4. Keep your social life alive. It can be easy to get wrapped up in the books during finals and forget totext your friends back. However, spending your free time away from your notes doing somethingcompletely stress-free will do wonders. Don’t be afraid to take a break after a while, because if you’reoverworking yourself, you probably are not retaining all the information you’re cramming in anyway. Takea step back and have fun, just don’t forget to go back to studying afterward.
5. Get off your butt. Whether you want to take a walk around campus with a friend or go to an hour longyoga session, exercise is a great way to prevent your eyes from glazing over after staring into yournotebook for hours. Exercising releases endorphins in your brain, which is your body’s natural stressreliever. Endorphins simply allow your body to feel good. Getting up and moving will put you exactly inthe frame of mind you need to be in for stellar studying.
6. Don’t give in to temptation. Even though Netflix is practically beckoning you all week, keep in mindyou’ll have time for a binge session later. Be sure to stay away from social media while studying, limityour computer use and try sticking to reviewing one subject at a time. Everything is more fun than finalsweek, just use your willpower!