The bags are closed, the automatic response to emails is on and the computer remains at home. Yet the sound of a notification, the memory of a deadline or the thought of returning is enough to mentally find yourself at the desk, perhaps while already lying under the umbrella.
In short, being able to leave does not necessarily mean being able to switch off. Research conducted in 2023 by OnePoll for Hilton on a sample of two thousand people showed that 44 percent of Italians needed at least five days to completely relax. 29 percent continued to think about the work they left behind in the office, while 27 percent were already worried about what would await them upon their return.
It’s the little paradox of contemporary holidays: we wait for months for the moment when we can slow down, but when it finally arrives we no longer know how to do it.
Because the mind stays at work even on the beach
Going from weeks marked by meetings, appointments, messages and decisions to suddenly empty days is not always immediate. The body changes location faster than the brain can change pace.
«When we are constantly under pressure, our body remains in a sort of permanent state of alert», explains Christian Boceda, personal trainer and founder of CB Coaching. “Even if we are finally on vacation, the brain continues to behave as if it has to solve problems, meet deadlines or make decisions.”
Stress, after all, is a natural response and not necessarily negative. It becomes problematic when it is intense or prolonged and begins to interfere with sleep, concentration, mood, and the ability to relax.
Cortisol also comes into play in this mechanism, often presented online as the main cause of bloating, insomnia and weight gain. In reality it is not a toxin to be eliminated nor a switch to be turned off: it is an indispensable hormone, involved in the response to stress, in the regulation of metabolism, blood sugar, blood pressure and inflammation. Its production varies naturally during the day and normally reaches one of its peaks in the phases following awakening.
Rather than promising unlikely “cortisol detox”, therefore, it makes sense to work on habits capable of reducing the feeling of alertness and gradually accompanying the body and mind towards rest.
The routine to do in ten minutes
There is no need for demanding workouts or rigid programs, which would risk transforming even the holiday into a performance. Ten minutes a day may be enough, possibly in the open air and without a phone nearby.
Slow and diaphragmatic breathing, in particular, has been associated in several studies with a reduction in perceived stress and benefits on some physiological parameters. The available evidence is promising, even if the protocols studied are very different from each other and do not authorize miraculous promises.
1. Three minutes to breathe again
Sitting or lying down, place one hand on the chest and the other on the abdomen. You inhale slowly through your nose, trying to make the belly rise above all, and exhale without forcing.
There is no need to obsessively count the seconds. The goal is to make your breathing gradually slower and deeper, letting the exhalation last at least as long as the inhalation. Attention can be brought back to the movement of the abdomen each time, without chasing thoughts about work.
2. Two minutes of Cat-Cow to loosen your back
In quadrupedia, with the hands under the shoulders and the knees under the pelvis, two movements slowly alternate: inhaling, the chest opens and the back is delicately arched; exhaling, round the spine and bring your gaze towards the navel.
Reaching maximum extension doesn’t matter. The movement must remain soft and follow the rhythm of breathing, especially after many hours spent sitting in front of computers and tablets.
3. Three minutes to reactivate the body
While lying down, with your knees bent and your feet resting on the ground, you can perform a buttock bridge: the pelvis slowly rises during exhalation, remains raised for a few moments and then returns to the ground during inhalation.
The exercise activates the back muscles without requiring particularly intense effort. It should be done slowly and stopped if you experience pain, dizziness or difficulty breathing.
4. Two minutes for hips and pelvis
The routine can end with small mobility movements: controlled tilts of the pelvis, slight openings of the knees or rotations of the hips. No momentum and no search for performance: the aim is to gradually free the areas that tend to stiffen during long sedentary days.
Even a quiet walk can complete the ritual. Regular physical activity contributes to psychological well-being, can improve mood and help manage anxiety and stress. And it doesn’t have to take the form of a workout: walking, swimming or cycling counts too.
The real obstacle to relaxation is in the swimsuit pocket
However, the most effective routine risks being of little use if, immediately afterwards, you go back to compulsively checking emails, chats and social networks. Taking your smartphone to the beach is not in itself a problem; letting it mark every moment of the day, however, keeps a continuous connection open with what you are trying to distance yourself from.
It may be useful to establish some windows without notifications: during breakfast, while taking a bath, in the first hour after waking up or after dinner. There is no need to disappear from the world for a week. Just stop, at least for a few hours, from always being available.
Among the habits that can make recovery more difficult are excessive caffeine, especially in the afternoon, skipped meals to make up for holiday “mistakes” and entire days spent immobile.
You don’t have to “fill” your holidays too
Finally, there is a more subtle habit to abandon: the need to plan every minute. Excursions, visits, aperitifs, dinners, photographs to publish and places to tick off can transform holidays into a new list of tasks.
A holiday doesn’t necessarily have to be productive, memorable or perfectly talkable on social media. It can also contain empty afternoons, naps, walks without destination and half-finished books.
The true “summer reset” isn’t about fixing your body or declaring war on a hormone. It means giving yourself enough time to lose the rhythm of deadlines and find your own. Because the rarest luxury of summer is not leaving far away, but finally being able to not be in a hurry.
