top five relaxation techniques

[constance]

1. Taking a long hot bath. I don't have a shower in my bathroom, just an old pink cast-iron bathtub, but even if I had a shower, I probably wouldn't use it, because I dearly love soaking. I lean back and zone out and the next thing I know it's half an hour later and the water's getting cold. It's not sleeping, and it's not conscious meditation; it's just this perfect free-float. It's a good way to start the day, I find, but I have to be careful not to zone out for too long.



2. Brushing the dog. He needs it, because he is a hairy monster who sheds bushels of fur by the week. He loves it. I love it. Win/win/win.



3. Driving. This one's pretty specific: it can't be on interstate, or in city traffic. But give me a long country road and lots of green and I could drive forever, whether the radio worked or not. (Working radio = good, though.)



4. Reading. I seriously can't go to sleep unless I've read myself somnolent. (The best choice for relaxing, for me, is to read something I've read before.)



5. Painting my toenails/giving myself a pedicure. Because I'm secretly sort of shallow.

:::

Now it's your turn. What are your favorite relaxation techniques?

Comments

[tofty.livejournal.com]

Reading your list makes me realize how much of a slug I really am! I do get exercise, these days, but more because I need to than because I find it in any way rewarding. (I feel as though I ought to like gardening, but my ability to wither plants with a single glance has kind of spoiled the experience for me.) Even walking is more a chore than an enjoyment.

I do love to swim, though. I swam competitively as a kid/early teen, and eventually dropped out because I hated to compete on any level, but if I'm not competing, I can reach trance state incredibly quickly. I've been meaning to join a local gym with a pool. Maybe I'll get around to doing that soon.

I agree with the pet cuddling, too. My cat is not specially cuddly, actually -- she's a very active participant in any petting scenarios that are staged in our house -- but my dearest old cat Alex, he who died a couple of years ago, was the best cuddler on earth, and I miss that terribly.

I like to cook, and like to feed people, but I find it a little stressful, because it doesn't come naturally to me.

Thanks for playing! I love to see other people's responses to these lists.

[xanthophyllippa.livejournal.com]

Reading your list makes me realize how much of a slug I really am! I do get exercise, these days, but more because I need to than because I find it in any way rewarding.

I don't know that I always find it rewarding, or even enjoyable sometimes - it's just that I have this weird metabolism and biochemistry that require a ridiculous amount of activity in order for me to maintain both a comfortable weight and an even keel. I get really cagey and irritable if I don't move around enough, so I often find myself taking long, aimless walks just so I have something to do outside. Being around me when I'm under-exercised is kind of like watching a retired greyhound just sit there and quiver until it's let out to run around again.