The importance of being rested
The results of the University-wide employee survey revealed that many staff do not have enough time to rest and recover, often being unable to take their full breaks and finding it hard to “switch off” from work matters. And there is a similar trend among students, who tend to skimp on breaks and sleep, especially when they are stressed.
With this in mind, we are delving more deeply into the issue of rest and recovery and want to raise awareness of how important it is to make it an integral part of your routine. Proper rest and recovery has been proven to boost our capacity to perform, both physically and mentally.
However, we do not want to give the impression that we are intruding into people’s private lives or crossing lines we should not be crossing. Our mission is to give you some practical and useful ideas to help you work and study healthily. This also includes structuring your rest and recovery times—like breaks and sleep—in a healthy and mindful way, because even short spells with not enough rest and recovery can have a noticeable adverse impact on your wellbeing and ability to perform.
This page will explain the benefits of good rest and recovery and all the ways you can get better at doing it.
Just take a break—but why exactly?
In Germany, the Hours of Work Act (Arbeitszeitgesetz, ArbZG) requires employees working more than six hours straight to take a break for at least thirty minutes. There are some good reasons for this rule, because breaks help to soothe physical and mental stress and restore our concentration, thus having a direct positive impact on our health and performance levels.
The Effort-Recovery Model (Meijman & Mulder, 1998) states that every work activity causes mental and physical exertion. Denied any breaks, the body will react with muscle tension, tiredness and cognitive or emotional fatigue. The only way to counteract these stresses and restore your original performance level is to consciously distance yourself physically and mentally from your work during your break (Sousa et al., 2025).
Breaks, understood as scheduled or spontaneous interruptions of an activity, contribute to a reduction in physical and mental strain while also helping us to relax, recover and restore our energy and concentration levels. Even short interruptions, known as micro-breaks, have been shown to boost our well-being and capacity to perform (Abuleciu et al., 2022; Blasche et al., 2018).
About 30 %
of staff regularly skip their breaks.
Vieten et al., 2023
A further 15 %
get interrupted during their breaks.
Vieten et al., 2023
Over 50 %
of University of Bonn staff often spend their breaks at their desk.
Healthy Campus Bonn employee survey, 2024
What happens if we do not take any breaks?
Anyone who chooses to work or study non-stop all day will be exposed to stress factors that can make their presence felt both there and then and in the long run. Problems that are initially only temporary can be exacerbated and become permanent if the body is never given time to recover.
Working without breaks will quickly lead to
- increased tiredness;
- lower concentration; and
- a heightened risk of making mistakes.
Blasche et al., 2018
Anyone who keeps on skipping breaks will be at a greater risk of
- physical pain (e.g. back, neck and shoulder problems);
- emotional fatigue;
- chronic fatigue;
- insomnia; and
- stress symptoms and burnout.
Wentz et al., 2018
What are the positive effects of breaks?
Regular breaks are an important protection mechanism and act like little energy boosters for the body and mind, enabling us to step away briefly from stressful tasks, recharge our batteries and clear our heads. Breaks thus help us to stay more focused, more capable and more balanced and prevent stress from running riot.
- Experience fewer musculoskeletal complaints:
Breaks take the strain off our muscles and joints and prevent tension. - Feel less tired:
Brief periods of recovery help us to restore our energy levels and reduce fatigue. - Improve your concentration and performance:
People who schedule regular breaks stay alert for longer and work more efficiently. - Boost your mood:
Breaks give you space, improve your wellbeing and lighten your mood (Wendsche et al., 2016; De Bloom et al., 2017; Sianoja et al., 2018). - Guard against long-term fatigue:
Regular recovery periods prevent long-term physical and mental stress (report by the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health).
Various types of break to suit your health
Social breaks: Improve your mood and reduce stress.
Active breaks: Studies have shown that short active breaks make you more alert and improve your capacity to perform (Fischetti et al., 2024) as well as reducing tension and work-related fatigue.
- Example—the “break time express”: a five- to fifteen-minute exercise and relaxation activity for university staff and students that boosts wellbeing and social awareness (Preuß & Preuß, 2018).
More about the break time express at the University of Bonn
What makes a good break?
A break works because it requires the body to do something different to what it was doing previously (Griffiths et al., 2007). The more one-sided or stressful your work is, the more important it is to make targeted interruptions to it. The most important factors:
Pick a suitable activity
- If you work sitting down, short active breaks such as walks, mobilization exercises or stretching can help loosen up your body.
- After any physical exertion, it is a good idea to consciously take a rest, sit down and put your feet up.
- If your work is mentally taxing, mental relaxation techniques such as breathing exercises and short meditations will help clear your head.
Genuinely break off from your work
- Use breaks to create mental distance from your work.
- Try not to think about anything work-related during this time.
- If there is anything particularly unpleasant on your to-do list, put it consciously to one side so that you can really relax.
Get a change of scene
- Leave your building during your break if you can.
- Use your time outdoors to breathe in some fresh air and soak up the sunlight.
Get away from your screen
- Make a conscious effort to avoid screens.
- Change your focus, gaze out into the distance and treat your eyes to a timeout.
Some more handy hints for structuring a good break
- Look out for signals from your body such as tiredness or tension.
- Schedule breaks early rather than waiting until your performance levels drop.
- Spread several short breaks across your day.
- Micro-breaks of five minutes every hour have a particularly restorative effect.
- Use your lunch break for deeper rest and recovery.
- A 10- to 20-minute power nap can help recharge your batteries.
No time for breaks?
All of us take breaks during a day at work, whether or not we are actually aware of doing so. Hidden breaks, such as checking your phone briefly, are not relaxing and impede your mental recovery.
Instead of hidden breaks, it is better to plan in deliberate micro-breaks of five to ten minutes. They stabilize your performance levels and improve your wellbeing, particularly if your work is creative in nature (Abuleciu et al., 2022). Longer breaks of more than 10 minutes are often more effective in the case of tasks that are heavily mentally taxing.
Find the ideal break type for you
Not every kind of break has the same effect; different ones meet different needs.
We will soon be adding a test to this page that will show you what type of break you correspond to and what breaks will work best for you.
“Sleeping is our brain’s most important regeneration program. When we sleep, our body relaxes and our brain really gets to work. It sorts, filters, and more or less gets things in order for the day to come.”
Privatdozent Dr. Michael Sommerauer, sleep researcher at the University Hospital Bonn
More information and practical tips for better sleep quality can be found in the sections below.
What good and restful sleep can do for you
Restful sleep is key to good health. While we sleep, the body regenerates itself, processes information and strengthens its immune system. Good sleep plays a major role in how we perform at work or university and helps us to handle stressful situations better.
There are various reasons why we need to sleep well. These are just a few of the things that go on while we sleep:
- Regenerating all types of tissue, such as muscle and bone cells; removing metabolic waste
- Strengthening the immune system: activating the body’s immune cells (T-cells) and messengers to ward off infections (cytokines)
- Reducing stress: regulating or reducing levels of the stress hormone cortisol
Processing experiences and consolidating memories - Stabilizing our mood and emotional balance
- Metabolism: regulating growth and appetite hormones as well as blood glucose levels
Source: Backhaus, 2023
Insomnia
Are you someone who needs ages to drop off at bedtime or spends the night tossing and turning, struggling to get back to sleep? Then you are not alone. One in three people in Germany say that they have difficulties falling or staying asleep, with women more likely than men to be affected (TK sleep study, 2017).
As well as affecting our subjective wellbeing, insomnia also has an objectively quantifiable impact on our general health as well as our capacity to work and perform. Even just a few nights of poor sleep can make us irritable, more likely to get stressed and unable to concentrate properly. Long-term sleep problems are a risk factor for various disorders.
Find out here when you should see a doctor.
Poor-quality sleep over the long term can affect your health and performance levels in various ways, including:
- General performance: lower concentration, shorter attention span, slower reactions, heightened risk of making mistakes at work or university
- Resilience: increased fatigue and sensitivity to stress
- General mood: greater irritability and/or emotional instability
- Cardiovascular system: heightened risk of cardiovascular diseases, e.g. high blood pressure, heart attacks or strokes
- Metabolism: negative impact on appetite hormones, blood glucose levels and growth hormone secretion
- Mental health: prolonged problems can increase the risk of depression and/or anxiety disorders
Source: Backhaus, 2023
What are the hallmarks of restful sleep?
It is not only the length but also, and in particular, the quality of our sleep that determines how rested we are going to feel in the morning. Restful sleep encompasses several phases that repeat several times a night.
Criteria for good-quality sleep
- Time needed to drop off: less than 30 minutes
- Sleeping through: brief periods of wakefulness (waking up several times a night is normal)
- Getting enough sleep overall: seven to nine hours on average for adults
- Waking up rested: feeling full of energy and able to perform at a high level during the day; no severe tiredness or lethargy in the morning or as the day goes on
Tips for healthy sleep
Sleeping well is something you can learn. With the right sleep hygiene and a few tweaks to your behavior, you should be able to improve the quality of your sleep significantly if it is being impaired by non-physical factors. The overview below offers some tips that are easy to put into practice every day.
You should be aware that the following tips are no substitute for a proper medical diagnosis or advice from a doctor. Find out here when you should seek a professional opinion.
Sleep hygiene and routine
- Try and set consistent times for going to bed and getting up (including at the weekend).
- Introduce some relaxing evening rituals, e.g. reading, breathing exercises, hot drinks (milk, tea).
Sleep environment
- Make sure your room is quiet, dark and cool (16–19°C is recommended).
- Source a mattress that is as comfortable as possible and a suitable pillow.
- Try to avoid all screens for the last hour before going to bed.
Behavior during the day
- Make sure you get enough daylight in the mornings.
- Make regular exercise part of your daily routine (but avoid intensive sporting activities just before bedtime).
- Do not eat a heavy meal or drink any alcohol or caffeinated drinks during the evening.
- Short power naps (up to 20 minutes) are OK during the day but not too close to bedtime.
Reducing stress
- Try out relaxation techniques like breathing exercises, meditation and progressive muscle relaxation during the day and in the evening.
- See if you can jot your thoughts down on paper rather than keeping them in your head (write notes or to-do lists).
Quality of sleep and performance levels
Studies have demonstrated unequivocally that the quality of our sleep has a decisive impact on our performance at work or university.
Among other things, poor-quality sleep is associated with
- a shorter attention span and more difficulty concentrating;
- a heightened risk of making mistakes or causing an accident;
- poorer memory, especially our working memory;
- slower reactions;
- greater difficulty solving problems and making decisions;
- reduced emotional resilience; and
- less capacity for creativity and innovation.
In other words, it is worth ensuring good-quality sleep over the long term.
Sleep at specific times in our lives
Menopause
Many women experience changes to their sleep during the menopause.
Hormonal changes can cause them to suffer restless sleep, wake up in the night or have difficulty dropping off. Hot flushes, night sweats and increased sensitivity to stress are also common problems that can make sleep even harder to come by.
- A cooler sleep environment and thin bedsheets.
- Regular relaxation exercises during the day and evening, e.g. breathing exercises, progressive muscle relaxation and meditation.
- Make sure you get enough exercise during the day, ideally outdoors.
- Scale back on the potential triggers for hot flushes, such as spicy food and alcohol.
- Maintain a consistent sleep routine and good sleep hygiene.
Please consult a doctor if your problems persist or are severe.
Sleep disrupted by children and sick family members
More information to follow
When should I see a doctor?
- If you have had trouble sleeping for more than four weeks
- If you are having problems dropping off or sleeping through every night
- If you are extremely tired during the day, having difficulty concentrating or experiencing a slump in your performance levels
- If you find that your breathing stops, you are snoring heavily or you have restless legs
- If your sleeping problems are accompanied by stress, anxiety or generally feeling down
- If you are regularly having to take sleeping pills
N.B.: Taking action early helps to identify causes and combat them effectively. Your first port of call should be your family doctor.
Sources
Details of the sources relating to breaks will be added here shortly.
Details of the sources relating to sleep will be added here shortly.
Contact
Dr. Katja Stöver
Svenja Keutgen