The Art Of Taking Breaks

Why take breaks in the first case? A computer can run all day without a break, and its function won't be impacted. However, this is only the case if the computer is connected to a charging cable. Humans don't have access to this. Instead, we have to alternate between working, and charging sessions - a.k.a. breaks. Since our mental energy and ability for deep work is limited, we need some time to regenerate. The question is just when, and for how long.

Timings

Let's consider two cases. In the first case, we study until we are completely tired out. This usually happens after around 2 hours of focused studying. Then, we take a one hour break, before studying for another 2 hours. Chances are, you'll still be tired from the 2 hour study session, even after one hour, simply because it took such a mental toll.

The second case is you study for 20 minutes, take a 5 minute break, and keep on repeating this. You'll most likely preserve more energy, however the 20 minutes will rarely be enough to get into a deep work flow and really dial in on what you're doing.

So, as a general recommendation, I suggest you go for a more moderate middle path. Personally, I prefer a 45:15 ratio, with 45 minute study periods and 15 minute breaks. This gives me enough time to focus on my work, while also preserving my energy for a long time period.

What kind of break ratio you use really depends on what kind of work you're doing. For normal, active studying, like using flashcards or writing an essay, 45:15 can work quite well. If you're solving extremely difficult math problems, or on the other extreme, only passively copying down notes or answering emails, shorter or longer study periods will be more effective. This requires some experimenting around. As a general rule of thumb, though, try and keep the duration of your study periods anywhere between 30 and 120 minutes.

The daily study limit

I would suggest you aim for a maximum of 6 hours of studying per day. Realistically, only 4 hours will be deep, focused studying. The last 2 hours can still be effective, but not as much as the first four. Over 6 hours, too much mental energy is used up, and it will be extremely difficult to get any effective studying done.

Cal Newport, writer of the book "Deep Work", suggests the maximum amount of deep work someone can accomplish in a day is around 4 hours. That is for people who have trained the skill of deep work, however. For someone just starting out, the limit may be more around 2 hours.

To improve your ability to do deep, focused work, I recommend that you try and work in an environment with minimal distractions. Switch your phone into Do Not Disturb mode, close the door, and unclutter your desk. If you're working in a room with other people, consider wearing a pair of noise-cancelling headphones. When it comes to music, try and listen to something without lyrics, such as Lo-fi, as this will reduce how distracting it is.

Now, if you can, try and divide your study session into two: one in the morning, and one in the evening. This way, you have a very long break in the middle, in which your mind has time to rest. This means you'd have around three hours in the morning, and three hours in the afternoon.

Breaks for memorisation

When you learn something new, neural connections form between the neurons in your brain. This is your memory. Over time, those neural connections grow weaker, so you need to review the information again. However, once you review the information, the neural connections grow back stronger.

This is why breaks are really effective for memorisation. If you learn something new, take a break, and then review it after the break, you will remember the information much more clearly. This is because your brain had some time to forget the information, so when you repeat it again, the neural connections grow back stronger. When you're reviewing the information a second time, I recommend you use active recall techniques, such as flashcards, or brain dumps. For more advice on how to memorise information, check out this post: How to memorise large chunks of information.

What to do in a break?

Often, as soon as we take a break, we want to reward ourselves for the studying we just accomplished. However, I highly advise you not to do this, for two reasons.

First, it will reduce how effectively you study after the break. If you eat something sugary, your blood sugar will spike, then drop quickly, resulting in you being very tired when you sit down again to study. If you go onto social media or watch TV, your mind is constantly processing new information. Especially on TikTok and Instagram, your mind spends a lot of energy, as you see a new post or video every couple seconds.

Second, if you reward yourself after studying, your mind will constantly crave for the studying to be over. So, you'll be less focused. Additionally, by rewarding your mind at the end of a study period, you're directly telling your mind that the actual studying itself was unpleasant, as you need a reward at the end. This will make you less motivated to study in the future.

What should you do instead? Something which is not mentally demanding. Go outside for some fresh air, and maybe go for a quick walk. Talk to some friends or family for a bit, or drink a glass of water. Reading is also a viable option, as you spend a lot less mental energy when you're reading.

A quick note on meditation

Meditation as a technique to replenish mental energy and improve your focus has been proven very effective by many studies. Meditation can also reduce your levels of stress, which then improves how well you can focus. Because, a calm mind is much more effective than a stressed mind.

So, if you're looking to take your breaks to the next level, you could try meditating during your study breaks. As to the type of meditation, I recommend that you simply focus on your breathing. As soon as your attentions switches to another topic, try and bring it back to your breath.

After a couple sessions of meditation, you will already see an improvement in the quality and duration of your focus. This is because, when meditating, you are directly training your mind to remain focused on one thing (your breathing) for an extended period of time.