When you’re juggling a-million-and-one responsibilities, it’s easy to let your wellbeing slip to the bottom of your priorities list. In an ideal world, we’d all have the time to practise mindfulness, go to the gym on a regular basis and eat three nutritionally balanced meals a day – but time restraints often make managing everything impossible.

For this reason, checking in with yourself every so often is so important. And today is the perfect opportunity to do just that.

29 February – also known as ‘leap day’ – may not feel different to any other day of the week, but the fact that it only comes around every four years makes it the ideal opportunity to sit back and reflect. While several cultures see the phenomenon as possessing bad luck (in Greece, it’s believed all marriages that occur during a leap year will end in divorce), others see it as a very spiritual time. Numerologists, for example, see leap day as a time of stabilising energy, providing an opportunity to build solid foundations.  

Whether you believe in that or not, the leap day is still a great excuse to clear some space in your diary and spend some time looking after yourself. It’s a ‘spare’ 24 hours that only comes around every four years – and while you might not be able to get out of all your ongoing responsibilities, you might just be able to set aside a few moments of peace and quiet to give yourself a recharge.

So, to help you do just that, we’ve put together this list of wellness-related activities and tips you can use to give yourself a well-deserved boost this leap day.  

Spending time outside in nature is known to be beneficial for our mental health, so why not take 15 minutes to go for a stroll around your local area?

“Whether it’s going for a walk in the park, taking a trip to the coast or simply sitting under a tree, allow yourself to be fully present and immerse yourself in the sights, sounds and sensations of nature,” recommends author and spiritual leader Karen Ruimy.

To make sure you really reap the benefits, you could even try awe walking – an approach to getting out and about which tasks you with noticing the wonder around you.  

There’s something incredibly satisfying about opening the first page of a new book, but that’s not the only benefit of sitting down to read. In fact, reading has been shown to reduce your stress levels and even improve your sleep – an easy win. 

If you’ve got a spare hour or two this leap day, taking a trip to your nearest sauna could be the boost you’re looking for. It’s the ideal place to sit and reflect while also reaping several brilliant health benefits.

Indeed, as Jaakko Nousiainen, director at the Finnish Institute in London, previously told Strong Women: “At its best, taking a sauna is a mindfulness ritual – in the sauna you can relax completely without the distractions and stress caused by digital technology.”

He continued: “The calm and quiet environment of the sauna also helps to calm your mind and enables mental relaxation as well.” 

As the second month of the year comes to a close, what better time to reflect on what’s happened so far and reassess your goals for the rest of the year?

Journaling, meditation and deep breathing can all help to get you in a reflective mood – you can try using these prompts if you’re not sure where to start. 

Break out of your usual routine by trying something new or embracing your creative side. Whether you choose to paint, draw or sew, getting crafty is both fun and freeing – a win-win situation.

“Allow yourself to explore your inner world and express your inner child’s voice,” Ruimy suggests. “Ask yourself: ‘What did you love doing as a child that you no longer have time for?’ This is an extra day, so use it to reconnect with forgotten pastimes.” 

There’s a reason why hugging feels so good – it boosts levels of the love hormone oxytocin, which has been shown to reduce levels of stress and anxiety and foster feelings of community, trust and overall wellbeing.

But hugging isn’t the only way to give your oxytocin levels a boost. Self-massage, for example, will give you a nice dose of the stuff.

“When we practise physical touch, we activate nerve endings that send a signal to both our nervous and endocrine [hormone-releasing] systems,” Beata Aleksandrowicz, a massage expert, previously told Strong Women.

She continued: “We often see touch as something we receive from others, but massage and self-massage is such a great way of providing ourselves with not only all the goodness that touch brings to our body, but also to our mind and emotions.”

For a nice treat after work, spend some time stretching out your back, shoulder and arm muscles to relieve tension.

Not only is it great for minimising the impact of desk work on your body, but it’s also the perfect opportunity to practise mindfulness – something we know is good for relieving stress and helping to improve overall wellbeing.

As Mel Kent, strength and conditioning coach at PerformancePro, previously told Strong Women: “Stretching provides us with a few minutes to escape the stress of the day and get back in touch with our bodies.”

Try these four stretches for relieving desk-related tension to get started.  

Images: Getty