To take breaks when working from home?

Have a commute to work (30 min outdoor walk), several breaks to move around (these could include loading washing/unloading dishwasher or even just standing in the garden looking into distance to refresh your eyes.)

If you can have a quick outdoor walk at lunch (prep your lunch the night before) or do a quick 15 min strength training .

My manager absolutely encourages it as we can be stuck at a screen 8-10hrs a day otherwise.

I don't understand. Surely they are not expecting you to work w/o a break for 7 hours. If you work for 7 hours during the day in total does it matter how those hours were split?

I also have a brain intensive job (journal editor). I have an app which locks my monitor for 5 mins in every 60. I can't override it once it starts (if I have meetings planned I can pause the whole app). Apart from the obvious benefit of having a break, I find knowing I have a break in say 30 mins or whatever helps me to stay focussed and work more productively.

I wfh so don't have the office distractions of a long walk to the loo or tea breaks with colleagues.

You can get a lot done in 5 mins though - throw a load of washing on, hang washing on the line, wash up, a bit of tidying, peel some veg (one, not all of those!).

Take breaks
I take 2 x 15 mins and a 30 min lunch in 9hrs, mine is screen based and we have to take that time

Breaks yeah but doing all your household chores is taking the piss.

I so need a wfh job. Like really.

Of course, you have to move away for the sake of your eyes and health.
I'm up for 5 mins every 45 mins or so. Cup of tea / toilet / put laundry in machine etc.
I'm chattier and can move around more in the office so I'm not going to feel guilty getting regular mini comfort breaks.

Pretty sure one is obliged to take at least one break in 7 hours

Genuinely considering it... But just wondering what roles people do. I looked at EHCP coordinator recently and people said it was intense and everyone leaves within a year so maybe not. Obvious social workers and teachers work for local gov but people face. Admin staff get paid about 23k and I want to earn more than that...

I work very hard but would love the flexibility to choose to stop and take a 10min break in the garden! Mental health wise I think I md work for longer.

Think about your eyes! I find the 20 20 20 thing really doable Even when I'm really busy

www.healthline.com/health/eye-health/20-20-20-rule

What job do you do? I need to move from people facing to wfh so I have some flexibility but it's hard at over 40!

No need to stop the clock for short breaks. They are essential for prolonged concentration and therefore part of the overall work.

I simply cannot think properly if I don’t have a break, though when the pressure is on I work for hours non stop. Funnily enough, if I take a break and go up the road to the shops, I find that stuff I’ve been working on sorts itself out in my head as I am walking. I find it difficult to stop when I’m under pressure but I know I work better if I do

What? I take loads of breaks! Tea, loo, stretch etc

If I were paying £300 an hour or whatever ridiculous figures are charged in the world of billable hours, I'd want 60 minutes of work for it.

Of course you need breaks too. Your employer IBU expecting you to generate 7 billable hours a day. Nobody can manage that.

Take a quick walk during the day too. Helps to think

You absolutely do not need to 'stop the clock' for 5 mins breaks. Yes for lunch, but not for a quick break to make a cuppa!

Brain needs a break to process

You take short breaks within the billable hours. The clients are paying for a human to work on their documents, not chatgpt. Humans do a better job but need breaks.

This. You should obviously take a loo break mid morning and mid afternoon.

Of course OP!

when I was young I had insanely high powers of concentration and I could stay on task at peak performance for hours, as long as my work was interesting

now I’m older I struggle more

my concentration and focus is better with regular breaks and therefore I am MORE productive if I stop and look out of the window, tell Alexa to play some mellow music, pop to the loo or get a glass of water.

Usually I factor in a break every hour or every two hours.

I find if I’m anxious about a deadline or phasing out, putting music on helps, or even putting on a relatively boring programme from radio4 . Having a voice droning on quietly seems to mimic “office background noise” and I find it easier to concentrate (I don’t actually listen to what’s on, it’s just having something to soothe my mind into a work-ready mode.)

Of course!

Take breaks! Take your full lunch break. We're not machines!

Get up at least once an hour and move for about 5 minutes - probably every 40 mins is optimal for concentration purposes

perhaps Grab a cup of tea
Stare out if the window to rest your eyes
Stretch your back out
Go to the loo
Grab a skipping rope

Unless you are a machine You can't concentrate for hours on end and you will be more productive if you take the break

You are behaving irresponsibly if you don't manage / maximise your productivity by switching your attention every so often