Study tips: How to keep in tip top shape during exam season

Exam season is an extremely stressful period for everyone. It can be scary and downright confusing on how to cope with your studies, as well as maintain your physical and mental health.

To help, we’ve drawn up some tips on how to keep in tip-top physical and mental shape this upcoming exam season.

Diet

A healthy body is vital for a healthy mind. But when our bodies become ill, it causes our moods to similarly decline. Some simple means of staying physically nourished to ensure your at peak mental conditioning for study include:

Eat less fried food: That late night run to Maccas that you think is helping you stay awake? Forget about it. Put down those burgers and fries cause they’ll only decrease productivity. Moreover, you’ll gain weight and excessive consumption may lead to poor health. Don’t want that!

Eating more fruits and vegetables: If you absolutely must snack on something, why not opt for fruits and vegetables? Naturally low in fat, sodium, and calories, eating your fruits and veggies can also decrease blood pressure, slow the ageing process and lower your cholesterol levels. They’re also rich in vitamins and minerals!

Having meals on time and regularly: Too many students skip out on meals. We’re not saying you need over-eat but make sure you’re getting enough healthy foods in you at regular intervals to ensure you’re prepared for  Irregular eating will increase gastrointestinal burden and cause indigestion and other diseases.

Exercise

Studying might be a mental exercise but don’t let your body languish. You don’t need to hit the gym so hard or go for a long jog around the park; all you have to do is make sure you’re moving about and stretching as much as you can so that you’re not feeling sore from sitting in one spot all day.

Literally just having a stroll down your street will help you plenty — and at the very least, you’ll also be breathing in some fresh air.

For more of an idea on how you can stay productive and make sure you’re taking care of your body, refer to this article on quick exercises to do if you’re short on time.

Treating yourself 

As important as it is to buckle down and hit the books, taking a mental break from study and allowing yourself some personal time is also important. Just like taking a short break to stretch and move about, taking a break to do something for yourself is just as good.

Maybe complete some extra pages of that novel you’re reading at the moment, get some quick play done on one of your favourite games or watch an episode or two of the Netflix sitcom you’re trying to binge.

Social time with friends also comes under personal time so don’t feel like studying should always be such a solitary experience because treating yourself every now and then is a good thing.

Sleep

We all love sleep but often can lose sight of how much we need it during exam period. All-nighters are commonplace for students looking to cram as much as they can before an exam but you won’t be helping yourself by constantly staying up.

Make sure you get enough sleep — the optimal amount of sleep you need is eight hours per day — and if you need to, take a nap. This keeps your body and mind fresh and ready for anything that stands in your way.

Less sleep for a prolonged period will only end up with you becoming fatigued and thus not working effectively.

These were our tips on how to keep in tip top shape during exam time. Of course, there are plenty of other techniques you can use to keep your mind and body prepared for those dreaded exams. What are some of the things you do to prepare for exams? What’s worked and what doesn’t work? Let us know in the comments below. 

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This story was produced by Media and Communication students at Trinity College Foundation Studies as part of Meld’s community newsroom collaboration. Education institutions, student clubs/societies and community groups interested in being involved can get in touch with us via meld@meldmagazine.com.au.