If you are like most people, you look forward to getting a chance to relax when the weekend finally rolls around. Unfortunately, most weekends have the potential to not meet your expectations. They can seem as if they go by too fast, or you may feel like you yourself don’t make the most out of the time you have on your days off. You can do some of the following things to better enjoy your weekend and have a better chance to walk away feeling energized.

Change the Way You Think About Weekends

An experiment was done with workers in the United States to better understand how they should be spending their weekends. Fifty percent of the group in the experiment were told to treat their weekend like any other typical weekend. The other half were told to treat their weekend as if they were instead on vacation. In the end, the researchers found that people who treated their weekend like they were on vacation were happier than those who treated it as if it was just a regular weekend.

The most significant difference, however, was the way they viewed their time spent. When you are on vacation, you are more mindful and attentive to living in the moment that you are in and the activities that you are doing; basically, seizing the moment and enjoying it while you can. The test group that did not think of their weekend as a vacation reported no difference and were in comparison much more stressed and unfulfilled than the first test group. This led the researchers, and everyone else, to conclude that the key to getting the most out of your weekend is to be present in whatever you are doing.

A Break from the Routine

You have a routine that you follow Monday through Friday. If you are not careful, the same patterns you are familiar with can spill over into your weekend. Use the weekend to find a way to break out of your comfort zone. Try new experiences. For example, why not visit a resort with entertainment? Or visit a jazz club, try a new activity, or attack a hobby you have had on the back burner for some time.

By stepping out of your comfort zone, you help make the weekends feel different than the weekdays. You walk away feeling invigorated, ready to get back to work, and excited to try something new the following weekend.

Give Yourself Time to Rest

Jam packing a lot of activities into your weekend can be a lot of fun. But whether you are exerting yourself hiking or exerting yourself at a physical job, both forms of exertion tax your body’s limited energy supplies. Make sure that you have some time each weekend that is just for yourself. Schedule time where you can relax and recharge.

Weekends only come around once a week. Make the most of them. Don’t use Sunday night to plan what you are going to do on Monday. Take advantage of the entire weekend. You will be happy that you did.