ABSTRACT
Strain and fatigue are the most common short-term effects of a workday. These are the consequences of our effort investments throughout the day in order to meet the demands of work. During the day our energetic (and emotional) resources are depicted, and need to be replenished from time to time. This process is referred to as 'recuperation' or 'recovery'. Recovery is important because it allows us to prepare and be ready for the challenges of a new (work)day. We can think about the working day as consisting of three separate domains: working and traveling to work time, non-work time and sleep. Non-work time can be further divided into leisure time, referring to the time spent solely on activities one wishes to pursue, and other non-paid work time activities such as doing domestic chores. The way our society is currently organized implies that when at work we have to work, and the time after work is meant for resting and recovering from the daily hassles. However, people (need to) engage in various activities after work: i.e., domestic duties, (child)care, social activities, sports, etc. These activities might also impose demands on our resources. A relevant question, therefore, is to what extent do these activities facilitate or prohibit recovery? Sleep plays an important role in the recovery process, although the exact role of sleep in the process of recovery is not yet completely understood. The aim of this chapter is to review some of the perspectives in this domain, by reviewing the concept of recovery and discussing the role of various activities in relation to recovery.
