¡°Work less, do more, live better¡± was the message behind our cover feature earlier this month, in which scholar urged her fellow academics to ensure that they make time for a life outside their professional obligations.

But how do those of you who work in the 24/7 world of higher education let off steam? We used our Twitter account () to find out, asking you to share your favourite methods of relaxation using the hashtag .

Some of you were sceptical about the very idea of time off. Kevin Barker (), who describes himself as a ¡°legal scholar¡±, said: ¡°Downtime? Unwind? Difficult on this planet called Academia¡±. However, he did have some advice. ¡°Avoiding fellow academics in downtime helps,¡± he tweeted.

Vincent Gauci (), senior lecturer in earth systems and ecosystems science at The Open University, was keen to make sure his students didn¡¯t work themselves too hard.

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¡°I tell my research students that new creative ideas are not born from a 60hr wk in the lab,¡± Dr Gauci tweeted sagely. ¡°Go lie on a beach somewhere for a week,¡± is what he tells his charges.

¡°As a [woman in science] with kids & non- hubby, I learnt to #HErelax (minus guilt) from a , 15 yrs ago,¡± recounted Dawn Bazely (), a professor in the Department of Biology at York University in Canada, while Sam Grogan (), dean of students at the University of Salford, said that ¡°running and/or walking with my dog in the hills¡± was his chosen relaxation method. ¡°By the time I get home, solutions have appeared,¡± he added.

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¡°Highly recommend salsa, yoga and good food! Very non-academic! Wonderful!¡± enthused Nicola Rollock (), deputy director at the University of Birmingham¡¯s Centre for Research in Race and Education, while Heather Mitchell-Buck (), assistant professor of English at Hood College in the US, revealed that she unwinds ¡°after teaching & research with ! Hitting big drums with big sticks = great way to #HErelax¡±. She even posted a picture.

@timeshighered I unwind after teaching and research with #taiko! Hitting big drums w/big sticks=great way to #HErelaxpic.twitter.com/6Xvwez8Ong

- Heather MB (@profheathermb) August 7, 2014