Try these easy tips to feel more alert, boost your mood and improve your memory.

Turn off the TV Spending most of your down time glued to the tube could be hurting your mental health. Women who watched more than two hours of TV daily had higher rates of depression, according to a study from Eastern Washington University in Cheney, WA. Slashing time in front of the TV to two hours a day boosted mood, say researchers. Try turning off the tube and picking up a book, soaking in the tub or taking a walk instead.

Flex your mental muscles Visit a museum, do a crossword puzzle or learn a new language or hobby; taking part in activities that stimulate the brain to think could keep it sharp. In one study, University of Southern California psychologists found that people who took part in more intellectual-cultural leisure activities in early and middle adulthood were less likely to develop Alzheimer’s later in life.

Edit your to-do list All those little jobs that are lingering in your mind—from fixing the toilet latch to finally reading all the magazines that are piling up in your den—can be sources of stress when you spend energy thinking about them. Lisa Martin, author of Briefcase Moms: 10 Proven Practices to Balance Working Mothers’ Lives (Cornerview Press) suggests the 4-S approach. Sort it: see what you have to do and write it down on paper to get it out of your head. Start it: actually start doing something about it or Share it: delegate the task—hire someone to do it or share it with a family member. Lastly, Stuff it: take the task off your list--either recycle those magazines or donate them to a doctor’s office and then they’ll be off your plate, says Martin.

Get under the covers It could be just what the doctor ordered to boost your mood. "Women report feeling better during and after sexual activity," says Dr. Beverly Whipple, Secretary General for the World Association for Sexual Health. Sex appears to reduce stress, according to research, probably due to the surge in feel-good hormones like oxytocin and endorphins.

Pump some iron Want to feel better about your body? Lifting weights will improve your strength and your body image according to a study by Kathleen Martin Ginis, associate professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont. Women who strength trained for 12 weeks felt better about their bodies, thanks to their increased strength and loss of body fat.

Grab a cat nap Not catching enough zzzs can zap your concentration and torpedo your mood. “While napping was onceconsidered a bad idea because it can rob the brain’s ability to sleep at night, we now know that naps can be very good for you,” says Sean Drummond, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of California in San Diego. If you’re zonked from a night up with a sick child, sharpen up with a morning nap. “It will catch you up on lost sleep and have minimal effects on your ability to sleep at night.”

Find healthy sleep tips here.

Carve out me-time Steal a few moments for yourself during the day where ever you can find them, says Beverly Beuermann-King, a stress and wellness specialist in Little Britain, Ont. “It may be as simple as observing the beauty of nature on your commute or listening to music that either soothes you or motivates you.” Even taking a lunch break can make a huge difference in your day for rejuvenating yourself, she says.