Spinning your wheels

I am a wheel spinner.  I burn a lot of time on research projects which I have been stuck on for a long time, think about regularly, and still have no new ideas for.  Usually this does not lead to new results nor developing new skills.  Often I'm doing this because I feel it's a time that I "should" be being productive, or because I am dreading refereeing or something else work-related I don't want to do.  But working for the sake of working during a specific time or working enough hours is not always the most productive, and definitely not the most enjoyable.  Of course, everyone has different work habits and schedules they need, and should do what's best for them.  Personally, I tend to think: I could use this 1 hour to a) do an awful-sounding work task, b) do something that would make me feel good (e.g. go for a run, read, etc), or c) spin my wheels.  In the end, I often opt for c) because then "at least I'm working" but at the end I have nothing to show for it, am frustrated I did not do desirable item b), and then still need to do whatever unpleasant item a) I was putting off anyway.  My new goal for the year is to focus more on finding the balance when I'm stuck on projects.  Switching gears to knock out a little refereeing or reading for 20 minutes would really ultimately make me happier and be more fulfilling overall.  Flexibility in my schedule is supposed to be the perk of academia, so I'm shooting towards making the best use of it!