Juggling good nutrition with the demands of a busy schedule is tricky at the best of times. With long work days, commutes, office treats, celebrations, work lunches and even boredom, it can be challenging to keep your food and health goals on track with so many distractions. If you know that your workday habits could do with an overhaul, here are some easy ways to ensure your workday is a whole lot healthier.
1) Have set meal and snack times.
Mindless munching brings many of us undone when it comes to excessive calorie consumption, especially when we get into bad habits of eating in front of the computer. Keep your food intake limited to set meal and snack times which will not only help to control your total calorie intake but also ensure you take breaks from the screen every 2-3 hours. If you day starts early, you may even find that incorporating two lunches, one late morning and then one early afternoon takes care of extra snacks and mindless munching that can slip in late morning and afternoon when we have not eaten enough through the day.
2) Take your lunch
The foods we routinely purchase from a food court contain double the calories of the meal we prepare at home. For this reason, not only is taking your lunch a smart choice nutritionally, but also from a cost perspective. Including a hot meal such as leftovers, soup or a calorie controlled frozen meal from the Lean Cuisine range also ensures that you get the protein and vegetables you need to keep you full and satisfied all afternoon, so you are less likely to crave sweet treats or be tempted by the vending machine.
3) Drink more water
The more coffee we drink, the less water we are likely to consume. In fact, at least 70% of us are chronically dehydrated at any one time which leaves us feeling lethargic, bloated and far from our best. If you do not have a water bottle within easy reach, it is highly likely you are not drinking enough. While we can count the fluid we get from cups of tea, in reality this means we still need at least a litre of extra water each day to keep moderately hydrated. So, get into the habit of always keeping cold water close by and aim to get through at least two 600ml bottles during the work day.
4) Keep away from the biscuit tin
Your office may supply cheap biscuits, or a lolly jar, or even a fruit box but the issue with having food readily available, tempting sweet foods in particular, is that it is very easy to get into a habit of consuming them regularly, even if you do not really feel like it as they become a mindless habit. As it is work rather than leisure, make a general rule to not to indulge in tempting work foods and instead save your calories for real treats consumed on weekends or out of hours.
