Recently two friends from
the US came to visit M and I. While we were exploring a different state, I
received an offer to participate in a posting with Nuts.com on easy
goals to make an average work day healthier. I was asked to contribute three
“hacks” as they called them, and in return they created this neat little
graphic check list for me to share on BYOL.
Now
I want to be clear, there was no money exchanged. I was not paid nor had to pay
to participate. While I have made many purchases from Nuts.com over the years
when I lived in New York, I am not partnered with them nor do I receive
any bonus or incentives to post for them. As such I feel in clear conscious
about sharing these quick little and cheap tips.
Having
lived and worked in different office settings around New York, I know how
demanding and stressful a typical day can be. As such, here are just a few
suggestions that can help improve your work day and remove some temptations
from your office environment .
1.
Taking a walk after lunch
This
has long been one of my favorite tips for office workers, as using part of your
lunch break to take a walk can do wonders for your physical and mental health.
Walking after a meal has been shown to help aid in digestion, lower blood
sugar, bring down your triglycerides, and it burns some excess calories.
Perhaps the best thing is you only need to walk for about 10-15 minutes to
start achieving these results. It also helps get you out of the office for a
few minutes, when you return you’ll often be more productive having refreshed
your mind.
2.
Swap the candy jar with a bowl of fruit:
One
of the most challenging parts about working in an office is you tend to be
surrounded by unhealthy options, particularly in the form of candy jars. These
become comparable to a safari watering hole where people congregate throughout
the afternoon. However, what could be at play is the fact that after an entire
morning of stress and decision-making, we start to exhaust our mental
capabilities. This is similar to endurance athletes and as such, taking in a
healthy source of glucose in the form of fruit can help satisfy that sweet
craving by supplying all the sugars your brain needs in a healthy way.
3.
Water over soda – staying hydrated
This
one will probably seem quite obvious, but it relates more to the one above than
many might assume. The sweetness of soda makes it especially enticing as the
daily fatigue of the day starts to set in; however even diet sodas have been
found to lead to weight gain, as they stimulate our hunger sense and cause us
to eat more. Soda also has a limited ability to hydrate our body which is why sometimes
after drinking it, you remain thirsty.
On
the other hand, water is calorie-free and hydrating. It helps prevent bad
breath, and can even refresh our brain energy.
So
go ahead and try these simple and cheap suggestions and see if it helps make
your day at the office a little more tolerable. I’m willing to bet it is.
Also while I never like to endorse specific products or companies,
I will share that nuts.com has a great selection of assorted nuts
and dried fruits that can make eating and snacking at the office easier.
(although do remember that it is not a plant-based company, so be sure to
always read the ingredients.) For more tips and to see their products, check
out their Healthy Snacks for Work page.
As always the information presented in this blog is for educational purposes only. It should not be considered as specific medical, nutritional, lifestyle, or other health-related advice.