SAN FRANCISCO, CA – HEALTH – Many people tend to blame their unhealthy habits on their work life, and they might just be onto something. The practices you perform at work can negatively affect your physical, emotional and mental well-being – especially for those who work in the corporate world. Sitting behind a desk for eight hours, slouched over, staring at a computer screen and munching on convenience food can certainly take a toll.
However, there are many little things you can do to improve your health at work so that you are happier and more productive.
Here are 5 tips for improving your health at work:
- Brown bag it: One of the best things you can do for your health is to eat healthier. Packing your own lunch will keep you away from the fast food restaurants and the snack machine, ensuring you know what goes into your body. And the best part is, you do not have to trade taste for health. When done right, healthy food can be quite tasty and satisfying. A healthy lunch should include lean protein, healthy fats and a surplus of vitamins and minerals. A great example of a healthy brown bag lunch is grilled chicken salad with dried fruit, a mini low-fat bran muffin, a piece of dark chocolate with almond and a half cup of organic yogurt. Another example is a chicken or steak burrito with black beans and wild rice, organic baked corn chips with fresh guacamole, and a fruit, nut and dark chocolate bar. Also, do not forget your refillable water bottle – avoid sugary drinks as they can contribute to fatigue, brain fog, and slow metabolism.
- Stand more: Sitting for long hours is a normal activity in most corporate settings. However, as convenient as it is to sit, sitting too much can cause extreme degradation to your health, including influencing weight gain, low energy, slow circulation and body pains. It can even shorten your lifespan. Standing more while you are working can be easily accomplished by trading in your conventional desk for a standing desk. The standing desks at healthydesks.com are designed to allow you to take standing and sitting intervals. By just making the effort to stand behind the standing desk for at least 10 minutes an hour, you can add years to your life while burning calories, increasing energy and reducing pain.
- Exercise and sunshine: Getting sunshine and exercising are two obvious way to encourage health at work. You can trade your pumps for gym shoes and take the stairs instead of the elevator. Soak in the sun by going for a five-minute walk after lunch and take sporadic breaks to stretch and do some mild cardio such as jumping jacks, lunges, wall-ups and jogging in place.
- Love your job: It’s an unfortunate fact that many people are working a job that they simply hate. We have all heard the complaints about mean bosses, long hours, long commute, uninteresting work duties and so much more. If this sounds like you, then it’s time for a change. The resentment you have built up towards your job can lead to depression, anxiety, low energy and continual fatigue. The best remedy would be to either learn to focus on the good aspects of your job or find the courage to leave that unhealthy environment and pursue a job that you will love. Doing duties that you are passionate about can releases good mood endorphins as well as increases productivity energy levels.
- Inspire others: While it is completely possible to maintain good health on your own, doing so with your co-workers can make the journey to good health more fun and rewarding. You can inspire your co-workers by talking to them about some of these easy ways to implement healthy activities throughout the day. Tell them about your successes and they will be inspired to give healthy work life a try.
Being healthy doesn’t just pertain to your home life. In order to gain optimal health you must find ways to create healthy practices everywhere you go.
By Rachel Matthews
Freelance
© 2015 Distributed by Troy Media
