Maintaining a healthy lifestyle comes with many difficulties. Throw kids, a hectic work schedule, and any other obstacle in life you might face on top of that, and staying fit becomes a sincere challenge that won’t get easier unless you take action in the places you can. The average person spends at least eight hours at their place of work per day, and most people will punch in overtime several times a year, if not more. If you want to nurture a healthier body and mind, then first start with your work habits. Then, watch as your discipline and self-care in the workplace slowly creep into your personal and family life.
Know the Risks
There is a fair amount of risk associated with any job, some more severe than others. Knowledge is the best way to combat illness or work-related injuries. Firefighters obviously face a long list of hazards on the job, but they’re actually more likely to die from a heart attack than they are in a fire. Coal miners are too often diagnosed with lung cancer after years of working in such a harsh environment. Many times, these workers are not even treated fairly by employers after suffering grave consequences. The experts at KentuckyCourage.com advise you to find a helping hand if you’re seeking worker’s compensation for a work-related illness. But before it gets that far, try your best to understand the ins and outs of any adverse effect your work environment can have on your wellness.
Avoid Snacking and Fast-Food
Many jobs come with their fair share of deadlines and expectations. Most jobs allow a one-hour lunch break, but how often do you cut it short or skip it all together so you can mark off that line on your to-do list or make that last phone call? This tendency usually leads to really poor eating habits, but there are simple solutions that can help you get your munching under control. Fast-food or incessant snacking is a symptom of poor time management and/or being overworked. If you want to get your health in check, try prepping your meals the day or week before, and always keep some healthy snacks handy for those times when you get caught up with responsibilities.
Time Management is Your Friend
If your job is complemented with its own brand of anxiety, then do everything in your power to manage this by staying a couple of steps ahead at work. Keep your blood pressure down by writing a simple to-do list at the start of every day, but don’t get too discouraged if you don’t accomplish each point and just add them to tomorrow’s list. There are too many apps that can assist you in planning each day. There’s no reason to fret over things that are within your control, but you must take active steps to stay in control.
Take 5 to Take a Lap
Do you ever get up from your desk and feel like your body is screaming at you? Well, it is in fact your body letting you know that you’ve been sitting for far too long. If you work a desk job, then you have no choice but to sit for hours a day. However unavoidable that may be, try to take as many breaks as time will allow to stretch and move your limbs. This improves circulation, will naturally keep you more awake, and has actually been proven to support mental health. Take five minutes to go for a couple of laps around your office or to stretch in your cubicle. It will make you feel better and will help you steer clear of the common aches and pains that come from being a desk jockey.
Don’t Drink the Poison
Sometimes it’s the work itself that causes stress, but sometimes it’s the people. Toxic people can be at the core of your dissatisfaction without you even realizing it. Much like poison, sometimes you don’t realize its effects if it’s ingested in small doses. If you have colleagues who gossip, complain, or are known to bully or harass you or people in your office, then avoid them like your life depends on it – because your mental health might! Do not subject yourself to any negativity these types of people can pollute your environment with. Treat yourself to some tender loving self-care by surrounding yourself with positive or neutral personalities, or just keep to yourself and save the socializing for your personal life.
Setting and sticking with a work routine is never easy, but it’s a worthwhile endeavor. Taking care of yourself will inevitably result in being able to show up more for those you care about. Remember to always keep your mental, physical, and emotional health in order at work, and the rest will follow.
