Healthy Food and Posture Habits
We all know the struggle of trying to stay healthy if you have a busy job. After a long day at work, sometimes the last thing we want to do is go to the gym or go for a walk, and mostly after a stressful day all we want to do is reach for comfort food or sugary snacks. But just because you’re at work doesn’t mean you cannot try your best to eat healthy. By meal prepping your lunch and snacks, and simply by ensuring you eat a healthy breakfast, this can really curb your sugar cravings and help you to stay on track. Eating healthily can help you to feel calmer, more energetic and less stressed.
Good Posture Habits
Another area that can help you to stay healthy if you have a busy lifestyle is to ensure you have good posture whilst sitting at your office desk. It is hugely important to maintain good posture because by sitting and standing with the correct postural alignment this allows you to work more efficiently with less fatigue and strain on your body’s ligaments and muscles. It will also prevent you from getting sore shoulders or a sore back due to bad posture habits. Many companies are now taking extra steps to ensure their employees adopt good posture habits at work.
For example, VDU Risk Assessments which can also be known as Display Screen Equipment Risk Assessments (DSE). These assessments are a legal requirement under the “2007 General Application Regulations”. The Irish law states that the employer is required to undertake Visual Display Unit (VDU) (DSE) Assessments on all computer workstations where an employee will spend longer than 1 hour per day and ensure the employee’s posture is correct whilst giving the employee guidelines and advice on how they can improve their posture and work habits whilst they sit at their desks. For more information about VDU assessments please contact us via email and we would be happy to help.
Exercising At Your Office Desk
Adapting some easy and quick exercises into your work day that can be done whilst sitting at your desk. These can be as simple as doing a few hamstring stretches, shoulder spins or desk push ups. Desk exercise equipment have become hugely popular in recent years. These can easily be incorporated into your busy work day and can make a huge difference to your fitness levels. Check out our great range of kneeling and movement chairs which can help you to stay active during work.
We also provide a range of sit-stand desks which can be added onto your current desk and help you to move during your day. They can be easily adjusted between a sitting and standing position.
Drink Plenty of Water
It may seem simple, but drinking the recommended daily amount of water of 8 cups per day can really help you to stay healthy. Drinking enough water is good for you and it will also help to keep your mind off fizzy drinks, teas or coffees because you are adequately hydrated. It can also help to fight other cravings too and is great for weight loss. Ever feel sleepy at your desk? That may be due to dehydration. So go grab a cup of water and make sure you drink over 8 cups a day. If you want some flavour, add a few lime, lemon or cucumber slices into your water bottle.
Try to Avoid Eating at Your Desk
It is advised that you try to avoid eating your lunch or snacks at your office desk. Often times this can lead us to over eat, and eat more than we need. If we are distracted by something, in this case our computer and office environments, we tend to mindlessly eat more than we need. This increases our calorie intake and can lead to overeating- resulting in more time in the gym! Try to have your lunch or snacks in a social setting if you are at work. Grab lunch with a colleague and head to the office kitchen. This helps to get you away from your desk and gives you a break from your computer screen. This way, you can also enjoy your lunch more and helps you to realise quicker if you are full.
Get Enough Sleep
Getting enough sleep seems cliché but it can really help if you are trying to improve your health, fitness levels or engagement at work. When we get enough sleep (it is recommended 8 hours a night) we feel energised, less stressed and ready to take on the day. Often when we are tired we tend to want to eat sugary snacks to give us that quick energy rush. This can often be combatted by drinking enough water and sleeping enough. Try to set a regular bed time and stick to it, especially on weekdays. This will help you to stay more alert and will improve your concentration, stress and energy levels when you are in the office.
Sometimes life does get in the way and we run on a lack of sleep. In this case, it can often help to have an office relaxation pod in your office. This is a huge new trend as it can allow the employee to maintain a work-life balance by allowing them to relax or take a nap during the day if they need to. Relaxation pods are a contemporary and innovative system of office furniture which provides ultimate comfort with acoustic functionality.
I must admit that I am guilty of not drinking enough water. but I do make sure I have good posture and that I eat healthily