Healthier habits at work

We spend a large amount of our time at work. Whether you work from home or in an office or any other work environment, the food choices you make can have a big impact on your overall health and well-being.

If you are under a lot of pressure and stress at work, this can often result in you reaching for sugary and fatty foods which in turn increase the stress response, so it becomes a vicious cycle.

Here are some tips for healthier habits in the work environment:

If you go to meetings where tea, coffee and biscuits are always on offer, plan ahead and take some herbal teabags with you and some other snack options like an apple or some nuts.

Have a big bottle of water with you to encourage you to drink more fluids.

Plan ahead and take some snacks to work for mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Examples are plain yoghurts, fresh fruit, nuts and hummus and celery sticks. If you have got these with you, you are less likely to reach for the cakes and biscuits on offer.

Make time for lunch. In the ideal world this would be a proper break away from your desk where you focus on eating and nothing else. If this isn’t possible, just make sure you eat something that contains some protein like tuna, chicken, eggs etc.

Make an extra portion when cooking your evening meals so that you can take that in for lunch the next day. That is often a healthier and more sustainable choice than buying a sandwich.

If you work at home, stick to normal break times and follow the same rules as above to avoid grazing on whatever is in the cupboards!

If you go to something like a gym class straight from work, have a small snack before you leave work.

For more advice and guidance on healthier habits to help you feel great, contact a nutritionist.