Do you work in an office? I am lucky that I am able to walk around all day plus I walk up and down stairs daily for my job. But I know that there are allot of my friends and family and people in general that work in an office. Trying to stay healthy while you have the distraction of morning coffee and donuts, as well as sitting all day long can be tough. I was trying to think of some ways that you can continue to stay healthy even while you are at work.
1. Walk Around- Take quick breaks to walk around. Get up out of your chair and just walk to an adjacent wall and walk back and sit down. IF you are lucky to have an office that is closed off, utilize speaker phone and walk around your office while you are talking to people on the phone.
2. Drink Water- Do you drink soda or coffee at your desk. Replace some of them with water. I know a woman who would drink 5-6 cans of Mountain Dew a day at her desk. At 110 Calories per can you are looking at 550-650 of your daily caloric intake on SODA! I understand sometimes you need to have the caffeine, but by replacing 3 or 4 of those sodas with a big glass of water not only are you reducing your caloric intake but you are giving your body something it really needs. Water prevents cramping (Charley horses in the feet or legs), it also helps your body digest and liquefy food that you consume. Water is good for your skin, it has been said that by drinking 8 glasses of water one can see visible changes in the color of the skin in their faces. But the best benefit to drinking water is that it curbs your hunger. By drinking water you might be able to pass up the cream filled chocolate donuts, or the girl scout cookies that your coworker just brought in.
3. Stretch - Stretching helps to provide better circulation to other parts of the body. By having better circulation you become more alert and will feel increased energy levels. Stretching is sometimes something we do unconsciously, (what is the first thing you do when you get up out of your chair...you stretch yourself out as tall as you can get. It feels good!!). If you can try to take a 2 minute stretch break every hour or so. Nothing to difficult. Roll your head from side to side a few times. Reach for the ceiling, reach for the ground. Pull your right arm across your body and point to the wall on your left, now pull your left arm across your body and point to the wall on your right. Put your right arm behind your head and point to the floor (think scratching your back) gently push on your elbow, repeat with your left arm. Roll your ankles around. If your wardrobe permits it, sneak in a quick squat or two. Trust me your joints and muscles will thank you!
4. Wash your hands - This tip is pretty self explanatory. Wash your hands and wash them often. No one likes to be sick, washing your hands will help you combat the germ-fest that is an office. Keep Lysol (or a similar brand) wipes handy, these are great for cleaning your desk and the germs that are on it, at the end of the day.
5. Use your vacation days - Heck you earned them, use them. Even if you do not have a vacation planned take days off periodically to help you get caught up on what ever you need to get caught up on, laundry, dishes or even sleep.
~ko
Showing posts with label tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tips. Show all posts
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
12.2.09
Well. It is officially December. This time of the year can be very difficult in keeping your sanity and happiness. This time of the year you MUST take the time to be selfish. What I am talking about is depression. The holidays are loaded with minefields for causing depression. WEBMD had a great little article about the 10 easiest ways to get depressed in the holidays and how to defend yourself from them, here. I will briefly explain them if you do not have time to check out the whole article.
1. Family Gatherings - If your family fights or brings back poor memories or feelings there are ways to cope- Limit your time to how long you stay, or do not go at all. If you decide to go, spend your time with family members who do not trigger unpleasant feelings.
2. Over Commercialization - Society puts big pressure on us to out do ourselves from last year. BALONEY! Stick to simple family traditions, have your family make gifts for each other. There is no rule saying you have to do better than last year....ANYWHERE!
3. Over Commitment - Just because you are invited to 14 different holiday parties...does not mean you have to attend them all. Or any of them for that matter.
4. Over Spending - Again, you do not have to spend money at all to show someone you care. Make a coupon book, bake cookies, write personal letters to friends. If you have small children, as fun as it is watching them with the presents and taking pictures near them...They will probably not remember them, and would be just as excited over coloring books and crayons from the dollar store as they will that 40$ electronic toy. It is a hard lesson to learn but make a budget and stick to it. Another tip is to shop online, it keeps you from those impulse buys.
5. Unrealistic Expectations - Let's face it. There is no June Cleaver any more. With most mothers in the work force there is just not enough time. Again, there is no rule that says you have to have every inch of your home decorated, and have fresh cookies baking at all times. The holidays will happen with out them.
6. Fatigue - Staying up late to wrap presents, waking up early to catch the sales, spending hours baking treats for friends and family, only hurts you. Take a breather and get some sleep. You can not enjoy the holidays if you are sleep walking!
7. Stress - Let's face it, shopping, family, travel, and party planning will cause stress on ANYONE. Make sure you are taking 15 minutes everyday for just you. Read a book, take a walk, or a bath. But make sure it is just for you! Trust me, you will not regret it and 15 minutes is nothing, it is only 1% of a day.
8. Breaking Healthy Habits - So you ate 4 cookies, and had an extra glass of eggnog. Don't obsess about it. Start fresh and get back to it tomorrow. One slip up is not going to cause catastrophic damage to you or your lifestyle. One tip, before you head to a party, eat an apple or some fresh veggies. This will help you fight off over eating at a buffet.
9. Being Away - If you are no longer near your family, or your family is away for a while this time of the hear can be especially hard. Try to focus on the future and when you will see your family and loved ones again. Ask around, maybe there are others who are "family-less" that you can start a new tradition with. OR go volunteer at a shelter, it will get you around people and in the giving mood. Studies have shown that helping others improves mood, and well being.
10. Shorter Days and Lack of Sunlight - The actual darkness of winter can actually have a medical affect on your well being. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a condition that can be treated with medicine. Talk to your doctor if you feel sadness, anxiousness, have a loss in desire to do activities and/or are sleeping more than usual for a period of 2 weeks or more. More than 1/2 Million Americans are affected by SAD each year. You are not alone!
Happy Holidays
~ko
1. Family Gatherings - If your family fights or brings back poor memories or feelings there are ways to cope- Limit your time to how long you stay, or do not go at all. If you decide to go, spend your time with family members who do not trigger unpleasant feelings.
2. Over Commercialization - Society puts big pressure on us to out do ourselves from last year. BALONEY! Stick to simple family traditions, have your family make gifts for each other. There is no rule saying you have to do better than last year....ANYWHERE!
3. Over Commitment - Just because you are invited to 14 different holiday parties...does not mean you have to attend them all. Or any of them for that matter.
4. Over Spending - Again, you do not have to spend money at all to show someone you care. Make a coupon book, bake cookies, write personal letters to friends. If you have small children, as fun as it is watching them with the presents and taking pictures near them...They will probably not remember them, and would be just as excited over coloring books and crayons from the dollar store as they will that 40$ electronic toy. It is a hard lesson to learn but make a budget and stick to it. Another tip is to shop online, it keeps you from those impulse buys.
5. Unrealistic Expectations - Let's face it. There is no June Cleaver any more. With most mothers in the work force there is just not enough time. Again, there is no rule that says you have to have every inch of your home decorated, and have fresh cookies baking at all times. The holidays will happen with out them.
6. Fatigue - Staying up late to wrap presents, waking up early to catch the sales, spending hours baking treats for friends and family, only hurts you. Take a breather and get some sleep. You can not enjoy the holidays if you are sleep walking!
7. Stress - Let's face it, shopping, family, travel, and party planning will cause stress on ANYONE. Make sure you are taking 15 minutes everyday for just you. Read a book, take a walk, or a bath. But make sure it is just for you! Trust me, you will not regret it and 15 minutes is nothing, it is only 1% of a day.
8. Breaking Healthy Habits - So you ate 4 cookies, and had an extra glass of eggnog. Don't obsess about it. Start fresh and get back to it tomorrow. One slip up is not going to cause catastrophic damage to you or your lifestyle. One tip, before you head to a party, eat an apple or some fresh veggies. This will help you fight off over eating at a buffet.
9. Being Away - If you are no longer near your family, or your family is away for a while this time of the hear can be especially hard. Try to focus on the future and when you will see your family and loved ones again. Ask around, maybe there are others who are "family-less" that you can start a new tradition with. OR go volunteer at a shelter, it will get you around people and in the giving mood. Studies have shown that helping others improves mood, and well being.
10. Shorter Days and Lack of Sunlight - The actual darkness of winter can actually have a medical affect on your well being. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a condition that can be treated with medicine. Talk to your doctor if you feel sadness, anxiousness, have a loss in desire to do activities and/or are sleeping more than usual for a period of 2 weeks or more. More than 1/2 Million Americans are affected by SAD each year. You are not alone!
Happy Holidays
~ko
Saturday, November 28, 2009
11.28.09
Thanksgiving-to-new years can be a minefield for people trying to stick to a fitness plan. It is very stressful on our body systems when we have wide swings in our body weight. We all think that "This time, I'm not going to gain it back!" Unfortunately statistics show that most of us will. This is why *diets don't work*. What does work is a LIFESTYLE CHANGE. But only if you have realistic expectations, good support and choose a plan you can stick with that gives you moderate change over a long time. Lifestyle change constitutes a plan for food intake, an increase physical activity, managing your stress without food and get treatment for depression or other illnesses that get in the way. This is another goal of my blog is to give everyone a little help on making that lifestyle change, with tips, tricks, ideas and things that really work. I think equally important to making that lifestyle change is to give yourself a break if you do over indulge at some point so you stay on track and don't feel like a failure. Create a balance by implementing "pass days". And believe me, I use "pass days" for more than food, sometimes exercise or whatnot. The key is keeping your "pass days" to a minimum and don't get so angry that you messed up that you don't get back on that horse. Remember that you are breaking habits and starting new ones, there is no reason that you might mess up now and again.
~ko
~ko
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