Balancing work life with healthy living
With the hopeful feeling that the world is slowly re-opening again, I thought it would be a good time to write about balancing work life and a healthy life.
I don't know about you but the last few months I've found really tough. The world shutting down almost immediately left me feeling full of anxiety and uncertainty. I am someone who loves routine and structure so embracing the unknown can be somewhat difficult. This year I went back into a corporate environment and although it hasn't been the usual office environment (what with working from home), I've still been working full time and that has been a real change for my routine. I've had to re-think the way I tackle my healthy lifestyle alongside the office environment. I thought I'd share some tips to help you if you are in a similar situation.
My top tips:
Make a plan every week. May sound boring but planning out your week and day is really important. If you have a job where you often work after hours make a plan to do some exercise in the morning before your workday starts or on your lunch break. Plan your food and what you are going to eat. Plan when you will see your friends and family. Dog-walking and so-on. Give yourself a timetable. If you don't stick to it that is fine but it creates a sense of control and calm going into the week.
Meal prep. Yes, I've been going on about meal prep for years but it saves so much money, time and stress in the long run, it makes sense to me. I know that if I am not prepared with my meals I will definitely pop to the local newsagent and buy kit kats and chips. When I am prepared with healthy food and snacks, firstly it makes me feel great because I am nourishing my body but secondly I have no reason to eat rubbish. All of my food is there ready for me. If you want to take it to the next level create a meal plan and shopping list and save your shopping lists on an online supermarket account. When you are ready for the next week just press order and get the groceries delivered to your door :). I have written lots of posts on meal prep and you can see where I've been featured here.
Hydrate. Throughout the day make sure you are drinking plenty of water to keep you hydrated and full. I find when I drink water I am less likely to snack, so if this is something you struggle with try it out and see if it makes a difference.
Be mindful of your alcohol consumption. I know, after a hard days work it is EVER so easy to reach for the wine. If you are finding this is becoming a regular occurrence pop it in your weekly plan when you will treat yourself with a drink or two. Try and limit this to once a week at most and make it a positive experience. For example catching up with a friend for dinner, watching a movie with someone as opposed to just drinking for the sake of it. If you feel ready to do a detox why don't you plan 4-8 weeks off alcohol and see how you feel. The other consideration with alcohol is that it will disrupt your sleep pattern so you might find yourself not as assertive and clear at work and you are more sensitive emotionally.
Create a sanctuary. Make your home a place where you can relax and feel good. Keep on top of the washing, make the bed, keep everything clean and tidy so that you look forward to relaxing there. If you are currently working from home make sure you put your work away to create a distinction between work life and home life. I clear my desk at the end of the week and shut everything down so that I can push that to one side on my weekend.
Breathe. When your stress levels are high do some breathing techniques to mitigate that stress. You can learn some breathing techniques here.
Meditate. There are SO many great meditation apps to try these days it seems crazy not to give it a go and see how you go. As I'm a qualified mindfulness and meditation teacher I find Smiling Mind is the best one. They have a great mindfulness course for beginners which has so many guided meditations but also mindfulness exercises which can help incorporate a more mindful life. I also have lots of posts on mindfulness and meditation here.
Don't be too hard on yourself. If you set a healthy goal and it falls through don't beat yourself up about it. More importantly, don't give up! Get straight back on the horse and keep going.
This is by no means an exhaustive list. It may be that one of these points you can identify as important to you right now. I know, for me the last few months has been about trying to make a plan to create structure in my life in this time of uncertainty so point one resonates with me the most.
If you want to leave me a comment on this post please feel free and if you want to connect and learn more about healthy living please do not hesitate to reach out.
With love SB xx
All images were taken by Brad Hunter from Salty Dingo
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