Working a 9 to 5 can make you so busy that sometimes, you may find yourself not eating healthy enough, or worse, not eating at all. This is, of course, unacceptable, as being too preoccupied with your tasks at work shouldn’t prevent you from attending to your health and well being. In this article, we’ll provide you with a few tips on how to make your office meals just a little bit healthier.
Eat a Healthy Breakfast
Don’t skip on the opportunity to eat breakfast—and more importantly, to eat a healthy breakfast. Consuming a meal with the proper nutritional profile is one of the best things you can do to start your day right as it ensures that you’ll have enough energy for those hours when you’re likely to be at your most productive. Furthermore, it helps stave off hunger pangs and moodiness, which could affect your concentration at work early in the morning.
A quick, healthy breakfast is also very easy to prepare. Consider a simple meal comprising a portion of whole grain bread with sliced avocados and eggs for a proper mix of proteins, amino acids, carbohydrates, and vitamins. Or how about enjoying a bowl of muesli with your favorite milk or fruit juice? Muesli mixes are better than your regular cereal because aside from whole grains, they also typically contain seeds, nuts, and fruits.
Bring a Healthy Drink and Keep Hydrated
If you often find yourself getting hungry even before you make it halfway through lunch and breakfast, then consider bringing a healthy beverage and drink this to fend off hunger instead of eating a bag of potato chips. You can blend a serving of fruit and vegetable smoothie, bottle it up, and put it in the office fridge until it’s time to drink it. A smoothie with a mix of berries, citrus fruits, drupes, and green leafy vegetables is best if you want to maximize its nutritional content.
Conversely, you can also keep a box of plant-based milk in your office fridge. Milked nuts and grains offer much of the wholesome goodness of their source produce, so you get all the nutrients without risking tummy ache if you’re lactose intolerant. Just make sure you choose a brand that uses the cold milling process for their milk products since this helps preserve all the nutrients while lending the milk a naturally creamy texture at the same time.
And because air-conditioned office environments can be very dry and cause your skin to lose moisture and your body to become dehydrated, don’t forget to stay hydrated at all times. Keep a bottle of water within easy reach. The Benefits of Staying Hydrated
Choose the Right Snacks
Snacking on your desktop doesn’t have to mean stuffing your face with Snickers and M&Ms every time. When choosing your snacks, consider low-calorie food items or those that pack a punch when it comes to nutrients. Some snacks you might want to stock up on are portioned almonds and walnuts, freeze-dried fruit snacks, zero-fat yoghurt, low-calorie granola bars, or a whole-grain toast with some low-fat peanut butter. Trust us, these snacks will probably be a lot better than what they offer for free at the office pantry.
Plan and Prepare Your Meals Ahead
If you’re concerned about just how much sodium or flavouring those packaged meals or take-out boxes from restaurants have, then consider preparing your own meals instead. This way, you have an opportunity to make your food just the way you want it—and without the additives. Planning for your meals ahead of time and preparing your food just the day before will allow you to avoid the hassle of figuring out what to eat the next day.
Set aside a time when you can go to the supermarket to buy all your essentials, from the actual ingredients to the food packaging items that will make meal preparations more convenient for you. Also, consider professional fresh food delivery services if you don’t have time to do your groceries to buy ingredients. Most importantly, consider the sizes of your meals, as well as the right proportions of the different food groups it must contain. These include just the right amounts of fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and dairy.
Set Aside a Proper Time to Eat
When you eat lunch on your desktop, you run the risk of overeating because you could become distracted by your work and might not know you’ve already eaten enough. You might end up taking more food from the office fridge or eating the snacks you’ve reserved for later in the day!
Make sure that you set aside time to eat and enjoy your meals. If a healthy restaurant is within walking distance, go there with your colleagues. If you’ve brought packed meals with you, consider walking to a nearby park and eating your food there. But if you really insist on working even during lunchtime, why not make it a working lunch instead and have your team meetings during that time? This way, you get to be productive and you can make sure you’re getting a good noontime meal in at the same time.
As you can see, there are many ways to enjoy healthy meals at the office even if you’re super busy. How about you? How do you make sure you eat well at work?
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