Brian Tracy said “one of the daily habits of successful people is being health conscious”, meaning successful people never joke about their health no matter how busy they are.
The average Nigerian spends over six hours trying to make ends meet and is too busy to even think of hitting the gym to stay fit and healthy. It is understandable. I agree that money must be made but it should not be at the expense of your own health.
To stay healthy and fit is not all about taking out tons of time to hit the gym and sweat it out. Just a little change in your work lifestyle can make a huge difference in your physical and mental state. To add staying fit can also help become more productive and make you win the day.
Here are some ways to help you stay fit and healthy at work
1. Ditch the car
Do you have a car? Ditch it.
The idea here is to get your heart engaged with some aerobics. Walking or cycling is way healthier and faster than driving a car. But in a case when your home is too far from work, take a bus or park your car miles away and walk into your office. I should also add that you should use the stairs instead of the elevator.
2. Avoid dehydration
You should try by all means to avoid dehydration as you work. If you get dehydrated, you get tired faster and in some cases, you start developing headaches and might eventually get sick.
Tips
- Have a bottle of water beside you.
- Take a fruit with high water content before beginning work, that way you will stay hydrated for long.
- Keep flavored and healthy drinks around you.
3. Take breaks
Don’t just sit at your desk for what… eight hours? You won’t last if you do that. You should take breaks every one or two hours to just relax and stretch.
Tips
- Take ten steps away from your desk
- Stretch like you’ll never stretch again
- Do some neck rotation
- Take another ten back
All of those are going to take you less than 30 minutes but don’t be tempted to go back to work. Take your time and relax.
4. Play games
If you do not know, games are very beneficial to our health. Yeah, video games and smartphone games and any other form of games.
Games have been proven to;
1. Improve your decision-making skills
2. Help you ease pain
3. Reduce stress
4. Curb cravings
5. Make you more active
If you cannot lay your hands on a video game, it is fine, don’t worry. Just download a game on your smartphone and enjoy.
Games like cheese, monopoly, ludo, racing games might interest you just like me.
5. Fill your drawer with snacks
I know you might be thinking it is against your work ethics but relax, life is not hard. I’m sure you will find a way to smuggle snacks into that drawer. I personally get headaches when I have stayed too long without food and that means I won’t function well no matter what I am doing. (I’m a foodie like that).
You should try to eat something during those long hours of work. This will help you prevent hunger pangs that won’t let you concentrate, keep you alive, and even refresh your breath.
Foods like nuts, dried fruit, and protein bars are some healthy, non-messy foods to smuggle down your throat before the boss looks your way.
6. Do some exercises
To keep your blood flowing and your brain active, you can quickly do some exercises. In some cases, you don’t have to stand. While seated just stretch your hands forward keeping your fingers interlocked and stay still for a few minutes, you can also tighten your core and butt against the chair. And in other cases, you can stand. A quick wall push-up or squat will do you lots of good.
Conclusion
Never forget the saying that health is wealth. In that saying health came first, that means always think of your health first before wealth. Money must be made, it is only a healthy person that will say that.
Fortunately, you can be healthy and wealthy even without hitting the gym for twenty hours daily. Just a little tweak in your diet and staying active will make you healthy while you go on with your beautiful career.
I hope that these six tips are very beneficial and I urge you to remain healthy and fit.
