Avoiding Weight Gain at Work

It is easy to watch your scale rise to dangerous heights when you’re busy with projects at work. After all, most jobs these days rarely require leaving the office (or the cubicle) or other strenuous manual labor. Many workplaces and work routines are propitious to developing overeating habits: those take-outs, birthday parties, and team bonding sessions. There is barely a need to actively use the body, thanks to the heavy reliance on computers and intellect.

These do not mean that unless you quit your job, you’re doomed to be a big, fat whale. Following are five weight loss tips that you can follow to burn more calories and stay slim even while working:

1. Be friends with the water cooler. You need to drink at least eight glasses of water every day -- and not just to keep yourself calm despite the looming deadlines. Hydration with water lets you maintain concentration, curbs fatigue, and prevents cravings (especially for sweets!). Many people misinterpret thirst as hunger, leading us to grab a quick treat when in fact water is what we need. It is not good to wait for the time when you’re hankering for water. To meet at least eight glasses on a daily basis, it is advisable to gulp some water every few minutes.
2. Take some fresh air. Instead of spending your breaks catching up on the latest gossip (which won’t do you any good in terms of health), use them to talk a walk outside your workplace. If your breaks are too short to get out, even walking up and down the stairs would do you well. A 10-minute walk here, another there, and a final one going home is enough to give you the minimum recommendation of 30 minutes of activity in a day. You won’t only get your blood circulation active, you will also feel freshened and stirred up from the fresh air and natural sights that you encounter by simply walking.
3. Rest well. There are only 24 hours in a day, and while many of us try to do as much as we can in a day, it’s not doing our health any good. While skimping on sleep may allow us to do more, we may not necessarily be doing them very well. Another loss of ZzZzZ-skippers? They tend to gain more fat -- and faster. Various studies have demonstrated that those who get less than ideal hours of sleep are prone to grabbing unhealthy and fattening foods. Many of these are energy boosters, like candy bars and chocolates. Several research groups also report that sleep deprivation leads to an increased production of cortisol, a stress hormone that experts correlate with unwanted fat around the belly.
4. Skip the vending machine. Very few of the items sold in a regular vending machine are good for you (and your waistline). A lot of times head to the vending machine for animal crackers and return to the desk with M&Ms instead. On top of the added bulge in your belly, a trip to a vending machine isn’t very economical as well (most items with heavy profit as compared to supermarket price). To save yourself from the fat and the expense, do your groceries before going to your work and fill your desk with healthy choices of snacks. Clueless on what ‘healthy snacks’ are? Graham crackers, low-fat granola bars, almonds, and fruits are all good items to start with.
5. Rule your stomach with your head. There is no denying that stress is plaguing practically all of us. In the workplace, stress is magnified to several degrees. Be prepared for whatever challenges you might face at work. Keep in mind that whatever comes, you can face it with a balanced and healthy diet without resorting to “emotional eating”. If you want to be strict with your diet and health, you may want to keep a food journal to keep an eye on your eating patterns. A journal would also help you perceive how your feelings shape your food preferences.

If you discover that you eat based on your current emotion or mood, you can take the necessary actions to prevent yourself from eating unhealthy foods when you feel the same emotion in the future. If you’re finding this difficult to do by yourself, inquire about your employer’s EAP program or find a counselor you could trust.

Last Words: Keeping a food journal is an infallible means of monitoring your workday diet, so take it seriously. List those jellybeans that you inhaled while waiting in line at the cafeteria. Use Calorie Count Plus to find out the calorie count of that Krispy Kreme you munched on during coffee break. Happy working (and dieting)!