By Laura Graham
So you got a job in an office environment and it's going great. Now you're starting to become more health conscience and see that your dream job may not be the best for your health. Staying healthy isn't hard and all that's really needed is a good foundation. This even applies to work in places like offices or in environments where you have to sit a lot.
- Eat good foods
First, learn to get your diet on point. Your diet is going to be the biggest variable in how healthy you are in the long run. Working in an office really shouldn't be an excuse to grab an unhealthy snack. Make better food choices like eating fresh fruit and vegetables for a snack or a salad for lunch. If you succeed in doing, this, then you'll be on the right track for a healthier life. Only 5.1% of Australian adults had an adequate usual daily intake of fruit and vegetable while 36% of American adults are obese as not preferring eating healthy in their diet.
- Manage your stress
Stress is a big deal in terms of health and life in general. Stress makes you overeat, overreact and has a major impact on your immune system. Even with a healthy diet, the effects of stress can take its toll. This isn't even including the way that stress can damage your relationships, work ethic, and other things in life.
- Exercise, keep moving
You should be getting up to an hour of exercise on a daily basis. You need a mix of cardio and strength training in order to maximize the benefits of exercise. Strength training would be very beneficial for an office environment. All that sitting means that you're not using your muscles, making them weak. As you get older this will decrease the quality of life you have in old age. So make sure to keep your body strong so when you get to retirement you can enjoy it.
- Have good health insurance
You might think that medical insurance is only for when you get sick or need to get patched up. You might want to think again. The best thing that you can do is get your routine check-ups. Make sure that your companies health insurance plan is meeting your needs. If not, you need to do some research & get a better health insurance plan. So when it comes time to re-enroll and look at your benefits then take it seriously. In Australia, healthcare is delivered by both government and private companies which are often covered by Medicare & regulated by the Private Health Insurance Act 2007. However, you must check-in with your country’s healthcare system for affordable benefits & facilities & select the health plan appropriate for your needs.
- Don't avoid fat
This seems like a weird tip. It's really not. What the human body doesn't need is too much of it or the wrong kind of fats. Trans and saturated fats will raise your LDL cholesterol levels. If these levels get too high then you could develop heart disease, not good. Monounsaturated has the opposite effect. Foods like fish, avocados can lower your LDL levels.
- Be consistent
You've probably heard that consistency is key. This is true. Not only is this true for your health but it's also true for your career. Be consistent in your diet, your exercise, your routine check-ups, and even be that person that nit-picks their benefits. If you can maintain these good habits for better health, then you can buffer the negative effects of working in an office. You may even overcome these negative effects.
