5 Tips for Staying Healthy in the Office

Do you work in an office most days of the week? Do you feel like having an office job makes it tough to maintain a healthy lifestyle? If so, this post is for you. We’ve put together a list of 5 super simple things you can implement into your workday (starting today!) that can help you maintain a healthy, active lifestyle even on the days you’re hard at work in the office.

1. Go for a walk each day
   • Going for a walk to break up your work day and get some exercise is one of the best things you can do to stay healthy during the work week. According to NBC, “walking improves fitness, cardiac health, alleviates depression and fatigue, improves mood, creates less stress on joints and reduces pain and can prevent weight gain”. And the list goes on! The physical and mental health benefits of walking are endless and taking a walk each day is a great way to stay healthy and active throughout the work week.
2. Stand up
   • If you can’t fit a walk into your work day, be sure to at least stand up throughout the day. According to Healthline, “the average American sits for 15 hours a day”. If this sounds like you, keep reading! Sitting for long periods of time increases your risk for a whole slew of health issues according to WebMD, including “heart disease, diabetes, stroke, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol” and increases your risk for weight gain. If you find yourself sitting a lot, simply standing up every 30 minutes or so can help offset the negative side effects caused by sitting at your desk for long periods of time.
3. Pack your lunch
   • Bringing your lunch to work can help ensure that what you’re eating for lunch throughout the workweek is healthy. By preparing your own lunch, you can make and prepare foods that contain less fat, salt, sugar and calories than the lunch you’d buy from the restaurant down the street from your office. In fact, according to a 2016 study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, “92% of restaurant meals have too many calories”. Preparing and packing your own meals for the workweek does take a little more time and preparation, but the health benefits of eating nutritious, home-made meals on a consistent basis are well worth it.
4. Drink lots of water
   • Drinking water, like walking, seems to have an endless supply of health benefits and helps keep your body functioning at its best. According to Harvard Health Publishing, drinking water helps aid digestion, normalize blood pressure, stabilize your heartbeat, cushions your joints, helps protect organs and tissues and helps regulate your body temperature. So, how much water should you drink each day? According to the Mayo Clinic, drinking “eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day” is a “reasonable goal” but if you want to know for certain how much water you should be drinking, “a doctor or registered dietitian can help you determine the amount of water that’s right for you every day”. Regardless, drinking water is essential and is imperative if you want to stay healthy throughout your work week.
5. Take the stairs
   • Taking the stairs can be another great way to fit some exercise into your work day. According to Very Well Health, taking the stairs can help you burn more calories, reduce the risk of stroke, improve your cardiovascular fitness and help strengthen your muscles. And for those who sit for hours at work each day, taking the stairs can help combat your sedentary workday. Very Well Health mentions “taking the stairs whenever possible is a quick and easy way to break out of that sedentary lifestyle and add more physical activity and movement to your everyday life”. So the next time you have a choice between taking the stairs or the elevator, take the stairs!