Is working from home making you unhealthy?

Filed in archive Stay Healthy on September 24, 2007

Working from home is great, but working from home and staying healthy can be challenging. I often find myself in the kitchen without knowing how I ended up there. I open the fridge without being hungry, just looking at it and many times I end up eating without being hungry.

If you work from home you might recognize this scenario. We sometimes wander around the house without doing anything at all. And we often end up in the kitchen; the heart of the house for many.

And the exercise; just because you work from home you must have plenty of time to work out, right? Unfortunately that is not the case for most of us. Working at home means you have to be even more disciplined than if you work in an office or else you might find yourself wandering around the house wasting precious time. But that is also the good thing about working at home if I may say so myself.
So how do you stay fit when working from home?



I have some simple guidelines that I try to stick to:
* Try to have set times for snacking and lunch.
* Limit your distractions; then you are less likely to find yourself in the kitchen and all of a sudden eating a sandwich.
* Make time for exercise. Yes you work at home and that is great but because you are your own boss it is even more important you stay healthy. There is no one to cover for you if you get sick. Make an exercise schedule and stick to it!
* You don´t want to get sick so you make sure half of your plate is full of vegetables, preferably raw. That way you get lots of vitamins.
* Get rid of the cakes and sweets if you know you can´t limit yourself to only eating a few pieces.
* Drink plenty of water throughout the day.
* Take regular leg stretching breaks if you sit down most of the time.
* Clean your house and clean your mind and burn some calories at the same time.
* Cut down on the coffee, just because you are your own boss doesn´t mean you should drink coffee all day.
* Make sure your working area is comfortable yet good for your back. Back ache is not something you want if you can avoid it.
* Make sure you set aside time to clean and prepare for school etc so you don´t waste time on that.

You work at home and you have more control over what you eat and when and that is great! Take the time to cook healthy food, exercise regularly and you will stay healthy. Don´t fall into the snacking trap or the comfort zone that means you prefer to stay inside than leaving your house. Apply these easy steps and you will enjoy working from home even more.

Is working from home making you unhealthy do you think? What do you do to stay in shape and to stay healthy when working from home?