Most Americans struggle with weight on their daily basis. According to a recent survey, 35% of people in America are suffering from morbid obesity. This is quite shocking for a country where every facility of life is available for people. One of the biggest reasons for people to gain weight over their life is desk jobs. Yes. No matter what you do, if you are sitting on your desk 8 to 10 hours a day with very little activity after going home – weight gain is inevitable. Fortunately, many people understand the severity of their situation.
Lifestyle Changes to Lose Weight with Tough Working Hours
Whether you are working 8 hours a day at your fine office in Wall Street or a freelancer from home, making these small changes during your work timings will help you lose weight.
Let’s discuss:
Stay Hydrated
Many people who struggle with obesity have a real issue differentiating between cravings and actual hunger. This is why whenever they feel urge to eat something, their first option is to grab an unhealthy snack. If you feel like starving, the majority of times, it’s just you dehydrated. Buy yourself a nice refillable water bottle that you can take to the office with you. Actually, you can get three to four water bottles filled. This way, you will have water by your side all the time. With increased water consumption, you won’t develop cravings to munch on something. Water will also flush toxins out of your body, leaving you fresh and active throughout the day.
Be Productive in Lunch Hour
Instead of just sitting at your table eating a takeaway, make your lunch break a bit more productive. Lunch hour is to do anything you want. So, rather than chatting with your friends or using your mobile phone, opt for activity. Head out for a nice walk or make your way to the office gym. Eating doesn’t take a lot of time, especially if you are on a diet. However, if you are a slow eater, use your lunch hour to eat your meal. Slow eating actually isn’t bad for you. Slowly eating healthy meals will boost your metabolism and help you digest food faster, leading to faster calorie burn.
Do Not Order Food
Most people mention that they gain weight after joining an office because their colleagues pressurize them to order takeaway foods. This peer pressure will never leave us, will it? In a recent study, a woman mentioned that she gained 52 lbs. in months only because she started to eat takeaways that they colleagues ordered. If you are concerned about your weight or you are trying to lose weight – PACK YOUR LUNCH! You can also talk to your colleagues regarding their insistent offers to join them. Tell them that you appreciate their hospitality, but at the moment, your health is more important. However, you can take one day every week to join them as a cheat day
and get the takeout of your choice. Packing your lunch to work will actually help you save a considerable amount of money.
Munch On Healthy Snacks
Chips, sodas, chocolate bars, and other snack items are usually available in offices. Your kitchen staff would offer you such things with tea. If you have a really fancy office, they might have their own snack bar. However, your snacking options say a lot about your health and weight. These processed snacks are full of sugar and sodium, which destroys your health and increases weight, and reduces your chances of having a child. Bring healthy items like apples, cheese sticks, honey roasted cashews, dark chocolate, etc. Replace your milk tea with green tea and throw away any processed snack that still lies hidden in the dark corners of your office drawer.
Stand During the Day
Sitting continuously for 8 hours isn’t really a healthy option. Most of us don’t realize this, but our deteriorating postures are caused by sitting for a prolonged period of time. From driving to work, then sitting at the seat for the entire shift (sometimes even the break), and coming home to relax on the couch, we spend an abnormal amount of time sitting.
People are prone to developing posture issues. But people who sit for long hours are also known to have more chances of developing dangerous health diseases. Some common examples are morbid obesity, high blood pressure, increased cholesterol, and worst of all – diabetes. Try to stand for 30 minutes after every hour. This practice will make you active, more focused, fresh and also improve your posture at the same time.
Get Enough Sleep
People like us driven by hard work, ambition, and success tend to overlook significant health concerns. While sleep is an integral part of our routine, one must get enough hours of REM sleep. Sleeping allows our body to repair the muscle and tissue damage throughout the day and prepares our body for the next day. We know your goals are essential, but getting at least 8 to 9 hours of sleep every day is crucial for your health. We think that successful people work hard day and night, but this is not the case. Many millionaires have mentioned that they work only during the specified work hours (or a standard time). After working for a reasonable time, they give their body rest to function correctly the next day. By eating protein-packed snacks like honey-roasted cashews, you will be able to get enough sleep every day.
Conclusion
Many people gain weight while working at an office. There are multiple factors that contribute towards weight gain in a working zone. The most common issues are eating takeout foods, sitting all the time, and not sleeping properly. You need to improve your lifestyle choices if you want to reduce weight while working long office shifts. By drinking more water, reducing unnecessary munching, and eating when actually hungry, you will improve your activity level and boost metabolism at the same time. Also, try to increase your activity level – especially during lunch hours.
