Tips To Feel Good Throughout The Work Day
We all know that throughout the work day our energy depletes. More so when the work is limited in a desk-bound setting. Employees begin to feel the effects of being on their feet all day or staring at a screen. The second half of the day makes them lethargic, they start having a tendency for headache, or physical body pain.
We have a few tips to utilize throughout the work day to help your employees stay feeling good!
Start Your Day Healthy
Of course, you already know the importance of eating a balanced breakfast. Breakfast helps kick-start our metabolism and gives us energy for the day. Many people don’t find themselves hungry in the morning, however, when you start to eat breakfast your body will adjust to those calories and begin to expect them. Great breakfast options include high-fiber foods like cereal with dairy-free milk, fruit, and yogurt, or homemade protein shakes. All of these can be made quickly and are great to start your day.
If one tends to lose energy towards the end of the day, they often resort to a cup of coffee. A scary thought, we know. Cutting down the morning coffee intake can actually help one feel more energized throughout your day. If they can’t fathom this, they can try to switch out one coffee for matcha green tea or a bulletproof coffee. These drinks allow for a slower release of caffeine over a longer period of time so you won’t feel a sudden crash.
You can encourage practices in the workplace such as offering a nutritional breakfast and cutting off coffee (or offering bulletproof coffee) from the menu can help your employees get an energetic start to the day.
Avoid Digital Eye Strain
Looking at a screen throughout the can cause severe eye strain.
Computers, phones, and tablets emit harmful blue light. So, no matter what the job is, employees are most likely to suffer. Blue light can make eyes dry, vision blurry, and even cause headaches. If you notice your employees get a headache around the same time every day, consider that the effects of digital screen may be having a toll on their health. To help combat digital eye strain, one has to utilize eye exercises or treat with new eyeglasses that block blue light.
You can encourage employees to take up eye exercises. It can include simply covering your eyes with the palms of hands hourly or practicing the 20-20-20 method. This method is looking at something 20 feet away, for 20 seconds at a time, every 20 minutes.
Utilizing the Lunch Break
In 2018, a study found that over half of Americans feel unable to take a lunch break. Lunch breaks are mandatory by law, and it’s unfortunate that some employers or personal workloads make this feel unattainable to employees. However, since it is mandatory, make sure that your employees take full advantage of this time! Here are some ways for employees to take advantage of to effectively use lunch break:
- Don’t eat at your desk
- Don’t eat out, cook your lunches at home and take this time to enjoy them
- Go for a walk
- Sit outside
- Read a book
- Catch up with a work friend
Create awareness among employees about these best practices and do your bit to encourage wellness at your workplace. Additionally, you can take up practices like conducting outdoor lunch events, introducing a nap room at work etc.
It will help them nourish and re-energize their body for the second half of the day.
Stretch throughout the day
A sedentary lifestyle is a prime reason behind most health issues among employees.
To keep the body from feeling stiff or getting pain in your back, legs, neck, or wrists, stretching throughout your day is important. If you want to keep this conspicuous, every time you go to the bathroom take time to twist your back or stretch your wrists out. However, this can even become a fun workplace activity! Get a few of your desk-mates and friends to engage in an hourly stretch that can be as quick as two minutes. Here are some easy stretches that employees can do right at your desk:
- Roll your neck ten times in each direction
- Twist your back in your chair
- Roll your shoulders backwards ten times
- Hold your arm out, with fingers facing up, pull back gently on your fingers with the opposite hand
- Roll your wrists ten times in each direction
No matter if it is a labor-intensive job or it requires working in front of a computer for a major part of the day, these tips will help in feeling better during your time at work. Starting the day with good nutrition and making choices to ensure you don’t crash, start to feel ill, or in pain may not easy to start. However, once these activities become a habit and a normal part of your routine you will see and feel the benefits at work and outside of work!