Enough is enough

If you do it right, your standard working day at the office has plenty of variation in tasks and activities. If that is not the case and you have ample time between those tasks, you may be one of those people who fill those voids with snacks, coffee or other stimulants. Too often, the candy- drawer is visited.

In spite of calls for more exercise, office work is, in general, sedentary work. An office employee burns too few calories and eating habits are not adjusted to that static work. This caloric imbalance can lead to excessive weight and lower levels of performance and wellbeing. It’s high time to take action! Following are a few suggestions and tips:

Consumption
A male office worker of between 25 and 51 years of age who, apart from his work, does not participate in any sports, has a daily nutritional need of about 2,200 calories (kcal). A woman’s needs is around 1,900 kcal. Try to respect that limit. It is advisable is to spread the intake of energy over the day, so it’s best to schedule healthy snacks throughout the day. Ask yourself what you consider more important, a grand meal during the lunch break with your co-workers or a royal dinner at home in the evening. Once this has been determined, consider the amount of food you ingest at other times. The ideal is three larger meals per day with small snacks in between. The trend “all you can eat” is fatal; this seduces people to eat a lot more than they actually need. Enough is enough, too much food will kill you.

Candy
Lose the sweets! Of course you can take a sweet once in a while, but if, between the regular meals, you constantly ravage your candy cupboard because the stress, boredom or irritation overcomes you, you only harm yourself. Do you have trouble with kicking the habit? Start, for instance, by banning snacking on candy during the morning hours. Is it impossible for you to get through the day without munching chocolate? Take a cube or small bar after the regular meal, as dessert, and enjoy it thoroughly in peace and quiet.

Alternatives
If munching candy is your thing, there are plenty alternatives for those calorie bombs. For instance, choose cherries, strawberries, cherry tomatoes, diced pineapple or melon. Variety is important! If you take an apple into the office every day, you will soon get bored. Each season brings many different fruits. The supermarkets provide an assortment of readycut fruit, with or without the juices. This can be a nice and tasteful treat on your birthday and much healthier than chocolate cake covered with whipped cream.

Drinks
Coffee is the lubricating oil of every office. But too much coffee is not conducive to your health. All of those different types of trendy coffee will also make you fatter. Take, as an alternative, a bottle of drinking yogurt or curd to the office or ask for them at the caterer’s counter. Be sure to take the low-fat variety! Some people drink energy drinks all day long, but take a peek at the calorie content of those popular beverages and don’t forget to look at how many portions are in a container. Energy drinks do not give you more energy and they certainly do not make you slimmer.

Part-time
People with part-time jobs run the risk of eating too much – or too little. This is because their daily rhythm is interrupted. When they leave the office to go home at twelve thirty, they forget to have lunch or eat twice – once at the office and again at home when they inspect their fridge. Try to maintain the daily rhythm of three square meals a day. If you do not eat your lunch at the office, have a small snack before you go home, for instance a fruit yogurt or a banana.

Mobile
If you have a lot of appointments outside the office, also try to maintain the rhythm of three square meals a day. It is extremely appealing to take a burger or bag of fries when you have to stop for gas at the gas station (which nowadays usually includes a supermarket). You not only eat too fast, but too much fat with too many calories for one meal. This leads to an overall energy intake that is much too high and contains too few vitamins and minerals. Not very stimulating for your energy level.

Organisation
If you have a full itinerary with external appointments, organize your day to have three fixed meals. Take your time to enjoy those meals and have a break after each meal. If you often end up in a traffic jam, do not revert to munching candies (make sure there is nothing of that sort in your car that can seduce you), but eat something healthy like a banana, fruit or whole wheat biscuit.