The secrets to eating healthy while working 9-5

~guest post by Jenna

STAYING HEALTHY WHILE WORKING THAT 9-5
Its noon hour and the pungent aroma of frozen entrées escapes the lounge and waifs down the corporate building hall way.  Our cubicles are filled will smells of raunchy cheese and tangy tomato sauce.  I sit here in front of my computer flaring my nostrils, pondering: ‘do they really taste good??’ One day curiosity got the best of me and I broke down and bought the ever so popular Lean Cuisine.  Doing my best to get past the fact that I was eating my lunch out of a flimsy plastic container, I was quite appalled to find clear, gel-like substance spread through out my meal……still wondering what in the world this was?!  I threw over half of it away, there was no way I could force myself to consume that.
Honestly, I’m a bit tired of hearing “I’m too busy to eat healthy.”  Eating healthy while working 9-5 can be so easy and so affordable.  All it takes is some planning and an attitude adjustment.  It’s so easy to get caught up in the ‘rat race’ per se.  Before you go to the snack table (ahem, that’s covered in cheese puffs and cake!!), before you grab your purse to run through Arby’s, ask yourself what you really want from life?  Do you want to spend the afternoon feeling lethargic and achy?  Or do you want to be full of energy and at the top of your game?  I say choose the healthy road! Skip out on Arby’s!
Below are some tips to help you stay focused and make eating healthy while working a hectic 9-5 schedule!

• Plan Ahead: I can not stress this point enough.  Eating healthy at work is all about PLANNING!  The night before work pack a well balanced lunch and 1-2 snacks.  You will never stick to eating healthy if you wait until 7:30a.m. while your trying to find your shoes, the kids shoes, feed the dog….there’s just now way.  Make sure to do it the night before.

• Make left-overs:  Making your lunch the night before can be simple…..while making dinner make and extra portion of you lunch the next day.  If you are grilling chicken for dinner, do an extra piece to put on top of a salad for lunch the next day.  Simple!

• Keep healthy snacks in your cubicle: The clock strikes three o’clock and I’m starving, everyday! No matter how much protein I had at lunch, no matter how well balanced it was, no matter what time I ate.  I’m starving! So instead of getting caught with nothing but a vending machine and the snack table to run to, I always make sure I have something stashed away.  Some great ideas are: larabars, balance bars, individual one serving bags of cereal (you can do this and pack it with your lunch) or granola, rice cakes, carrot sticks with peanut butter. The possibilities are endless.  Get creative!

• Don’t get stuck in the PB&J sandwich rut: Nothings worse than eating the same thing everyday.  Give your taste buds some excitement.  Make some pasta salad the night before and add canned salmon for some protein.  Pack a hummus and veggie wrap.  Have a cucumber and cream cheese on rye bread sandwich.  Use greens instead of bread for your sandwich one day.  Explore new foods you’ve never had before! It gives you something to look forward to.
• Don’t get bored.  When you get bored you EAT! Not good!  Stay active at work.  If you are stuck in a cubicle all day make sure you get up and take 10 min walks outside once or twice a day!  Stay busy.  If you finish your work ask a co-worker if they need help on something.  Try perfecting your work so you are not rushing to get it done.
• Lunch meeting? No, problem.  Stick to salads with lean lunch meats (such as turkey) and make sure to fill up on fruits and veggies so you won’t be tempted to go overboard at the dessert tray.
• DRINK WATER.  This is so important.  Make sure you are constantly hydrated so you are not confusing hunger with dehydration.  If you start to feel hungry at 1 p.m. after you just had lunch at noon, drink a large glass of water.  More than likely your hunger will dissipate.

I know some times the temptation of the snack table sitting right across from you cubicle gets the best of you, but my point here is for you to become more aware of what you are eating.  Is the cheese puff really worth feeling bad the rest of the day?  I hope not!  Be prepared and cautious.  A treat from the snack table every once in awhile is okay, just don’t make it a habit.

Jenna’s bio: I own the blog www.petitfoodie.com.  It’s a place where I can harbor all my fun thoughts on body image, children and of course FOOD! I’m a young mother learning the art of balance. I have a wonderful 4-year-old daughter and a full time job in accounting.  Both keep me very busy.  Trying to balance work, family, personal, health can be very tiring and sometime quite overwhelming.  I’ve learned the best thing to do is keep breathing, stay active and keep an open mind and heart.