Staying healthy when working from home is very important. It is becoming increasingly common for organizations to migrate to the home-office mode of work, especially with the outbreak of COVID-19. Although working from home is comfortable, this increased sedentary lifestyle can easily be too comfortable and make it more difficult to keep your diet in check. To help you, we’ve created 5 simple tips for maintaining a healthy diet while working from home!

1. Enjoy Planning Your Meals

Now that you’re working from home, you’re most likely spending more time in the kitchen preparing your own meals. This is a perfect time to have fun trying out some new recipes! Try using methods that you wouldn’t normally have time for, like digging out that old air fryer or or investing in a new slow cooker. Dedicating some time to preparing your own meals can provide a nice break from work, while also making you more conscious of what you’re putting in your body. Maybe you’ll come up with recipes of your own, or try something you’ve seen on social media. Whether the result turns out Instagram-worthy or cringe-worthy, hopefully you’ll have had fun polishing your skills.

2. Consume Wholesome Foods

Now that you’re working from home, you don’t have to worry about that banana or apple getting squished or going bad in your lunchbox, and you probably have more time and access to kitchen resources for preparing healthy meals and snacks. This makes it easier to  incorporate plenty of fruits and greens, which are excellent sources of protein, minerals and vitamins. Use this to your advantage, and try to include wholesome foods that will provide slow-release energy – perfect for you to eat while concentrating hard and working long hours. For example, my recent working-from-home staple is avocado and banana toast. It would be tough to prepare something like this in a work kitchen.

3. Schedule Frequent Meal Breaks

It’s easy to get into the zone while working and end up spending hours focused on finishing a certain task. Being in a regular work environment, people will usually have a scheduled lunch break, whereas when working from home, there is no such environmental prompt to stop. Our brain requires a stable glucose supply (carbohydrate), and the inconstancy of receiving this nutrient can have negative effects on our attitude. Eating smaller portions more frequently can boost your mood and bring hunger and greed under control to help you avoid episodes of binge-eating. Try sticking to a consistent eating schedule, and plan small snack or meal breaks every few hours.

4. Drink Plenty of Fluids

Drinking fluids throughout the day keeps us well-hydrated and allows the body hold onto the nutrients we need. Fortunately, meeting your daily water goals is usually much easier at home, with quick access to clean drinking water at your kitchen tap. Now is your chance to get out that abandoned water bottle that you swore you’d use at work, or maybe those fancy champagne flutes need some time in the light. If you get tired of just plain water, you could even go for herbal teas to add some variety.

5. Avoid Working in Your Kitchen

It’s understandable that you may find yourself setting up your workspace in your kitchen. With the spacious kitchen table right there, this might seem like the perfect place to spread out and get some work done. However, if you spend the majority of your day in the kitchen, it’s not surprising that you may find yourself wandering over to peak in your fridge or cupboards far more often than usual. While the smell of your flatmate or significant other cooking dinner might make great motivation for you to finish up and log off in the evenings, at other times of day, it can be a torturous and productivity-decreasing aroma. If you must work in the kitchen, try to work with your back to the fridge, and consider keeping a small healthy snack in front of you.

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Katrina Hatchett is lifestyle blogger at Write my dissertation and writer for Coursework help and Dissertation writing service. She enjoys identifying project problems and find solutions, and is currently dedicating herself to creating awareness on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle during the outbreak of  the COVID-19 virus.