Work-Life Balance: Minding Your Body
When seeking greater work-life balance, our bodies are often neglected. Check out our other articles on work-life balance at this link, this link, and this link. Today, we want to look at how you can treat your body well at work while you pursue better work-life balance.
If you work in front of a computer screen, as many of us do, give your eyes a break. Look at something else, preferably something further away, for a few minutes every half hour or so. Let your eyes roam around and blink often to moisten your eyes. Try not to put your face too close to the screen. Try different light filters to ease your eyes. Adjust the brightness of your screen to your liking so that it’s not too bright, but at the same time, so that you don’t have to peer at the screen. If you type a lot, see if enlarging the font helps, or zoom in on the screen.
If you sit down for much of your day, get up and walk around at least once every hour for a while. Use the time to get a drink, use the bathroom, and get some exercise. Stand up and stretch both arms out in front of you, then up over your head as high as you can, then bend them behind you as far as is comfortable. Touch your toes, or your knees if you’re not able to reach your toes. Gently and slowly, twist your torso around from side to side. Roll each wrist and ankle. Flex your hands and fingers. Roll your neck and shoulders around in circles, slowly and without tension. Bend your spine backward as far as you can without tension. Get your blood moving. If you can find a quiet spot, try doing some squats, jumping jacks, and push-aways against a desk or wall. Breathe in as much as you can, hold it for a few seconds, then let it all the way out.
Drink water! So many Americans go through our days chronically dehydrated. You don’t have to be thirsty to need a drink. Coffee doesn’t count. Drink a glass every hour or keep a water bottle by your desk to sip on steadily through your day. Check the color of your urine every time you pee. It should be a pale yellow, or clear if you’re well watered. Plain teas like green, white, or jasmine are excellent hydrators and have other health benefits. You can also try unsweetened fruit juice or put fruits like lemon in your water for taste and variety.
Eat healthy snacks to keep your energy up. Choose vitamin-rich foods like citrus fruits and nuts for the best results. Try not to eat heavy meals, especially with a lot of sugar, salt, and fat, but rather space out your food intake to keep your energy levels steady. Low blood sugar contributes to undesirable states like distraction, headache, and irritability. Nobody does their best thinking when their blood sugar is too low.
Treating yourself well is always something we advise our patients to work toward. Our brains are just another part of our bodies, and they are greatly affected by how we treat the rest of ourselves. One of the services we offer here is a complete metabolic workup. Find out more by contacting us on our
website or call (585) 442-6960.
