Office Snacks Are Adding Up!

Tips to stay on track with office snacks!

So you prep all of your meals on Sunday, you've scheduled your Sweat City Classes, you wrote down your goals, and you regroup and refresh yourself for an OUTSTANDING CLEAN PERFECT week ahead of you. You walk into work Monday feeling motivated and ready for anything. That email you have been waiting for, those signed contracts, that meeting, the office gossip, etc...but are you ready for the dreaded FREE OFFICE FOOD? NOPE, neither am I...EVERY TIME!

I'm guilty of eating extra and EMPTY calories at work! Who wants to turn down free lunch meetings, free coffee, or that piece of cake for your co-workers birthday. How about that one co-worker that LOVES to bake and bring in all of their baked items into work because they don't want it in their house (I'm guilty of doing that too). The list goes on and on of how we get stuck in this situation. No matter where you work we all know how the end of this story goes! It's hard enough to battle with own own guilty eating thoughts 24/7 but to throw in other tempting free options and it's like ten billion times harder to stay on track.

According the Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the food people are eating at work amounts to nearly 1,300 calories a week—70% of which is coming from free food. Can you imagine? 1,300 calories extra a week of free food. This is just on a regular basis too. So what do you do? Here it is friends, just because it's free doesn't mean you need it. Think of it this way, there is a free sofa on the side of the street that says "free." Do you automatically rush over to pick it up? No, you don't because chances are you don't need it, it's dirty, it's been sitting outside, or it doesn't match your decor. Free donuts in the break room are no different. Do you NEED that donut? Does the donut match with your long term goals? Is the donut even what you would pick out for yourself? The answer is NO, NO, NO. Don't let the office kill your goals and your plan.

Here are some tips to help avoid eating empty calories at work!

• Don't be social haha! Really though, just mind your own beeswax and stay in your office. Obviously, some social interaction is most likely something you'll have to do but if you know there is an office potluck happening go out make your rounds say hello,chit-chat, and then get back to work in your office.

• Eat selectively- If you do have food in the office try to eat the most healthiest selections. At an office potluck if I do want to sample some not so healthy choices limit it to JUST the items that looked like they were home-baked (to make it worth the calories at least).

• Don't sit/stand next to the food- I purposely changed our office decor to allow for the "food table" to be on the opposite side of my cubical because having it sit right in front of me all day did NOT work out for me.

• Lead by example- maybe if others see you bringing in healthy options or eating healthier the office can start doing the same. Free food is free food, bring in fruit, veggies, etc...

• Say no to ANY sugary drink- first off, drinking alcohol at any work setting can be highly unprofessional even if others are drinking so just avoid it all together. Avoid any of the sodas, juices, or high sugared coffee drinks too. Opt for water, black coffee, or seltzer.

• Pack your lunch- even if you know there will be free food bring your own lunch. Bring your lunch to work so you're less inclined to buy food at work!

• Do your research of places around your work that has healthy options!

If you say "just this time" or it's "a special occasions" or "I don't have time to go back to my office and eat" or "I didn't bring lunch" this unhealthy habit will keep happening like an addiction. Plan in advance, make time for your prepped lunch break, and avoid those jelly donuts (or whatever it is) at all costs. Once you give in, it just opens the flood gates. Not to mention, the empty calorie food at work won't keep you feeling full. Just like that free sofa on the side of the street, drive right past it and think nothing of it. Keep your eye on the prize!

We'll see you at Sweat City!

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