Realistic Ways You Can Avoid Workplace Snacking

Being tempted by workplace treats seems to be a part of our office culture and can quickly ruin our best efforts to follow a healthy nutrition plan. Advice often tells us to avoid treats by bringing raw vegetables drinking water and spending our days off preparing long elaborate meals.

This might work momentarily but let's be realistic, as we get busy and our motivation runs low, these tactics just aren't conducive to our lifestyle. What we need are tactics that are easy to follow, realistic and don't involve deprivation. Here are a few sensible ways you can avoid workplace treats.

Forget About The Carrot Sticks, Bring Delicious Snacks Instead:

When faced with the choice of a carrot stick or a gooey cupcake, more often than not the cupcake will win. Food is meant to be enjoyed and if you don't love what you eat, you'll never stick with it. Luckily health food has come a long way. There's a plethora of delectable healthy snack options that are both nutritious and delicious. They also take 30 minutes or less to make.

Among my favourites are red velvet cupcakes made with beets, nut butter cookies made with chickpeas and dark chocolate creamy avocado pudding (just Google them). Bring your delicious snack options to work and freeze the leftovers. Your snacks will satisfy your sweet tooth, keep your insulin levels low and you'll actually feel excited to turn down unhealthy options because you want to enjoy your very own healthy yet delectable treat.

Make A List Of Healthy Menu Items in Your Area:

Making every meal and taking it into work is the most effective way to stay on track with healthy eating, but life is busy and it's not always possible to plan our healthy meals ahead. The days you don't make your meals you'll feel forced to nibble on unhealthy temptations or be faced with an empty stomach. The thing is, if we knew our lack of planning didn't mean we had to live off workplace treats, we'd be much more inclined to stay on track.

Make a list of restaurants with healthy meal options that are within a five minute walking distance of work. Then make a list of their healthy menu options. While it may take time to plot out a menu it only has to be done once. After that, time is no longer an issue. You simply pull out the list and choose the convenient healthy option that saves you from the workplace treats.

Chew Mint Gum:

No one wants to eat when their mouth tastes like mint. It's that simple. While brushing your teeth would be the ultimate option to help you avoid workplace treats, it's not always realistic to run to the washroom and brush your teeth every time a delicious treat presents itself. Mint gum is the next best option. Keep a pack of gum by your side and chew when the snacks look too delicious to resist. If you know the sweets are too irresistible to resist even the most minty of flavours, then try fruit flavoured gum. Just keep your mouth busy and the flavours popping so you don't give in.

Buy An Alarm Watch:

We've all gotten so absorbed with a task that time flies. We have every intention of eating our snacks, regulating our blood sugar and maintaining a sense of satiety so we don't give in to temptation but when a task takes hold of us, it can take hours before we've realized we haven't eaten. We're starved and the workplace cookies are too tempting to give up.

It's just not realistic to ask us to check our watches regularly because it might be time to eat. Frankly, we get too busy and forget. There's really no other option but to get a watch with a timer that will go off every few hours and remind us to eat. When the alarm goes off you'll know it's time to take a food break. Not only will your healthy eating stay on track but your eyes will thank you for the rest from the computer screen.

Wake Up Early To Work Out:

Exercise makes many of us feel virtuous. We sweat, we put in the hard work and we don't want to waste our efforts by ruining our eating plan. Exercise and healthy nutrition have a symbiotic relationship. You can't have one without the other. If you want success with sticking to your eating plan, make sure you work out before the snacks present themselves. For most this requires an early morning workout. If it doesn't seem realistic to wake up at 5 a.m. because you're just not a morning person, then make it a lunch workout instead. At least that way you'll be distracted by your workout instead of the treat zone.