The covid crisis has moved many people’s work location from the office to their homes, whether they like it or not. This change in work environment could cause a lot of issues, such as fatigue, weight gain, headaches and back pain. Are you tired of working from home? In this article, I’ll give you a number of tips to prevent or combat these problems. By taking these measures you can keep working from home energetically!
Do your work while walking
Working from home often or completely means that you exercise less. First of all, you no longer have to leave the house to come to work. No more cycling to the office or walking from the train. In addition, at home you don’t have to walk to your colleague’s desk or, for example, to another lunch location, and there are many more examples like these. Everything you do, can be done from your own home.
However, exercise is indispensable for the proper functioning of your memory and concentration. With only a few small adjustments you can get a lot more exercise whilst working from home. For example, you can take a walk before and after work, in the time you normally spend traveling back and forth. This is like having an actual commute! Take a walk through your home, the garden or your neighbourhood during phone calls. Or perform some arm or leg exercises (possibly using weights) when you are watching webinars or PowerPoint presentations, brainstorming or reading. Another idea is to try doing some Energizers. Take a look at which options suit you and take as many opportunities as possible to maintain your concentration and feel more energized throughout the day, through enough exercise.
Separate environments
Our brain makes associations with everything we see and use. For example, we have associated our bed with sleeping. This helps us to fall asleep more easily once we lie in it. This association makes it difficult for us to stay awake when we are working from our beds. Therefore, try to maintain an active posture in a pleasant location during your work. Preferably don’t work in your bedroom, but in an office. If you don’t have an office at home, you could use one of the rooms in which you don’t sleep as an enjoyable workspace. If it’s not possible for you to work in a place other than your bedroom, make sure your bed is out of your sight while working. It is preferable to have things in your field of vision that motivate you to work, such as photos that remind you why you do this work or Post-Its with motivational texts.
Take plenty of time for lunch
Many people find it difficult to maintain their weight while working from home. You can try to tackle this by exercising more often with some of the tips I mentioned earlier. But, you can also try to change your eating behavior. Some people take less time for lunch when they are working from home. For example, they have their lunch during meetings and don’t take the time to eat. When you do this, you are unaware of what you are eating which doesn’t allow your hunger to be satisfied . Often you have all kinds of food and snacks at hand at home, and the tendency to snack when you are still feeling hungry can be really big.
Try to take the time for your meals and consciously enjoy what you eat. This will help you avoid the need to snack later in the day. If you notice that you start to snack a lot, write down what you eat for a week so that you become aware of what you eat. Then look at what product could be easily reduced or skipped entirely. It may also help to make sure the food is out of your sight and behind cupboards! Attach Post-Its to the cupboards to help you question yourself if you are really hungry or if you want to snack for another reason.
Watch your posture
Many people suffer body aches when they’re working from home. This can easily be prevented or reduced by a number of adjustments in your home workplace. First of all, it is important to have an ergonomic workplace. This is a workplace in which you can adopt a healthy working posture; preferably an adjustable desk and an adjustable desk chair. In addition, it is important to have a screen or laptop holder so that you can adjust the height of your screen, to make sure that you look down slightly. You also need a keyboard and mouse so that you can keep a distance from your screen.
By taking these measures you can avoid sitting crooked or hanging over your desk. Keep an active posture, with a straight back, your chin slightly tucked in and your knees at an angle of slightly more than 90 degrees. Sitting like this will allow your blood to circulate properly. Try to change positions every now and then and preferably get up for a moment every half hour. If you can get your desk up to standing height or get a standing desk, you can also do your work standing up for a number of hours a day!
Share your knowledge
In addition to the above tips, you or your colleagues may know more tips that can help you to maintain energy and prevent body aches. Be sure to share your tips with your colleagues and ask what they are doing to comfortably work from home. Do you still suffer from complaints despite these tips? Ask the occupational health and safety officer of your company for help. This way you can make sure that your complaints won’t get out of hand!
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