Snacks to Boost your Working Day
I have to admit, I really struggle with the change in the seasons and the start of the Winter months. It always takes me a while to adjust and leaves me feeling a little lost and lethargic.
Not only do I struggle to get out of bed when my alarm goes off in the morning (although I can mostly thank Neve for that), but when I get home, I feel tired and sluggish, and pretty much count down the hours until bed. I work in a busy office environment, and I leave early in the morning before the sun has fully risen. I then sit, mostly sedentary at my office desk, occasionally moving from one meeting to the next, before arriving home in what feels like the middle of the night.
After lunch when the afternoon comes round and the last bit of winter sun disappears from my office window, I often find it can be hard to focus on a mass of emails and heavy to do lists. My job is busy, and at times, mentally taxing, requiring a high level of organisation and the ability to deal with whatever comes our way. By this point in the day however, I am usually on the come down from lunch time and start craving a snack, and it is oh so easy to reach for the crisps, chocolate or caffeine. Whilst they provide a temporary pick me up, and give me a little boost, their effects are very short lived, and often leave me feeling even worse than I did before. I also then feel guilty for making poor choices, especially at the moment when I am very conscious of my weight.
It appears I am not the only one who struggles with this afternoon slump. Recent research from Love Fresh Cherries found that there are a number of peaks and troughs in the average persons day, with up to 8 happy periods in a 24 hour period, as well as five points where we feel proper down in the dumps. These daily downers tend to be linked to things like attending long and arduous work meetings, over eating at lunch (then regretting it afterwards), or getting stuck in traffic on the way home. On the flip sides, highs can come from waking up refreshed after a great night’s sleep, receiving appreciation from the boss, or getting a compliment or thank you from a customer.
Experts have also found that the food choices we make can have a direct impact on our happiness levels during the day, with us more likely to feel a slump in mood if we rely heavily on sugary or fatty treats, with chocolate and sweets being identified as the foods most likely to contribute towards a bad mood. Ironic, given that we would normally assume that eating one would help us feel better not worse.
To try and help make healthier choices, I have started to take fruit and berries to work with me, as a way to encourage myself to eat more appropriate snacks and get myself through the afternoon. I recently learned that cherries contain the mood enhancing hormone serotonin as well as melatonin which helps promote healthy sleep patterns. Research has shown that snacking on cherries during the working day can actually help you feel more happy, focused and concentrate better at work, with the added bonus of tasting delicious too! I am now keeping a little bowl of cherries on my desk at work, and whenever I feel the need for a snack or a little refreshing boost, I reach for a cherry instead.
This is one of just a few small changes I am making in the hope that 2019 can be a happy and healthier year all round. I will let you know how I get on! For now however it’s almost time for bed, Another day at the office in the morning!
Have you tried Fresh Cherries as a snack time alternative recently?
*This is a collaborative post*
