You need these health tips for work at home moms.
This summer made my 9-year anniversary of becoming a work at home mom (WAHM). I love being able to make a living from the comfort of my couch. Or deck. Or favorite coffee shop. It’s definitely a blessing to have the flexibility of continuing to advance my career while being able to watch my little girl grow up.
One challenge I’ve faced as a remote working mom is remembering to make my health and well-being a priority. I’ve had to be very intentional about taking time to take care of myself. Take a look at these 18 health tips for work-at-home moms
Read: The Work At Home Mom Manifesto
18 Stay Health Tips For Work At Home Moms
Eat
The first thing to get overlooked when a WAHM gets busy is usually the food. Here are some ideas for getting the nourishment you need to be able to tackle your work day.
- Plan your meals for the week. When you get so busy that you can hardly think, meal planning will take away the stress of trying to figure out what you’re going to eat.
- Prep your lunch with your children’s lunch. You won’t forget to let them eat!
- Always keep frozen fruit and yogurt on hand so you can make a quick smoothie if you’re too busy to make a meal.
- Eat sweet potatoes! Pop them in the oven right before a meeting, and an hour later, when the meeting is done, your sweet potato will be, too.
- Keep healthy snacks like fresh fruit and granola bars (the natural, not a ton of sugar kind!) in the house. If you’re going to snack all day, let them be healthy snacks!
- Make sure you schedule time in your day for a lunch break. BLOCK THE TIME OFF IN YOUR CALENDAR! No work meetings for at least 1/2 hour so that you can eat.
- Always keep a cup of water at your desk. Drink and refill the water several times a day.
Move
A large number of WAHMs work on the computer, so being sedentary for long periods of time comes with the territory. Getting up and being active, though, will make world of difference in your energy level.
- Set an alarm for every hour on your phone. When it goes off, do 50 jumping jacks.
- Take a quick walk during your lunch break. Even a 10 minute walk around the block will give you an energy boost.
- Once a day, turn on your favorite song and dance to it. Extra points if you invite your kids to join in.
- Join a gym. If you’re paying for a membership, chances are, you’ll use it at some point, right?
- If you have cable, check out On Demand for workouts. They often have a diverse offering of all kind of fitness shows that you can follow along in your living room.
Rest
Even a WAHM has to turn off sometimes. When you make rest a priority, your work productivity level will increase. Trust me on this!
- Set office hours and stick to them. You don’t have to be available all hours of the day.
- Go to bed at reasonable hour. Aim for the same time every night.
- Unplug at least an hour before you go to bed. Take the time to read and give your mind a chance to rest.
- Find a hobby that is completely unrelated to your work. It’ll help you to relax and be fulfilling.
- Go on vacation, and unplug from work completely. Even if you don’t go out of town, take the time to do something recreational with your family.
- Stop working and look at your child or husband when they talk to you. That’ll save you from feeling guilt for not doing it later.
Mama Harris
Monday 7th of April 2014
Great tips! I am constantly forgetting to eat, so that's a pretty major one. I've implemented a lot of these pretty recently and definitely can see the positive ways it's changed my day to day lifestyle. Schedule blocking is great, I often become so engrossed in what I'm doing, I don't stop until it's done. Blocking works great and helps to clear the head. :) Fabulous job!
Janeane Davis
Monday 7th of April 2014
These are great tips for work at home moms. Often we work non-stop on work duties and home duties. With home being the workplace it is easy to forget to turn things off and rest.
Thien-Kim
Friday 4th of April 2014
Congrats on your anniversary of becoming a WAHM! These are fantastic tips, especially the ones about moving.
Arelis Cintron
Wednesday 2nd of April 2014
These are great tips! I work at a desk all day and I nodded my head at half of these! I need to remember to walk around a bit more. I am looking forward to the spring coming so I can add in a couple of laps around my building.
kaicongroup
Wednesday 2nd of April 2014
I work in an office so the same tips can be applied in the offices. Especially the MOVE part. Love it.
BrandiJeter
Wednesday 2nd of April 2014
You are right, @kaicongroup:disqus! When I worked in an office, it'd get to be 4 PM, and I'd be starving! It would be then that I realize I hadn't eaten all day!