Feel Great Every Day

Anxiety and Depression Linked to Overtime Work

People who work overtime are more likely to be anxious and depressed - and the more they work, the higher the risk, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Bergen, Norway, and published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

Research has shown that those who work overtime are more likely to be stressed and fatigued, and also to become sick or injured. Based in part on such studies, the European Union allows workers to refuse to work more than 48 hours per week.

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Great Employee Health and Wellness Blog

I came across an amazing blog. His blog/lens is about employee health and wellness. The author's intent is to provide solid, cutting edge, evidence based content, as well as serving as a portal to additional information for those who want to go on a deeper dive into employee health and wellness. Employee health and wellness is currently a hot topic in professional circles and within many organizations. While often driven by healthcare and health insurance premium costs in particular, many employers are also recognizing a focus on employee health pays dividends beyond just the financial. To see his blog, visit http://www.squidoo.com/employeehealthandwellness

Does Being Overweight Affect One's Job Hunting?

Does being overweight affect job hunting? The answer to the headline question appears to be an unequivocal Yes, obesity does affect job hunting. According to recent research undertaken by the State University of Detroit and the Society for Industrial Organizational Psychology in San Francisco they suggest a current generational change to weight base bias, suggesting it's now 'how you look', not how good you are.  Being overweight can limit possible job choice. To read the full article, visit Click Here

Work-Related Stress Can Kill, Study Finds

Work really can kill you, according to a study providing the strongest evidence yet of how on-the-job stress raises the risk of heart disease by disrupting the body's internal systems. This is the first large-scale population study looking at the effects of stress measured from everyday working life on heart disease.

Click Here to read the full article.

Eliminate Weight Gain At Work

49% of workers say they've gained weight at their current jobs, according to a 2007 CareerBuilder.com survey. 28% of workers have gained more than 10 pounds at his or her present job, while an additional 13 percent of employees have gained more than 20 pounds. Every employee strives for a fatter paycheck -- but a recent survey shows that most are getting a plumper waistline instead. If your job seems to be packing on more pounds than punch, there are simple ways to be healthier at work. Click Here to find out more.

Recent Discovery Shows Water Has A Memory

Your body starts out comprised of 80% water when you are born. When many people die, they are at 50% water. Now it may seem pretty simplistic to point to water as the source of aging, but proper hydration is needed for fat metabolism, to remove waste from cells, and to keep your brain healthy. We also use water for transporting nutrients and wastes, lubrication, temperature regulation, and tissue structure maintenance. It is also important to know that 48% of older adults admitted to Emergency Rooms had laboratory values indicative of dehydration. Chronic dehydration can lead to many problems such as constipation, poor performance in athletics, and can exacerbate many health issues such as allergies, asthma, diabetes, hypertension and arthritis. Proper hydration may seem simple, but things that are simple can be overlooked as valuable. So, if you are tired during the day, why not reach for a glass of water instead of a soda or cup of coffee? You will feel better and do your body a service too.

To read the entire article, Click Here

3 Ways To Feel Better At Work

How do you feel at work? Are you tired throughout the day?

Being tired and having low energy is common in the workplace. How can it not be? You’ve probably been getting up early five days or more per week for years. You probably get home late from work and go to bed late. Getting eight hours of sleep at night may be a strange concept for you. Being tired is the norm and no longer the exception.

But, wouldn’t it be great if you could take a pill and feel better magically? It is not going to happen. Plus, you wouldn’t want to take this pill anyway, because over time it would make you more tired than you are right now.

There is no mystery to feeling better at work. You take care of yourself first and then you can take care of the demands that have been placed on you.  If you want it, and work at, you can start to feel more energized at your job in a short period of time.

How? Follows These Three Steps Below.

1. Eat Better

When you are hungry, what do you reach for? Something quick? The problem is “quick” doesn’t always equal “nutritious.” Cookies, donuts, candy, and other tasty treats might feel good in the moment, but you will end up feeling worse later in the day. Make better food choices. Do this one meal at a time. Instead of coffee and donuts for breakfast, have juice and egg whites. Instead of a hamburger and french fries, have the burger without the bun and with a salad on the side. Instead of chocolate as a snack, reach for a piece of fruit which has natural sugar in it. These small changes can have a big impact on how you feel.

2. Get Active

Do you move your body?  Do you feel stiff sitting at your desk all day? Getting active doesn’t always mean having to go to the gym. You can take a walk at lunch. You can take the stairs instead of the elevator. You can stretch at your desk. You can hand deliver your inter office mail. As long as you are moving, you will feel better. Your body will thank you.

3. Relieve Stress

Stress is a killer of energy. When you are wound up, your body feels tighter. Your shoulders are up. Your body is stiff. Ten minutes is all you need to make a difference. Get up from your desk and walk around. Visit a co-worker. Take a break for lunch. Go outside and get some sun. Stress is a normal part of your workday, but it doesn’t have to get the best of you.

Poor eating habits, lack of physical activity, stress, and overwork are key factors that contribute to your tiredness and lethargy during the day. If you are feeling tired, know that you can turn your energy level around if you want to.

So, what do you say? You only have one life to live, so it might as well be a life you love!

Obesity 'Contagious', Experts Say

Having a friend, sibling, or spouse who is overweight raises a person's risk of being obese too, US researchers say.

So who are you hanging out with at work? Maybe your co-workers are contributing to the few extra ponds you have been carrying around.

It makes sense, actually. If the people you have lunch with are eating fast food, there is a good chance you will eat the same. Does this mean that you have to give up your friends at work? Of course not. But knowledge is power, and it will enable you to make better choices.

To read the entire article, Click Here

Five Tips for Getting the Vacation You Need

IT departments may be "always on," but IT leaders need to know how to take some time off.

When CIO.com approached me about commenting on this story, I knew it was a valuable topic that was badly needed. Plus, the timing was perfect.

Executives are afraid to take the time they need to regroup and rest for fear of repercussions. But, how can you successfully handle your workload if you do not take care of yourself first?

According to this well written article:

“You can alleviate a good portion of your anxiety by having a good plan that highlights issues that could crop up while you’re away,” says Deborah Brown-Volkman, president of Surpass Your Dreams, a career coaching company. “This planning needs to extend beyond just saying what dates you’ll be gone.”

To read the rest of the article, Click Here

Working More Than 40 Hours A Week Raises Blood Pressure, Research Discovers

People who work more than 40 hours a week are at an increased risk for high blood pressure, a condition that has been linked to heart disease and is suffered by millions of people worldwide. Despite long-standing and widespread agreement that work hours should be limited, preventing excessive overtime remains a pressing issue," researchers said.

To read the entire story, Click Here

Coming To Work Sick Hurts Business

If you're sick, just stay home: That's what more white collar employers are telling their employees, as sick workers affect the bottom line. For some, though, a directive like that isn't easy to follow.

But for some, skipping work might equal having to skip meals: nearly half of all private-sector workers don't have any paid sick days, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

To read the entire story, Click Here

When sick workers come in, sometimes simply to ensure the boss sees they are "present," business suffers: more than $180 billion is lost per year due to lessened productivity in the United States.

Obesity Dooming Youth

The childhood obesity "epidemic" is so disturbing that today's children may well become the first generation in history to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents, a sweeping report by the Commons committee on health says. "I've never seen this before." Rob Merrifield (MP-Yellowhead), chair of the committee, told the Toronto Star after releasing the report, Healthy Weight for Healthy Kids. "I don't think we've ever seen a generation that's going to live shorter lives than the generation prior to."

Ontario's doctors have known this for some time. In fall 2005, an Ontario Medical Association report warned about today's kids not living as long as their parents.

In this latest report, parents are called part of the problem because they're "in a state of denial," according to Merrifield. To read the entire story, Click Here  Today's youth are tomorrow's workers.

Coffee Myth Busted: Morning Cups Offer No Boost In Mental Alertness

New research presented to the British Nutrition Foundation shows that regular consumption of coffee does not affect a person’s alertness. This means that millions and millions of people are relying on coffee to help them get through their workday and it might not make a difference in their energy level. What’s interesting is the story reports that coffee only counteracts the mild caffeine withdrawal symptoms people experience after having gone without the stimulant overnight. So, you are not really waking yourself up, but rather, feeding your withdrawal systems from the day before. To read the full story Click Here

You Are What You Eat In Your Career

How do you feel today? Do you feel good with lots of energy? Or, do you feel drained and unable to get into the day?

How you feel at work is directly related to what you put into your body. Had a cup of coffee with 2 spoonfuls of sugar and a donut this morning? In a few hours you will be exhausted. Had fast food for lunch? In a few hours you will be exhausted. Had a pint of ice cream after dinner last night? This means you woke up exhausted.

Many people treat their cars better than their bodies. Would we put bad fuel into our cars? The answer hopefully is no. So why do we put less than optimum food into our bodies?

What you eat affects your power, passion, the title you have, the money you make, and the energy level in your career. If you do not feel good inside, how can you expect to perform well on the outside?

Being healthy at work is difficult.  We reach for sugar and caffeine to start our day because we are tired. Maybe, we pulled an all-nighter. Maybe, we have been pushing hard to make sure a project succeeds. Maybe, our boss or co-workers are driving us crazy and a piece of chocolate makes us forget about it for a while. And, what about the cake that goes along with birthdays and other celebrations? The candy on the desks of co-workers we pass by numerous times every day? The fast food that gets ordered in during lunch or dinner meetings? The non-stop chocolate fest that runs from Thanksgiving to New Years Day? Unhealthy choices overwhelm us constantly. Plus, “junk food” tastes good, so this makes choosing healthier alternatives a challenge.

So, How Can You Improve Your Career By Eating Better? Follow These Four Steps:

1. Decide To Eat Better

This is an important first step. Many of us do not want to give up our great tasting treats. Some of us can’t even imagine ourselves without these foods because they get us through the day. And, half of the time we may not even realize what we are doing. But, what about the other side? What happens once that momentary pleasure passes and you are left with the side effects? Feeling tired, jittery, or wanting more. Food gives us a feeling of elation. In the moment, we feel great. Afterwards, we don’t. We know the cycle needs to stop, but we do not know how to stop it. The cycle of unhealthy eating can stop once you recognize what you are doing and decide to stop it.

2. Plan To Eat Better

Because unhealthy food choices surround us, the way to better eating is good planning. If you know you will be working through lunch and your boss is ordering pizza, request that a salad be part of the delivery. If Bob is taking orders for breakfast, choose egg whites or whole wheat toast. If you will be in your car all day for business purposes, pack healthy foods for the ride. If you know you get hungry every day at 3 pm, keep a few healthy snacks in your desk in anticipation of this time. If you have to look for healthy choices when you are hungry, you will have a hard time finding them. Healthy choices will not be found at the gas station when you stop for gas, at the vending machine, or in the cafeteria. Eating healthy is important for your mental and physical well-being, so plan ahead.

3. Eat Better

You are sitting at your desk. You are staring at an apple. You don’t really want this apple but you feel like you “should” eat it. What will you do? Throw the apple in the garbage and hit the vending machine for chocolate covered peanuts? Or, eat the apple because you know you will feel better AND you made a promise to yourself that you would eat better? In our careers, we come to certain points when we know that if we do not do something different, then the outcome will always stay the same.  This is one of those moments. Are you tired of feeling tired? When the answer is yes, your food choices will change. The way to eat better is to eat better. The place to start is your next meal. The beginning (which requires change) is tough. But once you form new habits, you will not want to go back to your unhealthy ways.

4. Make A Change In Your Career

Now that you feel better, use your newfound energy to create a career you really want.

So, what do you say? You only have one life to live, so it might as well be a life you love!