Eating Smart in the Office: Nutritional Tips for the 9-to-5 Crowd

Trying to ‘eat smart’ while working 9-to-5 is difficult. 
You spend all day busy at the office, and at the end of the day, you probably end up feeling too lazy to prepare a nutritious meal for the following workday. Sometimes it just seems easier to grab something ‘quick’ and ‘easy’.
But ‘quick’ and ‘easy’ doesn’t usually mean nutritious.  
So what can you do about it?
In the following article, we will provide 5 different tips to help you eat more nutritional foods throughout your workday.

Tip #1. Put together ‘quick’ and ‘easy’ meals of your own

This is a great solution for those of us who resort to reaching for fast food and junk snacks simply out of convenience. 
Preparing nutritious meals to take to your 9 to 5 doesn’t have to be complicated. There are plenty of easy-to-cook and delicious recipes out there for you to try that won’t take hours to prepare.
You can put together protein-packed meals in bulk then freeze or refrigerate them ahead of time, and keep them for those times throughout the week when you just want something convenient. 
This tip can also be a great way to save money. ‘Quick’ and ‘easy’ meals can be dishes that are made in bulk and then separated/portioned into ‘ready-to-eat’ portion sizes. 
‘Ready’ and ‘quick’ foods don’t have to just be dinners. You can also prepare convenient healthier snacks or small treats.

Tip #2. Start your mornings with a good breakfast

With so much to do in the mornings when getting ready for work, it can sometimes seem easier to skip out on breakfast altogether. Some of us might just settle for a cup of coffee in the morning.
But you might be surprised how much of a difference a good breakfast can make.
Preparing yourself a nutritious breakfast, like overnight oats that you can take out of the fridge when you wake up, will give you the energy you will need throughout the workday. A breakfast with plenty of protein will also help make sure that you don’t get too hungry and resort to snacking later in the day.

Tip #3. Create a weekly food schedule

It might be tempting to just slide a muesli bar or a bag of chips into your work bag but it’s not a healthy option. Some of us will instead buy something quick from the local food court or fast food joint. But once again, this option is rarely ever nutritious and it’s usually a lot more expensive in the long run.
Wherever you can, it’s important to prioritise taking your own lunch to work. An easy way to do this is to create a weekly food schedule that sets out the days you bring a home-cooked meal and the days you can buy food.
You don’t have to be whipping up brand new dishes every day of the week. Pick three to five nutritious meals, like salads, chicken wraps and poke bowls, and set them up in a rotation. Having a clear schedule set out for yourself is a great way to stay on track when meal prepping for the week ahead. 

Tip #4. Invest in a slow cooker or pressure cooker

With a slow cooker or pressure cooker, you can be in the office 9-to-5 and still come back to a nutritious home-cooked dinner at the end of the day.
Another great benefit of slow-cooked meals is that they can require very little prep time.
Get yourself some carrots, potatoes, onion, buy chicken maryland, some stock and spices, and then just turn it on. You can set up a slow cooker or pressure cooker to cook food for you while you’re away. When you come back, you’ll have a tasty hot stew or soup waiting for you.
It really is as simple as that.
If you make a big enough portion at a time, you can refrigerate the leftovers to have them for the following workday or for tomorrow night’s dinner.

Tip #5. Use your weekends to prepare

Sometimes the hardest part of eating smart when working 9-to-5 is finding the time or energy to put together nutritious meals. Going to the store and preparing elaborate dinners is often the last thing we want to do after a long day in the office.
That’s why we suggest using your time off over the weekends to stock up on everything you will need through the week in one trip. 
And yes, we know! Even this sounds like a lot of work.
You probably want to use your weekends just to rest, but doing everything ahead of time on the weekend is just one inconvenience now that will save you from a lot more inconveniences later in the week.
Trust us: when you are in the middle of a working week and you remember that you won’t need to go to the store for anything, or you know you already have dinner waiting for you at home after a busy day, you will be glad that you planned ahead!
You can start keeping a list on your fridge and writing down everything you need during the week.
The weekend is also the time you can put together quick and easy meals, or cut up or prepare vegetables to put in the slow cooker or pressure cooker for later in the week.
It’s not easy trying to eat smart while working 9-to-5. Anyone who works in an office can testify to this.
Hopefully, this article has provided you with some tips that will help you to eat good and nutritious foods even with your busy work day.