For some of us, working from home or staying in the house to look after the family sounds like an ideal scenario. No commute, no office gossip and the chance to walk around in shorts and a T-shirt all day if we want to. But it is also a sure-fire way to pile on weight if we are not careful and disciplined. The lack of physical movement, compounded with an abundance of convenience food and drink can make for a weight bomb.
It doesn’t have to be difficult to keep our weight down if we spend the majority of our time at home. In fact, having our own kitchen is actually a blessing. We have the ability to make hearty, nutritious and cost-effective meals that canteens can only hope to replicate. To that end, making a meal plan when we know we are going to be housebound is a sensible move. But this only works if we ensure that healthy food is in the fridge or cupboard. Lean meats, fresh vegetables and fruit, as well as healthy cooking oils will fight half of the battle on their own. Going one further and removing meat altogether, keeping it as an evening only addition, will prevent adverse weight gain and also see rapid weight loss.
We also need to be cognisant of the fact that the onus is on us to exercise. Take a lunch break as you would in the office or warehouse and use it to go for run, walk the dog or even just do some aerobic exercise in the lounge. Discipline is key, but working in even just half an hour of exercise, when combined with the aforementioned healthy diet, will mean your home is possibly one of the wealthiest workplaces you will ever see.
Of course, enlisting the help of others in the house is always going to ensure greater success. A healthy family that assists and spurs each other on will reap the benefits as well as look far better for it.
