Can Taking a Lunch Break Help You Be More Productive?
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It can be hard for busy professionals to find time to eat a healthy lunch during hectic workdays, but doing so is an important key to maximizing productivity while also maintaining your overall health and well-being. When you skip lunch or grab fast food in the middle of your workday, you aren’t doing yourself – or your employer – any favors.

Your Body Needs a Lunch Break

You may think that you don’t have time to stop for lunch, but chances are that you’ll find that you’re better prepared to meet the demands of your job if you do so. Skipping meals is simply not good for you, and eating a healthy lunch can impact how you feel and what you do for the rest of the day.

It’s counterproductive to work all day without stopping to eat. David Zulberg, author of The 5 Skinny Habits: How Ancient Wisdom Can Help You Lose Weight and Change Your Life Forever advises, “Taking a break for lunch will actually increase productivity. It doesn’t have to be a long break but taking a breather in the middle of a busy day will help your mind and body reenergize.”

Additionally, skipping lunch or any meal, can lead to poor choices at other times of the day, which can interfere with your overall wellness goals and lead to weight gain. As Zulberg states, “Skipping lunch will often lead to snacking on the wrong foods between meals or overeating at dinner after work.”

Making Wise Lunch Choices

Taking a break alone isn’t sufficient, though. What you eat also matters. Zulberg advises, “Resist the temptation to eat a convenient snack or any food while you work. You will actually lose time this way because your productivity will diminish.” Preparing healthy lunches to eat at work ahead of time is a great way to ensure that you have access to appropriate food to enjoy during your midday break, but it’s not the only option.

Zulberg points out, “If you didn’t prepare lunch before work or you don’t have food at work, you can still eat out and make good nutritional choices!” He suggests:

• Restaurant: At a restaurant, order your favorite grilled chicken, grilled fish, or any other main protein dish. Have grilled vegetables or a salad to go with it. Soup (without added creamer or starches) is an option. It is always a great starter.

• Fast food: If your budget and time is more limited, fast-food outlets still have a variety of good choices. You don’t have to order the unhealthy choices that you will regret later. Grilled chicken is usually the safest. The quality of the red meat options may not be the best.

He cautions, “Remember, fried food is almost like poison to the body, and salad drenched in regular dressing can be very high in calories and fat. Order plain salads as a side order, and ask for a low-fat or nonfat dressing.”

Planning Ahead Is Key

Zulberg states, “If you don’t think ahead or make smart choices, it is easy to make quick and unhealthy choices, which contribute to low energy levels and interfere with your ability to achieve or maintain a healthy weight.”