5 Healthy Habits for When You’re Working From Home

We all know working from home can be both a blessing and a curse.

Gone are the days of commuting to the office, and in are the days where you roll out of bed and hop onto the computer, right?!

For the majority of us, working from home requires a lot of willpower and developing loads of healthy habits to stay on top of work and home life together.

When you’re working from home, it’s easy to get distracted by household chores, friends and family and find the motivation to get on with the hard work tasks that simply need to get done.

So to help, I’ve put together 5 work from home tips and healthy habits that you can start implementing in your working life.

Develop a morning routine

I’ve heard it a million times, to get the most of your work from home life, a little discipline goes a long way. 

However, where I differ is I’m not encouraging you to get up at 4 am, do some yoga, make a smoothie, journal, and meditate.

Instead, I believe in a simple and tailored approach that’s tailored to you.

A routine is simply something you do over and over again to flip the switch in your brain to tell you it’s time to get into ‘work mode’.

For you that might mean waking at 7 am, making a cup of coffee and reading.

For someone else, it might mean waking at 6 am, getting your kids ready for school, dropping them off, and then unwinding before work with a hot drink and a book.

Experiment and find a routine that works for your unique situation.

Need a few extra tips?

These articles should give you some morning routine inspiration:

• How to Create a Slow Morning Routine for Quiet Days
• How to Use Meditation in Your Self-Care Morning Routine

Open windows even in the winter

We’re spending more and more time indoors and because of this, our indoor air quality is suffering. 

“Indoor air pollution is dust, dirt or gases in the air inside a building such as your home or workplace that harms us if we breathe it in.”

British Lung Foundation

What’s more, if you have any kind of lung disease such as asthma, then you’re indoor air quality should be something to take seriously.

“Indoor air is often 10 times more polluted than outdoor air and as people spend 90% of their time indoors the importance of indoor air quality is critical to health and wellbeing.”

Air Quality News

One of the simplest things you can do to improve the air quality in your home is to open your windows.

Even in the cold months, for just a few hours a day, you could vastly improve the air quality in your home.

Once you do it, you’ll realise how heavy your air was and as a bonus, the new fresh air will give you a boost, trust me.

Although if you struggle to get this done, an easy alternative is to buy an air purifier. These make a massive difference to the air quality in your home and don’t have to cost your life savings.

I have this very air purifier in my bedroom and it does a wonderful job (this is coming from someone who has asthma):

Move your body

I like to keep things simple, so the next healthy habit is determined by you.

If you’re working from home, chances are you’re not moving from your desk very often. 

The fact is, the human body was not built to withstand this much sitting.

Depending on your ability and desire, anything from a few desk stretches, to a lunchtime walk would give your body and your brain the boost it needs to keep those creative juices flowing.

Because let’s be real, the last thing we’re all thinking about when working is doing 50 lunges or rolling out a dusty yoga mat.

Plan breaks

When you’re working on a project, writing, or generally doing any kind of absorbing task, it’s easy to lose track of time.

The last thing you want is to be working so hard that you miss a valuable snack or coffee break.

Set a rough schedule for yourself and stick notifications on your phone to remind you.

Or if you’re a bit more analogue, write it in your to-do list to take breaks at certain times of the day.

Here’s mine as an example:

• 11 am – coffee break (snack if required)
• 12 noon – lunch
• 3 pm – snack break or simply walk around a bit

“Taking breaks refreshes the mind, replenishes your mental resources, and helps you become more creative.”

Psychology Today

Even if you’re not hungry or would rather keep working, these breaks act as a switch in your mind to take a break.

Your brain simply can’t keep working for hours straight, give it a rest and give your body some fuel.

Remove your distractions 

It’s no surprise that when we’re working from home it’s almost impossible not to get distracted.

In fact, it’s the reason why we’re developing these healthy habits in the first place.

Raise your hand if any of these distractions apply to you:

• Social media
• Email
• Friends messaging you
• Family ringing you
• Family in the room with you (I’m talking about you, kids)
• Unwashed dishes
• Other people’s clutter
• Your own clutter
• Anything and everything that isn’t your work

Yeah, I raised my hand multiple times too!

The fact is, we can never remove 100% of our work from home distractions.

After all, we are working from home, not a remote cabin in the woods. But we can reduce that list significantly.

If social media is your problem, remove the apps from your phone.

Is it email?

Schedule to read at only certain times of the day.

If it’s friends and family, start setting boundaries with them.

If it’s household mess and chores, ask your family to help, or schedule in time to clear your space.

After all, your home is your office, it needs to be treated as one.

Your turn: what habits will you develop while working from home?

Creating healthy habits for your work from home life can be difficult, especially if you’re just starting out, or things have gotten out of hand.

If this is the case, I recommend starting with just one of these and implementing the changes over the course of a few weeks. Then add another.

Be patient, your ideal work from home life will take time to happen. 

If you have any healthy habits you think make your working life easier, leave them in the comments and let’s chat.

Illustrations by Freepik Storyset

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