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Hey , it's Alex from Remote Work Life . I hope this finds

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you well , wherever you may be , and

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if you're new to these episodes

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these episodes which I

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publish once a

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week then these

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episodes are dedicated to giving you , providing

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you with quick tips , tips

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based on things that

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I've learnt myself working

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on a remote basis or working in it , working

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generally , or learnt from others who

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I've either interviewed or worked with

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in the past . And

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, as you can imagine , in

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anybody's career , especially if it's been a long career

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, there are things that you

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improve on , things that you perhaps

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have been challenged with and

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that have helped you to learn new things

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. It's no different for me

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. I've learnt a lot in my career , but

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I like to actually pass on what

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I've learnt in order to , I

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guess , hopefully help those

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who may be coming through . So

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this episode is no different to that . So

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today , planning

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and preparing for the day , including mealtimes and

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healthy food choices , is something that I

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want to talk about , something that I've experienced

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specifically that has helped me to improve

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my not

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only my well-being , but also my

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productivity . I'm

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a big remote work advocate . I've

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experienced how remote work has

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transformed my life

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and has helped me to strike a

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balance between my life and between

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my work . But I've had to do that very

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deliberately . I haven't that hasn't

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just come naturally to me at

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times , and I've struggled with maintaining

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energy . I've struggled with maintaining focus through

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the day , and it wasn't until

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I consciously planned and prepared nutritious

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meals or healthy snacks , for

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example , that I just generally planned

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my day , that I began to experience

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the true benefits

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of working on a remote

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basis , and that requires or

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required me to be intentional about

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what I was doing . So

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here are five things that I

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either do myself or have

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seen others do in order to

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help

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plan and prepare for the day . So

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number one is meal planning

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. So I tend

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to schedule the meals that I eat ahead

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of time , sometimes for the whole

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week . I try to plan the schedule of

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meals for the whole week and I plan

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nutritious meals and snacks

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in advance . I know what I'm going to eat days

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ahead , usually five days ahead . I

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plan for those five days and

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this can help me to maintain energy

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levels and reduce the likelihood of unhealthy

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choices , but also that mental

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energy that you can sometimes

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consume when you're trying to

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decide what to eat , when you're trying

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to decide to eat on the spot , and not

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just the mental energy but the time that you can waste

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if you're going from the fridge to the cupboard , from the cupboard

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to the fridge , looking at things to

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eat . That is a drain

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on your time , that is a drain

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on your mental resources

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. Even if you only may seem like a

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small thing , it can take its toll sometimes

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. So meal

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planning is something that I think is is

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a good thing to do . That's number

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one . Number two healthy snacks

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. So I , I like

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to eat between meals and

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I'm a big eater and I can get away

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with it because because of my , my

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, my stature , because of my , I guess

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, my genetics in many ways . So

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I like to eat snacks

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in between meals . I must admit , sometimes

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I don't always eat healthy snacks

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. So chocolate biscuits are

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sometimes found in

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my drawers , or , you know , bars of

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chocolate found on my

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desk . But I try to

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sort of pair that with the more healthy choices as

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well . And

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obviously exercise can help

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sometimes . But you know , I

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have to admit I need to myself

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take more healthy choices when

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it comes to the snacks , the in

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between meal snacks that I

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that I eat . So that's number two

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. Hydration , number three . So

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three , hydration . So staying hydrated

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is something that I perhaps underrated

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in the early days , but what

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I used to do was just drink

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on an ad hoc basis , and

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sometimes I would get so engrossed in my work

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that I forget to have a drink , and

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that would slow

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me down mentally . That would slow me down

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as well , even

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sometimes from a physical standpoint , because you

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know you need hydration and it can

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make your eyes feel dry , for example , it can make your

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your throat dry , or you

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can all those other things . So hydration

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is critical . Even now , for example , I can feel

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that my throat is getting dry . So here

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I've got my glass of water next to me , so

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once I finish recording this episode , I

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can take a drink of water

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to rehydrate myself . And

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that hydration I

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would recommend keeping a bottle of water actually at

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your workspace . And what I did

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as well , I put a fluorescent

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dot on

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my , on my laptop , and

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that was sort of like a trigger for me to to

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to have a drink of water , because

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there was a point where I was so engrossed

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that , as I said , I forgot to do that

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. So I used a fluorescent red

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dot or orange dot on my computer

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to remind me to do that . It did work , but

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now I've got this big bottle next to me , I can't

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miss it . Basically , I can see

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that I need to have a drink and I

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can even track , using that bottle , how

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much water I've had to drink . So

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that's number three . Hydration . Number four not

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something that I do , but mindful eating

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. So practicing mindful eating by savoring

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each bite and being present

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during meals . I try to be present during meals

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. I , you know , if I'm having lunch with my

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wife , for example , try to be present

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when you know . Try , we're

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not trying . In fact , I'm pretty good at that . When

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it comes to having lunch with my wife , it's nice to sit

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down , have dinner with

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the kids as well in the evenings , being deliberate

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about doing that . So that's mindful

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eating and that can prevent overeating , apparently

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, and it can improve digestion . So

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I'll have to try that myself . So

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number five on my list is wellness

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rituals . So this involves

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considering , or at least you should consider

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incorporating wellness

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rituals into your meal time

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, such as breathing , such as meditation

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or a quick walk to

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recharge your energy . I know I again

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, I don't walk as much as I should

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. Right now , as I record

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this , it's , you know , it's

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pelting outside with rain , not

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the most appealing day to go

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for a walk , but it's something

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that should be

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done , something that should be considered , and

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on days like this , it might be worth getting

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a one of those walking pads that you

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see , one of those automated walking pads which

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is similar to the running machines , but you

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can put it near your desk or under your desk . I

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mean , for me personally , I couldn't walk

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while I was working . I've

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tried it and it hasn't worked out for me , but

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if you're sort of stuck in the house

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for whatever reason , having a walking

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pad could be an alternative

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to going out for a walk . So

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those are my five

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tips for the day . I

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hope that one of those tips you can use

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for yourself . If

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you found this episode useful , please

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consider resharing it with your

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network , with your colleagues , and

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if you have any ideas for future episodes

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, please get in touch . Let me know . I've

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left my LinkedIn details in the show notes

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below . Do get in touch , always

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open to ideas for new episodes and new

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guests , and I wish you all

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the best with the day ahead .