Abbeville Meridional Friday, January 14, 2011
Page 8
2011 Health & Fitness Edition
Ten tips to manage pressure at work
Work stress is the reaction that many people have when they are under high pressure at work for a given period. Many of us are motivated by the challenges and difficulties arising from the requirements of the work. Fulfilling these requirements leads satisfaction. However, when the pressure at work reaches high levels and lasts for a long time, people find the existence of a threat to the welfare or interests and then experienced feelings like fear, anger or anxiety.
1. Start your day day with a healthy breakfast: It’s better for your health (and your weight) to eat breakfast than to skip it. And it’s definitely better to eat a healthy breakfast, high in fibers and nutrients, than one full of refined grains, sugar, salt, and/ or saturated fat. Balancing carbohydrates (preferably from whole grains, fruit and vegetables) with some protein and a little healthier fat will do a better job of staving off hunger until lunch and fueling your entire morning’s activities. According to the American Dietetic Association (ADA), most adults consume less than 15 grams (g) of fiber daily, and yet the recommended intake for optimum health is 20 to 35 g.
2. Learn to manage your boss: Never tell your boss “I can’t do this. I don’t have time.” Instead, always say something like: “Of all the things you want me to do, what would be most useful right now?” Or, “What is your highest priority?” Or, say something like: “Accord-
ing to the 80-20 rule, 80% of the value I can add for you will be achieved with 20% of the things I do, so which 20% is most likely, in your view, to add the most value for you right now?” Another useful line is: “I always want to do the best possible job for you in the least possible time. Which things are most important to you right now?” Don’t forget to appreciate the pressure your boss is under. Show a little empathy by saying something like: “I imagine you are under so much pressure, I don’t know how you think straight. Would it help to take 10 minutes to do some prioritizing?” 3. Get organized! You can avoid a lot of pressure and stress by prioritizing your tasks. Take yourself five minutes before you start working to prioritize all upcoming tasks from high-priority and very urgent to low-priority and not urgent. Furthermore, it can be really helpful to break big projects or tasks into subgoals, which you start to target one after another. 4. Effective Time Management: The stress factor number one is having a lot of workload and tight time limitations to get that work done. Taking this into account we can see the high importance that effective time management techniques can have on our stress level. 5. Confront your fears: The best way to ease your anxiety at work? Face your fears. Begin by just picturing yourself going face-to-
face with the very things that worry you and cause anxiety. By getting used to the idea of confronting your anxietycausing concerns before you actually do it, you will actually feel more comfortable the time comes to face them. 6. Exercise a must: Regular exercises can reduce your stress level drastically as it decreases stress hormones and increases the production of endorphins, which will make you feel good! A person that is exercising regularly is less affected by stress than others! Plyometric twice a week is an excellent option if you are limited on time and want to burn some serious fat while toning and creat-
ing separation in the legs. I would recommend a 15 to 30 minute session of squat jumps, tuck jumps, jumping jacks, plyo pushups, using a bench to jump up AND off of, jumping rope, etc. Hop on your treadmill and walk at a very steep incline of at least 10+ at a pace that allows your heart rate to rise but remain manageable. Stairs are also ideal for walking up and down if you are desperate for something to do in an office environment-put a backpack on with some heavy books or a gallon jug of water in it and get to it. For strength training , do a variety of exercises for each muscle group, typically to add variety to your workout. Exercising regu-
larly will help you manage work pressure. 7. Laughter: Another very effective stress management technique is quite simple: laugh! Laughing releases endorphins, lets you forget your worries and reduces stress quite effective. Just invest some time to read some really good jokes or watch a comedy show on TV. 8. The negative effect of alcohol and nicotine: Besides all health-related conditions drugs can cause: alcohol and nicotine can also have (See STRESS, Page 17)