Tag Archives: diet tips for shift workers

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What Is The Healthiest Food For Shift Workers? Those Which Contain Few Ingredients.

A disruptive lifestyle can often lead shift workers on a constant cycle of eating all of the wrong foods at all of the wrong times of the day.

But if you can’t change the hours that you work – what sort of foods are really healthy for shift workers to eat?

Would you believe food that contains few ingredients?

Confused? Well let me explain.

Thanks to the Weight Loss Industry we’ve become so obsessed about reading the Nutritional Facts on food labels that we’ve forgotten to look closer at the other part of the label – the list of ingredients.

Let’s take a look at the example above.

This label breaks down how much fat, cholesterol, sodium (salt), carbohydrate and sugar is inside the product which is great – but do you recognise any of the ingredients?!

Not really familiar are they.

The sad thing is that we’re so engrossed in reading the nutrition labels on food today; we don’t really look at the actual food content.

In fact so many people will even select their food off a supermarket shelf based on the vitamin and mineral content even if the food does not resemble real food. Protein bars, breakfast cereals, margarine and diet foods are a prime example. These foods may look good in the nutrient content, but when you look at the actual ingredients, you find that there are a bunch of numbers, hydrogenated vegetables oils and a lot of other non-real food items.

So if you’re searching for the healthiest food for shift workers then just keep things simple. Choose food that is as close to how Mother Nature designed it.

I very rarely check the ingredients on food that I buy because I hardly ever eat food that has an ingredient list on it! For example, a piece of fruit doesn’t come with a food label. What you see is what you get – there are no hidden ingredients.

So stop worrying about how many grams of this and that is contained in something – spend more time focussing on what it actually is that you’re eating.

For shift workers who rely heavily on packaged and processed food for “sustenance” – eating this type of food on a long-term basis is certainly not good for your health.

So the next time you head off to the supermarket to do your grocery shopping – spend more time in the fruit and vegetable aisle as opposed to those which contain lots of boxes, jars and packets of food.

At the end of the day nothing can replace a real piece of fruit or vegetable – anything else is a cheap imitation and always will be!

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Why Working Shift Work Makes You Gain Weight!

Working shift work is hard – no question. But if you’re working shift work and trying to lose weight, then it can be even harder.

Because not only do shift workers have to work crazy hours, they also have to eat at irregular times as well.

And considering our digestive systems slow right down during the night when we should be sleeping – weight gain amongst shift workers is certainly a common place.

You’re also more likely to eat high processed, sugary foods, along with a vast array of high-caffeinated energy drinks to help keep you awake.

So how can you break away from this bad eating cycle?

Well it’s about taking responsibility for your health and being aware of the toxic food that you are putting into your mouth every single day.

You cannot expect to feel vibrant and healthy if you’re continually feeding your body processed foods . They cause havoc on your digestive system not only causing you to gain weight, but they also make you feel even more tired and lethargic than you already are.

But if your diet consists of whole foods – that is, foods that have undergone little on no processing, then your body will eventually discard the excess weight. You see weight loss is actually quite easy – if you stop eating junk.

It really is that simple.

So you may not have complete control over when you eat, but you certainly have complete control over what you eat.

It’s time to give up the soft drinks, crisps, lollies and fries. It’s not about depriving yourself of these foods – it’s about replacing them with good healthy food that will not only energize you – but keep the scales under control as well.

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Attention All Shift Workers – Are You Still Searching For The Weight Loss Key?

A shift worker’s diet is never going to rate high on the nutrition scale because we tend to eat all of the wrong foods at all the wrong times of the day.

So what is the key to losing weight when you work shift work?

It’s called eating slowly.

Often we’re so busy that we just don’t take time to eat slowly. And putting food in our mouth forms only a very small part of the actual eating process.

Eating slowly is essential to good health. Why? Because if you eat in a hurry or grab a quick snack on the run you are compromising both your choice of food (it’s nutritional value) and your ability to digest it.

If your shift work job is quite demanding and stressful, you can sometimes feel compelled to eat in a hurry which actually sends a message to your brain to slow down the digestion process. As a result, that hurriedly chewed food sits in your stomach and intestines weighing you down, making you feel sluggish and reducing your energy levels.

A lot of shift workers today are also prone to experiencing digestive problems because of the erratic times that they eat, so when you combine this with eating in a hurry – then you are more likely to fall victim to this rather unpleasant ailment.

You see digestive problems are aggravated when you eat in a rush and fail to chew food properly. The stomach has to attempt to digest large chunks of food, which requires much more effort by your body. Your saliva contains digestive enzymes which are mixed with the food in your mouth, but only if you chew the food properly. If the food has not been broken down by chewing (from eating in a hurry), then it will just sit in your stomach until it can be broken down further.

This process uses a lot of extra digestive enzymes and energy which makes you feel sluggish – not good for shift workers who are already feeling severely tired and exhausted.

So the key to losing weight for shift workers is to eat good food AND eat it slowly. Try and take the time to relax a little before you eat. Even take a few deep breaths beforehand and in between each mouthful. This is what eating is all about – savouring the tastes and enjoying your food.

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A Little Secret Weight Loss Tip For Shift Workers

Now if you’ve been working shift work and struggling to lose weight for quite some time – then I’m not surprised. Because weight loss and weight gain can certainly become the bane of our existence.

Shift workers are prone to eating all of the wrong foods at all different times of the day because quite simply, we become too tired to take care of ourselves properly.

So if you’re struggling to lose weight, would you like to learn about a little secret weight loss tip for shift workers?

Well I’m going to tell you anyway and it’s called … Firing Your Diet!

So if you are on some kind of diet – whether it’s the cabbage soup diet, the lemon juice diet, the purple diet, the low-carb diet – whatever it is, just fire it!

Because you are never going to achieve a healthy weight (and be happy) – by constantly dieting.

Whenever you just mention the word diet, it brings up messages of having to “deprive yourself” of something. And to overcome this feeling of deprivation, the only way to fix this is to “cheat”.

And this of course makes it even worse.

Ultimately fad diets don’t work because they focus on a number on a scale. Remember it’s not about the number on the scale – it’s about being healthy. There is no magical number.

And whenever you’re on a fad diet – the weight loss that you do achieve is only temporary. In fact, studies have shown that two-thirds of the weight that was lost through some kind of diet, is actually regained within 1 year.

So just remember, there is no quick fix to losing weight. It’s about changing your eating habits for life – not just for a day, a week or a month – for life.

Adopt the 80/20 rule. Eat healthy foods 80% of the time, and enjoy your life (and food) – by eating the foods that you love, the other 20% of the time.

So despite what you may think – you can work shift work AND lose weight all at the same time. It’s about knowing the little secret weight loss tip which quite simply is called – Firing Your Diet! As soon as you do this you will not only feel an enormous sense of relief – but your journey to becoming a healthy and happier shift worker will begin from that moment onwards.