Can work sabotage your fitness goals and what to do about it?

You may have wondered what great shape you could be in if work didn't take up so much of your time. Unfortunately, we can't work your shifts for you, but here are some tips that may help you whether you have a sedentary job, work nights or twelve hour days.

Try to stop making excuses and regrets beforehand, most of us adults and exercisers go to work. Some find it easier, others less so, but we can all "get on with it" in our own way .

1) Sedentary jobs

According to research, people with sedentary jobs burn an average of 120-140 fewer calories per day. That in itself doesn't sound terrible, but if you've been doing a sedentary job for a few years, this adds up and it's no wonder it's a significant contributing factor to obesity. Every step counts - try to take the stairs, get up and down a few stops earlier and walk to work. Don't skip workouts, if you feel too tired after work, try exercising in the morning or at least give HIIT a try - a workout that is very effective, takes only a few minutes and can be done at home. Don't be tempted by colleagues, their sandwiches, cakes and bulk orders of pizza, stick to a healthy diet and always have boxes ready from home.

2) Night shifts

Try to approach the night shift like any other shift and don't look for complexities. It's likely you'll feel exhausted after your shift and the workout wouldn't be worth much, so try to exercise before you go to work. Also, treat your meals the same way as you would for a day shift. You may have the question in your head, "What, eating at night?! You're not supposed to!" This is of course true, but understand that if you work and exercise during the day, you should sleep and recover at night, not stuff yourself. You've got it all wrong. You eat at night at work just as you would during the day, and your last meal will be the same as what you normally have before bed. You can't starve and work efficiently at the same time.

3) Twelves

Twelve-hour shifts are challenging, no question, but you don't have them every day. It's not unexpected that after 12 hours of work you often don't have the energy or time to train and you mainly want to eat and sleep properly. Learn to make the most of your days off and concentrate your most demanding workouts into them. Before work, you can try HIIT, which only takes a few minutes and gives your metabolism a great boost. Always have food prepared from home for work, don't eat under stress and remember that you are entitled to a break during which you should eat in peace.

4) Long commutes to work

The more time you spend commuting to work, the less time you have for exercise, food preparation and shopping, and sleep. Besides, even some of the studies prove people who spend more than an hour a day commuting to work by car are more prone to getting fat, especially in the waistline. If possible, consider commuting by bicycle during some of the warmer months or ask if it would be possible to do some of your work from home. You may also want to take the plunge, leave your current job and find something closer to home or move for work.

5) Mentally demanding work

Most of us experience some stress at work, but there are some professions where the psychological strain is much higher - e.g. doctors, firefighters, paramedics, senior managers. To cope better with stress, make sure you relax enough - get a massage, go to the sauna, take a whirlpool, take plenty of time for yourself. Going to the gym regularly can only benefit you - exercising releases endorphins that will help with anxiety, add to your self-esteem and confidence and even improve your mental performance.

6) Physically demanding work

If you do a physically demanding job, you need to adapt your diet and training to it. You need enough energy so that your body can function properly, you don't burn muscles and you regenerate well. If you are working hard at work and in the gym and instead of building muscle, you are losing sight of it, something is wrong. If you don't know what to do and simply increasing your food intake isn't helping, don't waste time and consult a professional about your diet and training. Never compare yourself to others who are not physically working, you need to take in a lot more calories (from appropriate sources of course). As with the "twelveers", it may be appropriate for you to include more challenging workouts on days when you are not working.

7) Frequent work trips

Whether you travel to other cities for work or even fly to other countries, it's always a good idea to bring healthier snacks with you so that you're not forced to settle for a hot dog from the nearest fast food joint when you're hungry. You can find out what healthy, non-perishable food to pack on your travels in the article What healthy food to pack on your travels? Look online and you might even find a gym in your destination that you can use after work.

8) Business

Entrepreneurship has its advantages, such as more space to implement your own plans and ideas, but also disadvantages - you work regardless of working hours, you deal with company matters even when you should be taking personal time off, you have a lot of responsibility for the whole company, you can't avoid the stress of possible losses and the fact that everything doesn't go according to plan. What to do about it? It's quite likely that business is kind of your heart thing, something you've built and can't completely put out of your mind. Try to give your life some order and don't try to do everything at once - set a fixed time to work, followed by time off, in which you can take your time to work out, prepare meals, tend to family and other non-work matters.

[Image and information sources: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed, bodybuilding.com, desks-incorporated.com, humandesignww.com]