Written by: Sam Bowman
Optimal health and well-being should not be something people only make a priority at home and in their personal lives. The workplace demands a lot from us, so it makes sense that we should be taking care of our bodies and minds while on the job as well as at home. If we want to achieve optimal performance and boost productivity, health and wellness should be a priority in the workplace, not just an occasional benefit.
While there are many ways to focus on well-being at work, the health trend we are focusing on today is biohacking. This new health craze has recently gained much attention as people seek to gain more control over their own health and improve their lives.
In the workplace, biohacking can improve the employee experience and performance by helping people be more focused, productive, and engaged. The key is for both the employees and the employers to participate. Employers must encourage healthier workplace behaviors and provide access to things that can improve well-being, while employees must also advocate for themselves and take a proactive approach to improve their health while at work.
What is Biohacking?
Biohacking is a term that refers to do-it-yourself (DIY) biology. It’s about “hacking” your health by adopting various habits and practices and making changes to your body, lifestyle, and diet to optimize your health and well-being.
This can be done in a more holistic way, by simply adopting healthier habits as well as using biotechnology, such as smartwatches and infrared devices to optimize health and improve performance. Some people also focus on changing their environment to biohack their health, such as creating spaces that are more conducive to their specific needs.
Using Biohacking to Create Optimization in the Workplace
At work, biohacking is all about making changes to your habits and your environment to optimize performance and productivity and reduce stress. Below, we’ll explore some popular biohacking tips that both employers and employees can use to improve health and well-being in the workplace.
Biohacking Nutrition
People say health is wealth for a reason. The healthier you are, the better you perform, and the better you perform, the more success you will have — and one of the keys to boosting performance is good nutrition.
Hacking your nutrition at work means keeping your blood sugar balanced and staying hydrated to maintain energy and focus throughout the day. This means eating a nutrient-rich breakfast before work, keeping a water bottle with you to ensure you are drinking at least 64 oz of water per day, and having healthy snacks and a well-balanced lunch on hand.
Prepping meals ahead of time and having healthy snacks readily available is key to avoiding poor food decisions, such as reaching for the convenience of junk food when you are having a busy day. Think veggies, fruits, nuts, healthy fats like avocado, Omega-3 fatty acids, and protein to keep you adequately fueled.
Biohacking Stress
To reduce stress at work, make time to take little breaks throughout the day to do some stretching, maybe even a little yoga, and some meditation. Getting up and going for a short walk outside in the sun can also help improve your mental health and alleviate work stress.
Employers can help by encouraging these kinds of breaks and even creating spaces in the office where people can step away for a moment, such as quiet or meditation rooms. They can also look into partnering with local spas and bring people in to offer massages or give employees discounts and coupons to use at their leisure.
Biohacking Movement and the Body
Staying active and mobile at work is another important part of biohacking your health and well-being. Many people spend their day sitting at a desk for extended periods, which contributes to poor performance.
To keep your body moving, you can try an under-desk treadmill, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and using an adjustable standing desk. You can also request that your employer invest in ergonomic furniture that better supports your posture and body throughout the day.
Ergonomics helps reduce stress on the body and avoid injury. Ergonomic chairs, for example, can help reduce back strain by keeping you at a 90-degree angle, and ergonomic desks can help reduce strain on the neck by ensuring you aren’t craning your neck to look at the screen. There are also ergonomic keyboards, floor mats, and computer mice that can reduce strain on the hands, wrists, and feet.
Investing in red light therapy devices for the workplace can also help improve health and performance. Red light can help reduce inflammation and pain, enhance joint health, relieve stiffness, and can also boost mental health.
Biohacking Sleep and Fatigue
While you don’t want to sleep on the job, you can change your daily habits to help you from feeling fatigued while at work. Using a smartwatch or fitness tracker, for example, can give you insight into your sleep habits at home so you can make any necessary changes to help you feel more energized during the workday.
Too much screen time can also impact your health and make you feel more tired. The blue light you are exposed to when you look at a screen all day can disrupt your circadian rhythm, slow your metabolism, strain your eyes, affect your cognitive function, and cause depression and anxiety — all things that can make you feel more tired and less focused at work.
While you might not be able to limit your screen time at work, you can take breaks from staring at your computer for hours on end and use blue-light-blocking glasses or screens to reduce negative effects. You can also change your at-home screen habits by putting down your phone and limiting how much time you spend watching TV.
Final Thoughts
For biohacking to be effective, you must be consistent with it. This can be challenging at first, especially if you struggle with breaking routine and developing new habits, but the more you stick with it, the more you will notice a difference.
Start by making one change at a time instead of overwhelming yourself with too many things at once. Once you turn all of these little things into daily habits, you should start to notice a more rewarding work life and improved health and well-being.
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