Now that we’re well into January and most of us are back at work with new year resolutions about our diets and exercise regimes, how much have you considered extending those resolutions to your everyday desk habits? Many of us spend 7-8 hours a day sitting at a desk (maybe even more)! That’s a third of your day! But more than that, what you do during the working week is a great way to form habits because you work on a similar schedule (for the most part) every day! I have found that since I started attending fitness classes in my lunch break 3 times a week, I go to the classes more consistently and don’t even think about it anymore – I just do it. This is what makes the workplace an ideal place to form new habits!

1. Glass water bottle

Having a bottle of water on your desk, in direct eye sight, is a great way to make sure you drink the right amount of water at work! I find that since I put mine next to my computer screen, I empty it at least twice a day!

Of course if could be any bottle or a jug etc. but I prefer to have a glass bottle on my desk for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I think it looks nicer – I have a beautiful pale green “holiday” bkr bottle which I love (the lululemon ones are also great). Secondly, glass is less likely to breed bacteria and will not leach BPA or any other toxins into your water (you can of course buy BPA-free water bottles too)!

2. Facial mist

I work in a classic city office building and as a result sit in air-conditioning for hours each day. When I first started working in this environment, it was a bit of a shock to my skin, I kept getting dry patches and needed to work out new ways to take better care and put more moisture into my skin. One way I combatted this was by having a facial mist at my desk. I just spray it in front of my face once or twice a day and it’s really refreshing, not to mention smells great – light and fresh without being strong enough that anyone else would object!

I love the “calming” mist by the raw philosophy and also the “balancing rose mist” mist by Kora organics, but most natural skin ranges will have one! If you really want to go all out and spend a bit, Khloris Botanical has some beautiful fresh products that are vegan and all ingredients are traced back to the source!

An even better option to have is an air humidifier/diffuser although this may not be an option in every workplace!

3. Moisturiser

In the same vein as facial mists, I have a little pot of moisturiser on my desk to put some moisture back into my skin after handling a lot of paper and files. My favourite at the moment is Aesop’s rind concentrate body balm and Coast to Coast’s soothing body soufflé which both feel and smells great! Again, just about every natural beauty brand has some sort of hand cream or body cream so you can use anything you like!

4. Healthy non-perishable snacks

The workplace can be a difficult place to eat well when it comes to snacking – particularly if you have a number of the fundraiser chocolate boxes around or vending machines or even just the cafes around that have amazing fresh donuts or muffins! While we all like the idea of having fresh fruit or veg for snacks, maybe with some dip, there are always days where you’re rushing and you forget or just can’t be bothered to spend the 5 minutes making it!

I have tried just not snacking at all at work but usually this would just mean that I would get home in the evenings and binge eat cheese and crackers before dinner – slightly counter-productive. For this reason I have a number of things sitting in the drawer of my desk:

• dried apricots;
• almonds;
• walnuts; and
• salted caramel dark chocolate.

Well maybe the last one isn’t “healthy” but it’s not bad and means I’m much less likely to get the really sugary stuff (that I don’t even like as much) when I decide I need a bit or energy in the mid afternoon.

5. Tea instead of coffee/chai latte

I say coffee/chai latte because I don’t actually like coffee so I also go for a loose leaf chai latte with honey and spices when everyone else goes for coffee (yes that is actually a realistic option living in Melbourne – it’s great – all those hipster vibes have serious benefits). Tea is a great new year swap option as it’s so good for you and also hydrates you as effectively as water (read more about how awesome tea is in my That’s My Cup of Tea post).

The best thing about tea is it’s a huge money saver! Most of us aren’t willing to spend a few dollars on what is effectively boiling water in a cup which means I have a large stash of tea at my desk ready to make whenever I feel like it which really adds up over time!

6. An indoor plant

Not really a “habit” unless you count watering but indoor plants are great things to decorate your desk with, a little bit of nature in a very un-natural environment! They do a little bit of air cleaning for you and freshen up your space! The main thing to look for in picking a plant for your desk is to consider where your desk is. Is it by a window with natural light or will it be drinking in the wonderful light of a compact fluorescent? If the latter you need to do a bit of research.

The biggest challenge I found in selecting a plant was that most are quite big and I don’t have a lot of free space around my desk. Consequently, I have a small succulent on my desk (pictured) which does not like being in an office environment so I have to put it by a window each weekend and take it home once every few months so that it can revive itself a little.

So that’s it, my new year habit resolutions! Making my time at work as beneficial as possible! Let me know if you have any work related resolutions for the new year, I’d love to know! xx