Schedule times for me-time you schedule.

Most of us make the critical mistake of filling our schedule to the brim with appointments to take care of other things or people.  I am sure you have experienced times when you have 8-10 hours of back to back meetings and office calls to discuss the business of the day.  You struggle to find time for bathroom breaks, choke down a sandwich, and leave the day unfulfilled and tied.  This pattern is not healthy.  Where is the time to take care of you?  

This pattern of life is a common mistake and leads to higher stress and thus a lower productivity.  Stress will add to your anxiety level and increase your stress hormone cortisol.  Cortisol adds to you central obesity and risk of diabetes and heart disease.  It is a compounding problem.  If you are not at the top of you game, you will not perform at your best.  

The problem is that many of the extra requests for your time are productivity vampires.  They suck the life or productivity from your day and reduce the energy you have to focus and complete the daily tasks you need to accomplish.  Work to fill whatever size schedule you allow it to occupy.  I have found that sometimes I just need to say “no” or delegate.  Not every task is essential and not every your needs to be done by you.  

Face it, No one other than your self will assure your week has adequate time for mental health, exercise, meals, and relaxation.  For this reason, you need to schedule it into your daily schedule so that you work life does into steam roll your health.  Everyone else has a piece of you schedule so why who’ll you not schedule a little me time.  

Scheduled time:

1. Meal time:  Take the time to eat properly.  I block 30-60 minutes of my schedule to eat my meals.  I almost always leave my office and try not to use a computer or do anything else other than eat.  I do this because I found that if I multitask, I tend to wold down my sandwich in no time and realize a did not taste or proper chew it.   
2. Exercise time: Take the time to invest in some activity.  I try to schedule 30-60 minutes of exercise at the beginning or end of the day.  Doing this is not only good for your body but also for your mental health.  It lowers your stress and will make your more productive.  
3. Schedule walk-rounds:  I schedule a couple 15 minutes blocks to do walk rounds.  Walk rounds are a great addition to any manager or supervisors schedule.  It allows you to not only get some steps, but is also breaks up the day.  You will show presence as a leaders, gains some steps, and return to your desk refreshed.      
4. Schedule some “me time”.  Time for yourself can be the most important time of your day.  I often schedule a 5-15 minutes meditation or nap time.  Of course, I do not label it as such, but 5-10 minutes of personal time can make a big deal in stress reduction.  

The bottom line: Put your health and fitness first when it comes to time management.  You cannot take care of others if you do not take care of yourself.  Adding a little me time to your schedule will help you better do your job and will improve you ability to lose weight and keep it off.  Put these blocks on your calendar and keep them reoccurring.