Take If You Want to Be a Healthy Teacher

Choose Your Food Carefully

I recently devoured the book How Not to Die by Michael Greger, a physician and founder of NutritionFacts.org. Dr. Greger's scientifically supported book outlines a diet aimed at preventing and reversing many diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and high blood pressure. The diet is plant-based and focuses on Dr. Greger's "daily dozen," a list of foods we should eat every day. It includes beans, berries and other fruit, cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower, greens and other vegetables, flaxseeds, nuts and other seeds, whole grains, spices (like turmeric, marjoram, and cayenne pepper), and beverages like water, coffee, and tea.

The list's final item is exercise, which isn't a food, but Dr. Greger believes you should get in one "serving" of 90 minutes a day. Since heart disease and cancer run in my family, I've been working to add the "daily dozen" to my diet. 

Plan Your Meals

If I don't plan out my lunches, I end up in the teachers' cafeteria eating shepherd's pie three times a week. So I force myself to head to the grocery store and pick up ingredients for slow-cooker meals and delicious salads. I even grab some quick, healthy frozen entrees for those inevitable days when I'm too tired to prep my food ahead of time. When you know what you're going to eat each day, you're less likely to reach for something easy and unhealthy.

Work on Your Resistance

There have been studies that show that willpower gets stronger the more it's exercised. Each time you resist that candy box, you're actually strengthening yourself for the next time around! Just be careful. Those same studies say you can wear out your willpower if it's used too much, so try to limit the challenging situations you face.

Get Moving!

You absolutely MUST make time in your day to exercise. I know how hard this can be. I recently bought a fitness tracker, and it's been extremely helpful to ensure I'm getting my "steps in." Competing with other teachers and even students in our building has motivated me even more. To make sure I reach my goal, I'll use the second-floor copier or deliver a message in person rather than through e-mail.

Lifting weights will eventually become part of my exercise routine. Essential for maintaining muscle mass and strength, weight training helps prevent the risk of falls and fractures, and it increases metabolism.