12. Eat healthy and Exercise (13 Ways Teachers Can Hack Their Learning)

Eat healthy and Exercise is part 12 of 13 Ways Teachers Can Hack Their Learning.

I will be the first to admit that I’m not very good at eating healthy (Ho Hos and Diet Code Red Mountain Dew FTW!) but I’m much better at exercising (13 marathons and 3 half-marathons!).

Two of the best things you can do for yourself are to eat healthy and exercise. You will have more energy, feel better, and less likely to get sick. But, how can you do that during the school year? I’ve discovered a few tricks to help you stay on track.

1. Take a re-useable water bottle to work. Staying hydrated is important, and an easy way to do that is to always have a water bottle with you. Sure, you’ll also make record trips to the bathroom, but it’s for a good cause.
2. Exercise right after getting up in the morning. I am not a morning person. I am the exact opposite of a morning person, one who prefers his cave surroundings through the night. But, while training for marathons, I learned that a) I can consistently exercise and b) it’s not bad getting up early after the first week. Get up an hour earlier for a week and exercise. The secret to waking up is to immediately turn on a light. Better yet, put your light on a timer if you can.

   A note on exercising: When you exercise, you should be to the point where you are out of breath and wouldn’t be able to carry on a conversation with someone. I see a lot of teachers taking time to walk, which is great, but they’re not walking at a fast enough pace to count as exercise. Walking should be more than 4 miles and hour. Myself? I prefer running.

3. Pack your lunch. This is hard for me, especially with Taco Bell being only a few minutes away (is it bad that they all know my name? And that I feel like I should get them a Christmas card?). But, if you can bring yourself to pack, your choices will be healthier and the portions will be more in line with your body’s requirements.
4. Remove the snacks from your house and work. If the M&Ms are not available, it’s pretty hard to eat them. Replace the candy with something that has a little more substance. I like having the peanut butter filled pretzels around. It only take a few of them to take away any hunger.
5. Create a meal schedule in advance. Don’t wait until the last minute to decide what’s for supper, because then it will be whatever is handiest in your house. Creating a menu in advance gives you time to pick up groceries if you need them.

Do you have any other tips on how to eat healthy and exercise? Leave them in the comments!