Wellbeing: Focus
Team NKD are focusing on our wellbeing this November, in what we’re calling… ‘Me-vember Masterclasses’. Each week NKD associate Sam Ellis is taking us through a session focused on our wellbeing, we’ll share with you some of the highlights in the hopes that you’ll find it useful too!
Focus… It can be easier said than done right now.
We’ve all adjusted to working from home, and we’ve been doing it for a quite a while now. But, for many of us, keeping focus feels harder than ever. Distractions are harder to tune out, staying on task is trickier than ever and our normal workload feels mountainous.
When you think about it, although we’re all working from home, it’s more accurate to say; we’re working from home in the midst of a global pandemic. Because of that, in one way or another, we are working in a state of constant stress. This creates a whole heap of physical and mental symptoms such as headaches, digestives issues and of course fuzzy thinking and the inability to focus.
Sam focused on 4 main areas for getting our focus mojo back…
- Sleep : one of the most neglected elements of selfcare.
We need 8 hours of sleep for memory process, toxin release, self-control and organ restoration. Sam also talked us through the benefits of short (less than 20 minute) lunch time nap to reset. Now we’re working from home, this is a little easier than curling up under your desk…
2. Eat: Hydrate and moderate!
We’re all made up of water, and if we’re not getting enough, our focus is going to suffer we should all be drinking at least 2 litres of water a day. Focusing on eating Low Gi foods moderately throughout the day to keep energy levels steady. Eating oily fish or plant derived Omega-3 and a rainbow of antioxident rich fruit and vegetables keep us focused and on track.
3. Active: get moving!
Move, however it suits you… but make sure you’re walking for a minimum of 10 minutes every two hours, even better still – do it outside to stimulate your senses. Can you make a standing desk at home? Standing up and pumping those legs helps get oxygen and glucose to the brain.
4. Connect: Locked down, but not locked out.
Human contact is is integral to effective balancing of our hormones and mental processes and the lack of our focus. Human contact gives us an improved sense of worth and a change of perspective. If you need to drop someone a note, why not give someone a call instead of an email?
Sam also recommended some handy apps to help our focus, one which we all really loved was the @Forest app. It helps you visualize your time spent focusing and gives you a handy reward when you complete a focus goal. Find out more about it here.
Checking in with ourselves is more important than ever and as the boundaries between work and life begin to blur it’s so easy to forget about some of the basics which keep us at our best. Try out some of the above and let us know how you get on.