How To Better Use Your Old “Commute Time” When Working from Home
Now that you may be working from home, you’re able to save a chunk of time that you had lost during that commute time from home to office in the week. If you think about it, most people save on average 1-2 hours a day by not commuting 5-10 hours a week or 260-520 hours a year—yes, those are high numbers!
Now that you can cut back on that lost time, you’re able to spend many more minutes each day taking time to do other activities that are better for your health and wellbeing—so it’s a huge plus!
Whether you’re getting in a workout class, spending time meditating or doing yoga, sleeping, journaling, or just making time for family and friends, you can put that added time to good use to make each day more worthwhile and productive. Here are a couple of great ways to take that commute time in a car or on public transportation and use it to better serve you in your health and wellness endeavors.
Meal Prep at Home
You can use that extra time to meal prep at home for your week so that you have healthy and satisfying meals on hand to keep your diet in check and to simplify your meals.
Plus, it’s a great way to budget at the store, where you cut down on waste to better use your ingredients in various meals and snacks. You can take that extra hour or two after on a Monday morning or evening to cook up a storm and portion out your meals and snacks for the rest of the workweek. Make egg cups, freezer smoothie packs, and big batches of soups, for example.
Cook a Breakfast and Sit Down to Enjoy It
Usually you’re rushing out the door in the A.M. to make your bus or to beat the traffic, but now you can likely sleep in a tad longer and even carve out enough time to make a breakfast and sit down at the table to enjoy it. You can make eggs, a yogurt or oatmeal bowl, or some toast with avocado and toppings.
And even if you have meal prep breakfasts already set, like an overnight chia seed pudding that’s ready to go, you can eat it mindfully at the table and read a newspaper or chat with family members before starting your day.
Cook Dinner and Unwind
Instead of grabbing takeout or ordering in after a long commute back home from work, you can take time in the kitchen to cook a healthy meal or learn a new recipe. This is a great opportunity to work on clean eating and making time for “family time” at the table to all enjoy a homemade meal together. Or you can go grocery shopping after work and spend time really browsing the aisles for the ingredients you need or those you might be interested in trying, without feeling so rushed at the store.
Get a Workout In
If you couldn’t squeeze in a workout session before or after work because of your commute, now you totally can! You can do it in the morning if you wake up with energy or at night if you’re more of a night owl, and take a HIIT class, go for a run, lift weights, do yoga or even just take a brisk walk outside for fresh air. It’ll get your body moving and help with your health and wellness goals.
