Be happy, not hangry: Why skipping your lunch break is stupid
Taking a lunch break away from your desk makes you a better employee, life coach says
We all have those people in the office: co-workers who never take their lunch break and who (un)intentionally make you feel bad for taking yours.
It turns out that choosing to stay put during your lunch break isn't the smart choice at all, and it could have serious implications for your health and well-being.
"The physical body needs the break and also the mind needs the break," said Dana Warren, a St. John's-based life coach whose clients include goal-oriented, hard-driving workers who may be putting themselves at risk.
The combination of being chronically connected to work and having a heavy workload are contributing to workplace cultures where lunch breaks are actually frowned upon.
"It comes with the notion of, 'I gotta get things done and I can eat my sandwich at my desk," said Warren.
Do you take your lunch break?
To find out more about lunch break habits, I went to a Second Cup restaurant in the east end of St. John's to intrude on lunch dates and interrupt people during their mid-afternoon alone time.
I found a young woman who recently left a job at a busy medical practice.
While working there for six years, she rarely took a lunch break.
"[I'd] get behind so [my] lunch break was not a lunch break, it was a time to catch up on what [I] missed," she told me.
Skipping the lunch break drained her energy — and not to mention made her hungry — in the afternoon, so on the drive home, she'd often binge eat a box of granola bars. (We've all been there.)
Painful consequences
I also spoke with a recently retired woman who strongly encourages people who sit at a desk all day to make an extra effort to leave their cubicle during the work day.
"Take the break, because your health suffers," she said, adding that an unwanted side effect of her length career were health problems that continue to plague her.
She told me she did eat lunch regularly while working — but she ate it while sitting at her desk. Now, in what should be her golden years, she finds her suffering from all those missed lunch hours.
"I ended up with severe problems with my neck and shoulders because I sat at the desk too long," she said.
"I'm suffering the pain of sitting at my desk all day and not getting up."
Our conversation made me think about how some employees feel guilty getting up and leaving their pile of work.
Stop stinking up the office
One man sipping on his afternoon coffee told me he gets out of the office every day for a break and a bite to eat, and wishes his coworkers would do the same... not only for their own health, but to stop stinking up the office.
"I think the worst people bring sandwiches to work and I think that's pretty cruel. I'm not a fan of stinky offices," he told me.
"Go down by the lake and take a walk and have a sandwich. It's very good for you and you'll be in a better frame of mind when you get back after lunch."
Be happy, not 'hangry'
If you've ever found yourself snapping at your boss or getting irritated with the intern in the afternoon hours, you could be suffering from a new term but age-old affliction: being "hangry" — that is, hungry plus angry.
Even if you don't get short-tempered easily, Warren said you should still take a proper lunch break to avoid burnout.
A common reason employees don't take their lunch break is because they don't want to fall back on work. But Warren suggests that taking a lunch break can actually make you not only a better employee, but can also strengthen your relationships at home.
"The effects of taking a good break means that productivity is better for the rest of the day," said Warren.
"You're really stealing your energy from your evening as well. You've got nothing left when you leave that workplace."
Tips on how to make the best of your lunch
Warren has some tips to help ensure that you take the break you deserve.
These include making friends in the office who are break-takers. That is, identify the people who regularly take breaks and get to know them. A workplace culture can actually change when peers take breaks.
Warren also recommends setting a timer for your lunch break. That can include even telling colleagues that you have to step outside for an important meeting (with yourself).
She suggests planning ahead and making healthy lunch choices, which means avoiding the vending machine and the high-caloric garbage inside.
Your lunch break isn't only for eating. Warren suggests using the afternoon break to run errands, go grocery shopping or head to the gym.
Finally, she says, don't feel guilty about leaving the office for your break. Sure, your work is valued, but you're not that important and the office will survive without you.
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