Plan your way to a healthy tax season

You can't control the stress and long hours, but you can control how you react to them. Here's a tax season health primer.

By Debbie Schultz, CPA

Isn't it ironic that in times of stress, the first habits to go are those that help us reduce stress the most — for instance, exercise and healthy eating?

As you prepare to enter another tax season, advance planning might help you keep a healthy balance in your life. Knowing that you have limited time to focus on exercise and healthy eating, start by setting realistic goals. Forget the New Year's resolution to lose 10 pounds and set a more realistic goal of, say, gaining no weight during tax season.

The next step is to look at what you need to do to achieve this goal. Although there are two components (nutrition and exercise) to controlling your weight, nutrition plays a very large role in weight management. Let's face it: It's easier to consume 300 calories than burn off 300 calories.

Healthy eating

When it comes to eating healthy meals, the key to success is planning. Do not find yourself without any easy food option.

Take time on the weekend to prepare food for the week. Hard boil eggs, bake and slice a chicken breast (to be used on sandwiches and salads) and make a pot of soup that can be easily heated for dinner.

And don't forget the peanut butter! Peanut butter is high in heart-healthy, unsaturated fats. Peanut butter on whole-wheat bread with a piece fruit is a nutritious meal at any time of the day.

Also, keep bags of trail mix and nuts on hand for snacks. Be leery of relying on "protein bars." Always read the nutrition label, as these bars tend to be high in fat and carbohydrates.

Most important, always eat breakfast. Eating breakfast jump-starts your metabolism and keeps you from overeating later in the day. Quick, healthy breakfast ideas include:

fruit sprinkled with chopped walnuts or almonds,
half a whole-wheat English muffin with melted low-fat cheese,
a peanut butter sandwich,
a soft-boiled egg on a piece of whole-wheat toast,
whole-grain cereal with skim milk, or
low-fat yogurt with berries and nuts.

It is important to remember that all carbohydrates are not bad. Carbohydrates provide energy to your body. However, if you start your day with a bagel from any of the local bagels shops, you have just consumed three servings of carbohydrates. Add a sandwich for lunch and one cup of rice for dinner and you have consumed seven servings of carbohydrates — about your maximum for the day. This is before you've considered any chips with your lunch, an afternoon snack of pretzels or desert. When eating carbohydrates, focus on nutrient-dense carbohydrates, such as whole-wheat or grain bread and brown rice.

Exercise

When it comes to your overall health, remember that the minutes count. Three 10-minute walks during the day will benefit you as much as one 30-minute walk. Look for opportunities to squeeze in exercise during the day. Take the stairs whenever possible, park far away from the door, or take a short walk at lunch and again later in the afternoon to recharge your battery.

Unfortunately, it takes longer to build muscle tone than it does to lose it. Any gains you may have made from an exercise program you started since the end of last tax season will quickly disappear if you do nothing during this tax season. It is estimated that your fitness level will drop in half if you reduce your workouts to zero for five weeks. Therefore, doing something is better than doing nothing. Muscle-toning exercises that you can do almost anywhere include push-ups, dips, crunches, squats and lunges.

Help from above

The increased trend in unhealthy Americans is resulting in increased health claims and increased insurance costs. These increased claims and costs impact employee productivity. Therefore, your firm or organization should have a vested interest in creating a work environment that contributes to the overall well-being of its employees.

One of the easiest contributions a company can make is to think twice about the meals it provides for employees during tax season. Consider healthy alternatives to doughnuts and bagels for breakfast and pizza for dinner. Also, consider organizing lunch or mid-afternoon walks. Most important, encourage your employees to schedule time for exercise.

As mentioned earlier, the key to success is planning. To keep you motivated and on track, develop a tax season strategy plan with a co-worker. Make a bet: Who can gain the least amount of weight during tax season?

Most important, do not make excuses. There is always time to fit in some level of exercise and make healthier food choices.

Debbie Schultz, CPA, is a certified personal trainer with Fit For You, LLC.

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