What if a diet not only kept you lean but also provided a healthy heart? Better yet, what if that same diet encouraged you to be more successful at work?
Of course, it sounds too good to be true! Nevertheless, a vast amount of research shows that the Mediterranean diet can do just that.
Read on to find out how simply making a few subtle adjustments to your diet can support better performance at work. Find out the benefits of the Mediterranean diet and improve your job success.
What Is The Mediterranean Diet?
The Mediterranean diet isn’t just some new fad dreamed up by a weight-loss connoisseur as the new health standard. It’s a diet that’s rich and deeply rooted in history, dating back thousands of years.
People who have been living along the Mediterranean Sea have been reaping the health benefits of this diet, where natural and fresh foods are a massive part of one’s everyday life. Fruits, vegetables, nuts, fish and oils are all essential in the diet.
This may seem surprising because although the Mediterranean diet does incorporate fat, it’s the type of fat utilized that makes all the difference.
Lower in saturated fat but higher in omega-3 fatty acids and monounsaturated fats, the Mediterranean diet has ample health benefits hiding in all the right places.
Since most whole foods are consumed across the Mediterranean Sea region, unwanted trans-fats, typically found in fast food, are reduced at a much higher rate.
Many people state that one of the most challenging things about dieting is sticking with it long term. This is not an issue with the Mediterranean diet, because it is effortless to adopt and there are no specific requirements.
This is mainly due to the fact that the Mediterranean diet doesn’t ask you to make impractical changes in your eating unlike the radical demands of many other diets, which by contrast allows the person dieting to stay on the program long-term.
Benefits of Mediterranean Diet for You and Your Business
1. The Mediterranean Diet Enhances Cognition
Studies show that participants in the Mediterranean diet benefit from improved memory and considerably more attention and concentration. In fact, the diet has been linked to significant improvements in language skills
This is undoubtedly crucial for executives who want to remain at the top of their game at work. You’ll experience better negotiation results and job performance with more accomplishment on the job.
2. The Mediterranean Diet Can Help Reduce Stress
As an executive, you derive stress from many sources. There is that constant pressure among co-workers, causing panic that wreaks havoc with your health, not to mention productivity.
Chronic stress can damage your entire well-being as an inflammatory biomarker.
Experts avow that the Mediterranean diet can counteract these work ills. In other words, it can help you avoid nervousness in an important meeting, make you feel more relaxed and even help you sleep better before a critical day at work.
When following the Mediterranean diet, you should also look to embrace other features of the Mediterranean lifestyle – like making mealtime a social activity, allocating more time to exercising and getting out in nature.
Following these guidelines will have an important impact on your health as you will be eating only nutritious foods. A positive view of life will follow.
This new lifestyle will provide you with the tools you need to handle life’s numerous stressors, leaving you more upbeat, carefree and refreshed.
3. The Mediterranean Diet Can Improve Your Relations at Work
It is all about the good fats and recognized probiotic foods in a new eating plan, according to Science. Let your body create more dopamine to keep your mood elevated and your brain functioning properly.
Happy executives create more favorable relations at work and show higher self-esteem, which helps them handle stressful situations.
These executives develop stronger connections with their colleagues, customers and bosses.
4. The Mediterranean Diet Can Assist You With Overcoming Anxiety and Depression
Executives who experience mental health issues like anxiety and depression can benefit from some of the brain-boosting advantages of the Mediterranean diet. A lack of dopamine can bring on these conditions that affect your thoughts, body movements and moods.
This rationale is behind psychiatrist and Well+Good Wellness Council member, Drew Ramsey, MD, advice to start a diet rich in vegetables and healthy fats as part of his method for treating patients with depression, anxiety or other mental health concerns.
The carotenoids in kale, spinach and eggs have been proved to increase the beneficial bacteria in your gut, and as a result your mood. A study discovered that when older adults undertook the Mediterranean diet, they were less prone to depression.
Medical treatments have their purpose, but adopting a diet like the Mediterranean is also a great counterpart to achieve optimal results. Some people find that they no longer require medication and therapy.
The bottom line is this: if you decrease your manifestations of depression and anxiety, you can more efficiently concentrate on your business.
5) The Mediterranean Diet May Improve The Way You Are Perceived at Work
There are a lot of biases towards obese people. These biases have been confirmed by many studies. Research demonstrates clearly that people who are overweight are perceived as less competent.
We tend to think that obese individuals are less intelligent and motivated. We doubt their morality and generally trust them less.
One of the important benefits of Mediterranean diet is that it promotes weight loss, since you tend to eat plenty of fruits and vegetables that are low in calories.
Following this diet, you will most likely lose weight. This will improve your quality of life and make you healthier.
Furthermore, as a fringe benefit, you will be perceived as more competent, more productive and more triumphant and successful.
6) The Mediterranean Diet Gives You More Energy
Unlike other trendy diets, the Mediterranean is largely based around whole grains and healthy carbs.
Complex carbs are a definite must. Think of buckwheat, wheatberries and quinoa for example. Lose the refined carbs to keep your blood sugar level even. You will experience more all-around energy.
Executives and managers like you have a tumultuous schedule; therefore having more energy at work is essential to being able to handle all your tasks and become fruitful within the work environment.
7) The Mediterranean Diet Can Secure a Healthy Retirement
Another benefit of the Mediterranean diet is that it supports heart health. A stationary executive lifestyle makes you prone to strokes. The Mediterranean diet helps you avoid them since this it preserves the heart.
Heart disease is high on the list of killers with its numerous associated illnesses. It is lower in Mediterranean countries compared to the U.S. Why?
It seems to be about lowering the risk of cardiovascular episodes because of its impact on “bad” cholesterol.
Staying on the Mediterranean regimen will mean a stronger cardiovascular system.
There is also the factor of drinking. Red wine has a positive effect on heart health and it is certainly part of this regional diet. Of course, it must be consumed in moderation.
8) The Mediterranean Diet Helps To Retain Agility While Aging
The abundance of nutrients, minerals and vitamins you’ll be consuming on the Mediterranean diet will allow you to benefit from a decreased risk of contracting muscle weakness or the alternative symptoms of fragility.
For executives who plan to sustain an active lifestyle, even into later adulthood, consuming an abundance of fruits and vegetables can be a powerful way to guarantee lasting agility, thereby helping sustain mentally acuity and energy at work.
9) The Mediterranean Diet Enhances Durability
According to a study in 2000, an individual who “follows the principles” of the popular Mediterranean diet commonly enjoys longer rates of survival and lifespan.
There is plenty of research and statistics from 1960 to1990 documenting the health of individuals who live in the Mediterranean region, and much of it has pointed toward the diet as the key player in lifelong health.
You will encounter a healthier and considerably improved quality of life to allow you to really focus on your business and achieve long-term goals. Furthermore, it will enhance your lifespan tenfold, enabling you to truly enjoy those later years with friends and family.
Conclusion
Now that everything has been made clear and you have a better understanding of the benefits of the Mediterranean diet, you can begin making small changes to your program.
Start to follow a more nutritious and healthy protocol and become more successful at work!
The Mediterranean diet will allow you to take a step back from the usual, highly processed foods that are high in trans-fats and full off health-adverse substances, without being restrictive and hard-to-follow.
You’ll begin to enjoy the miraculous health advantages that show in your personal life and fitness; but, more importantly, you will notice positive changes in your productivity and cognition at work.
So, waste no more time with other fad diets that have been recently discovered and start this ancient and proven dietary protocol that will have you feeling and performing better day by day.
Make the transition gradually over weeks or months so your new eating style becomes a habit and not a fad.
Do you know someone who could benefit from reading this article? If so, make sure to share it so that they, too, can understand the amazing health benefits of the Mediterranean Diet and how it will enhance work performance.
What about you? Have you tried the Mediterranean diet protocol before? Let us know about your experience in the comment section below.