How Meals Made Me More Productive — and Taught Me to Listen to My Body
What changed when I stopped treating food like a side activity
By Reshmi | Learning to live while Writing
✍️ Reshmi | Writer | Believer in quiet meals & clearer minds
When I was working a regular job, food was never the main character in my day.
It was background noise — something I either skipped, scarfed down, or rewarded myself with after long, exhausting hours. I’d often eat at odd times, while standing near the sink or multitasking with emails. It didn’t feel strange. It just felt normal — like something everyone else was doing too.
But that pace? It caught up to me.
I often felt foggy by afternoon. Sluggish after lunch. Snappy for no reason. I blamed screens, stress, and the weather. I never once thought to blame the way I ate.
🍛 When Food Became a Mirror
Things started changing when my schedule changed. Not dramatically — just enough.
No office. No lunch bell. No colleagues reminding me it was break time. Suddenly, I had space. And silence. And with that, came awareness.
I began to notice how different foods made me feel. Not in a trendy, wellness-blog way. Just… in the honest way your body speaks when you finally stop drowning it out.
For me, a bowl of dal with rice does more for my focus than a second cup of coffee.
Toast with peanut butter becomes a moment of grounding.
A warm mid-morning cup of tea shifts me from passive scrolling to active working.
I didn’t plan any of it. I just started paying attention. And everything — from my mood to my output — got clearer.
🥣 A Meal That Shifted My Thinking
There’s one day I think about often.
I had skipped breakfast (again) to “just knock out a quick task.” By 12:30 p.m., I was spiraling.
The words weren’t coming. I rewrote the same line five times. I snapped at someone in a message. My jaw was clenched, and I couldn’t even say why.
So I stopped.
I made a quick bowl of poha with some cashews and lemon. Nothing fancy. I sat near the window, phone flipped down. I chewed slowly. The world didn’t change. But my mind did.
When I returned to my desk, the fog had lifted. Not because I ate the “right” food. But because I let myself pause — and refuel.
That day taught me something I hadn’t learned in years of “pushing through.”
Sometimes, the work doesn’t need more willpower. It just needs better fuel.
📌 Small Changes, Big Clarity
Over time, patterns emerged. I didn’t need to download an app or follow a diet. I just had to listen.
Here are a few small shifts that helped:
-
Eating lunch before I get too hungry.
If I wait till I’m starving, I overeat and feel heavy all afternoon. -
Keeping fruit or nuts within arm’s reach.
A banana helps more than an extra biscuit when my brain hits that 3 p.m. fog. -
Changing tea time.
Mid-morning tea wakes me up; post-lunch tea slows me down. Now, I adjust accordingly. -
Avoiding oily or “treat meals” during work hours.
On weekends? Sure. But on busy days, they turn my mind into molasses. -
Eating away from my screen.
Not always. But even once a day helps reset my rhythm.
None of this is revolutionary. But that’s the point.
Quiet changes make quiet improvements — and those are the ones that last.
🧠 Food and Focus Are More Connected Than We Admit
We talk a lot about time management and productivity hacks.
We talk about dopamine, deep work, and digital detox.
But sometimes, the thing sabotaging our focus isn’t a bad habit or mindset.
It’s just lunch. Or lack of it.
Food is emotional. Rhythmic. Mental.
It’s how you signal safety to your body.
It’s how you stabilize your mood before a client call or a writing sprint.
And if you ignore it, your body won’t just whisper. It’ll yell.
🍵 Lunch Breaks Are Not Laziness
What changed most for me is how I see breaks.
I no longer believe I need to “earn” rest. I don’t wait for my body to crash before I respond.
I stop when I feel off — not when it becomes unbearable.
Some days, I still get it wrong. I skip meals. I eat in a rush. I drink tea instead of water and wonder why I feel jittery. But now, I notice. And I course-correct.
That noticing — that pause — is the quiet skill freelancing gave me.
Or maybe it was always there, and I just needed the silence to hear it.
✨ Final Thought
This post isn’t about food as fuel in the cliché way. It’s about food as attention.
A form of self-check. A way to slow down and ask, “How am I really doing?”
If you’re someone who struggles with focus, it might not always be about motivation.
Sometimes it’s about nourishment.
Not diets. Not trends. Just a bowl of something warm. A sip of something familiar.
And five minutes away from the screen.
🖋 Written by Reshmi — a writer learning to trust the wisdom of quiet meals.
This story is the intellectual property of the author. No part of this work may be copied, reproduced, distributed, or used commercially without written permission.
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