When you sit at your desk all day (the way I do), it’s easy to fall into bad eating habits. To aliveate stress and break up boredom, I often snack: chips, crackers, nuts, and candy get consumed pretty regularly (which is one reason why I work out!).

In this guest blog post, Marci Anderson, Registered Dietitian and Certified Personal Trainer, gives tips for healthy snacking when you’re crunched for time. Take it away, Marci!

As a nutrition therapist I get to talk about one of my very favorite subjects A LOT — food. But for most of you, food is the last thing on your mind when you’re slammed and a deadline is fast approaching.

Let me assure you that feeding your body and your brain is an essential component for increasing productivity, enhancing your mood, and improving your health. And after counseling hundreds of people, I’ve discovered one nutrition principle that is either friend or foe — snacking.

Here are the four most common pitfalls busy professionals make when it comes to snacking, as well as four simple solutions to break the bad habit cycle.

Pitfall #1: Going too long without eating.

When work is busy its easy to push eating to the back burner. I recommend eating every 4-5 hours. This becomes much more manageable when your snack is pre-planned and convenient (see next tip).

Pitfall #2: Falling victim to the nearest vending machine or candy jar.

When ravenous hunger strikes and you don’t have a nutritious snack handy, anything (and everything) will do. Before going to sleep at night, pre-plan a snack or two to bring to work with you and keep it easily accessible.

Pitfall #3: Snacking on carbohydrates solo (i.e. candy, crackers, fruit).

No, carbs are not evil. But they are metabolized very quickly, supplying your body with instant energy. If you feel hungry 30 minutes after eating an apple, now you know why. A snack should reflect a mini-meal with carbohydrates, fats, and proteins.

Carbohydrates supply quick energy and are good for the brain, protein supplies longer lasting energy keeping you fuller longer, and fats trigger hormones which elicit feelings of satiety and satisfaction.

Pitfall #4: Munching to procrastinate.

Yes, eating is a very effective way to avoid a project or assignment. But the consequences are often less than desirable. If you need a distraction try a few jumping jacks, push-ups, or lunges. Taking 60 seconds to increase your heart rate will clear your mind and reduce your levels of stress and anxiety.

Here are 4 super simple snacking solutions that are well-balanced, affordable, and tasty.

1. Cottage cheese with fruit. Do not buy fat-free. I go for Hood Cottage Cheese with pineapple.

2. Whole grain crackers with peanut butter or almond butter. I make mini-sandwiches (PB smeared between two crackers) ahead of time and keep them stored in a zip-loc.

3. Yogurt with slivered almonds. Again, I avoid fat-free yogurt. The 6 oz. Activia yogurt is tasty and just the right size.

4. Larabars. If you like convenience food, this is a MUST. These bars are made with dried fruit, nuts, and spices, minimally processed, and filled with healthy fats and fiber. You can find them at Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Costco, and even Amazon.

For more nutritious tips, check out Marci’s blog at http://www.marcird.com/_blog/blog. You can learn more about Marci by visiting her website — she’s based in Massachusetts and helps people find healthy balance through daily exercise and proper nutrition.

“Omit needless words.”

Steve Krug, author of Don’t Make Me Think, used the above sentence as a chapter heading regarding Web content.

I keep this sentence in my head when editing copy. Cutting needless words from your copy makes it easier to read and make the copy “flow” better. It’s akin to pulling weeds from your flower bed — the more weeds you pull, the better your flowers look.

When I edit copy, I play a game with myself: how much copy can I cut yet still communicate the message and keep a smooth flow? Herewith, my tips for cutting words, phrases, and even entire paragraphs:

1. Keep yourself to a specific word count. One of the reasons I love Twitter is because I have to write concise messages in 140 characters or less. If you’re a veteran copywriter, it’s the same process as writing those 25-word “blurbs” for print publications or classified ads.

Adhering to a word count means you have to really work at getting your message across quickly and in fewer words. It’s actually a lot of fun.

2. Don’t fall in love with your copy. Because I’ve been writing since my college days, I have no problem with cutting entire pages of copy and starting over. Words come easy to me.

For others, however, writing is a hard process and once something is on paper, you’re loathe to cut it because then you have to struggle to write more. Cut it anyway. I’ve found that when I cut  copy I’ve fallen in love with, it’s easier to write something even better because now I have the “space” to do so.

3. Hunt down redundancies. When I write fast and without effort, I find my copy is full of useless words that I use over and over and ideas that I communicate two or three or four times (just like this sentence, ha!).

Here is how I can edit this sentence: When writing fast and without effort, my copy becomes bloated with useless words and repeated ideas.

4. Print out the piece and look at it. While sitting with my client today, I realized that the Web content I had initially submitted really could use some pruning. The copy didn’t look dense on my computer screen, but it sure did on paper with the large blocks of text and “explanatory” verbiage that could easily be cut.

5. Consider *every* word. When brevity counts, you have to consider every word on the page. Can you combine words and ideas? Can you cut prepositions? Can you use contractions? Can you eliminate whole sentences? Instead of saying, “She was born in Boston,” simply state, “Jane Smith, a Boston native . . . .”

What are your tips for pruning deadwood from your copy?

Whether you’re a freelancer, consultant, small business owner or corporate employee, LinkedIn is a great way to make connections with people.

Many people, however, aren’t sure what to do with LinkedIn, or they become overwhelmed with its functionality.

If this describes you, read my latest MarCom Strategist newsletter to see how you can get more from LinkedIn. Tips include:

1. Beefing up your Profile Summary.

2. Continually adding new Connections.

3. Asking for and giving Recommendations.

4. Adding your blog to your Profile.

5. Joining or starting a Group.

6. Gathering info using the new Polling feature.

7. Answering and Asking Questions.