Healthy Habits for Shift Workers: How to Sleep, Eat, and Thrive
- Katie Bateman
- Sep 7
- 9 min read
Healthy Living made easy.
By Katie B. — Airline Pilot, Wellness Enthusiast & Creator of The Wellness Glow-Up
If you’re one of those amazing people who works while the rest of the world sleeps—whether under harsh fluorescent lights or, like me, zooming through the sky in a metal tube—it’s likely you struggle with sleep, weight, or a whole bunch of other health challenges.
As an airline pilot with 18 years of shift work under my belt, I see you and I get it. I know the
challenges all too well. But over the years, I’ve discovered some simple, practical ways to
overcome them.
In this post, I’m sharing easy-to-follow Healthy habits for shift workers, including tips on sleep, nutrition, fitness, and mental health—so you can thrive, not just survive.
“Shift work doesn’t have to mean sacrificing your health. It’s about making small, intentional
changes that work with your schedule — not against it.”
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Easy ways to get better sleep!
To be perfectly honest, whenever I read wellness advice that tells me to “get more sleep,” I get a wee bit annoyed. We all know how important sleep is for our overall health and wellbeing. So, my goal here isn’t to preach the usual benefits but to share what’s actually worked for me when it comes to getting restful sleep with weird work hours. Here are my top three tips for getting better sleep at any time of day.
1. Reduce Your Overall Caffeine Intake
This is my number one tip. I know it can be tricky, especially if you rely on caffeine to push through long night or early morning shifts. But with just a small amount of effort, you’ll be rewarded with deeper, more rejuvenating sleep.
I went from being a two-double-shot-a-day kind of girl to swapping my hot beverages for lower-caffeine options. Here are my favourites:
• Organic Decaf
• Yerba Mate and Earl Grey tea — they still have a little caffeine but usually don’t hit you as
hard as coffee. Plus, they help keep blood sugar stable, which is a huge bonus for shift
workers since it reduces hunger and cravings for high-carb foods (great for weight
management!).
• Ceremonial Cacao — my go-to morning pick-me-up that’s delicious and packed with
nutrients, offering a more sustainable energy boost.
Top Tip: Reduce caffeine slowly. Most people get mild headaches and irritability when cutting back too quickly, so easing into it will make the transition way easier.
Bottom line: making these simple swaps and cutting back on caffeine will massively improve your sleep—and that means more energy to get through your day.
2. Focus on Protein, Especially Before Bed
This is a little-known sleep hack I swear by. Here’s why:
• Tryptophan and Sleep: Many high-protein foods contain tryptophan, an amino acid that
helps your body produce serotonin and melatonin—the key neurotransmitters that regulate
mood and sleep. Foods like turkey, dairy, and eggs can help you fall asleep faster and
improve sleep quality.
• Stable Blood Sugar: Eating protein before bed can keep your blood sugar steady
overnight, preventing spikes and crashes that disrupt sleep.
• Muscle Repair: For active folks, protein at night supports muscle repair and recovery
during deep sleep, helping reduce soreness and promote relaxation.
• A 2019 study in Nutrients found that a protein-rich snack before sleep improved muscle protein synthesis without negatively affecting sleep. Other research shows combining protein with some carbs (think yogurt and fruit) may boost tryptophan availability and help you sleep better.
But timing and portion size matter: Too heavy a meal close to bedtime can cause discomfort
and indigestion, which obviously disrupts sleep. Aim for a moderate portion of high-quality protein—Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, or a handful of nuts are great options.
One of my favourite pre-bedtime meals is a cup of Greek yogurt mixed with a scoop of high quality protein powder (Here's my fave), plus nuts and berries. It’s delicious, light, and always helps me get a deeper sleep.
Reduce Screen Time at Least an Hour Before Bed
This one isn’t new advice, but honestly, it gives incredible bang for your buck when it comes to sleep quality.
Let’s face it—when you get home from work, no matter the time of day, your brain is often a bit wired. Maybe you’ve been thinking hard, sitting under fluorescent lights, or staring at screens all day. Our brains need time to wind down and switch off.
The easiest thing is to turn on the TV or do some mindless scrolling on your phone. But screens stimulate light receptors in your brain and mess with your sleep-wake cycle, often making it harder to fall asleep.
Instead of reaching for your phone, try one of these:
• Reading a book
• Journaling
• Listening to chill music (Solfeggio beats are perfect)
• Taking a magnesium bath (double win: relaxing and sleep-inducing)
• Meditating
I know none of these are revolutionary, but when was the last time you actually did any of them right before bed? We often underestimate the huge positive impact of these simple tools.
I challenge you: Swap screen time for just one of these activities—even for one night—and see how it affects your sleep.
Smart Nutrition for Odd Hours
Eating dinner at 9 a.m., living off fresh air and candy until your shift ends, binging, or straight-up forgetting to eat — shift work can really throw a spanner in the works when it
comes to healthy eating.
Because of our unusual sleep patterns, it’s common for shift workers to crave high-carb, high-fat foods. Basically, when you don’t get rejuvenating sleep, your body looks for
energy elsewhere, which sets you up for unhealthy cravings.
Here are my top tips for navigating this:
Food Prep
It doesn’t have to be elaborate. Simple things like stir-frying a batch of veggies, tray-baking some chicken breasts, hard-boiling eggs, slicing carrots, and keeping a jar of hummus or cottage cheese handy can make all the difference. These easy staples help keep your fridge
stocked and make it way easier to say no to junk food cravings.
Take your own food to work and always focus on protein plus colourful fruits and vegetables.
When your fridge and pantry are preloaded with nutritious, easy-to-throw-together foods, you can fuel yourself and dodge cravings like a boss.
If you're keen for healthy meal prep inspo I created a 4-week low-carb meal prep plan you'll LOVE. It's free and jam packed full of healthy meal prep recipes including shopping lists and step-by-step guidance. Click the Image below to download it now.
Protein and Fibre Are King and Queen
Focusing on these two macronutrients gives you:
• Steady Energy and Blood Sugar Control: Protein and fiber slow digestion and the release
of glucose into your bloodstream, keeping energy levels stable during irregular and often
long shifts. This reduces energy crashes and sugar cravings that lead to poor food choices.
• Improved Satiety and Weight Management: Shift work can disrupt hunger signals,
leading to overeating or unhealthy snacking. Protein and fiber promote feelings of fullness
and satisfaction, helping you avoid unnecessary snacking and manage your weight more
effectively.
• Better Gut Health and Immunity: Fiber supports a healthy gut microbiome, which is key
for immune function and overall wellness. Since shift work can weaken your immune
system due to disrupted sleep and stress, a fiber-rich diet helps protect and strengthen
your body’s defences.
When you focus on high-quality protein and a high-fibre diet, weight management becomes so much easier — and you’ll naturally feel lighter, healthier, and more focused.
Hydrate Like Your Life Depends on It—Specifically, Load Up on Electrolytes
When you’re working odd hours and racing through your day (or night), staying hydrated is nonnegotiable. But plain water isn’t always enough—especially when you sweat, stress, or work long shifts. That’s where electrolytes come in.
Electrolytes like sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium help keep your muscles
functioning, your nerves firing, and your hydration balanced. Without enough electrolytes, you might feel sluggish, cramp up, or struggle with brain fog—all of which can make shift work even tougher.
So load up on electrolyte-rich foods like bananas, leafy greens, nuts, and seeds, or try adding a natural electrolyte drink during your shifts. (Be careful with electrolyte supplements that have added sugar — that’s extra carbs you don’t need. Look for ones with no flavour or sweetened with stevia.)
Your body will thank you with better energy, focus, and endurance.
Fitting in Fitness That Works for Shift Schedules
Here’s the challenge: motivation and time are limited when your schedule keeps changing.
We all know movement is life-giving. Our bodies need it—not just to stay strong, but to support digestion, improve circulation, boost mental health, and so much more. But let’s
be honest—shift work can really throw a spanner in the works when it comes to creating a workout routine that feels manageable, especially while juggling work, sleep, family,
and a social life.
What has really shifted the needle for me in building a sustainable workout schedule I actually love is focusing on fun, high-quality workouts.
I like to mix things up to ensure that over a 7-day period, I get a good balance of:
•Resistance training (weights)
•Low-intensity cardio (walking or biking)
•High-intensity cardio (bodyweight circuits)
•Stretching and mobility work
I don’t like to stick to a fixed workout length (I’ve included some guidance below, but I truly
believe quality beats quantity—so feel free to adjust each day). Sometimes, the idea of a 60-
minute workout makes me want to curl up into a ball and cry. But a quick, 15-minute punchy
session? Now that feels fun and totally doable.
Here’s an example week of workouts you might like to try:
• Day 1: 20 minutes upper body resistance training
• Day 2: 45-minute walk outside + stretching
• Day 3: 20 minutes lower body resistance training
• Day 4: 20 minutes high-intensity dance-based cardio
• Day 5: 45-minute walk outside + stretching
• Day 6: 20 minutes abs workout
• Day 7: 45-minute walk outside + stretching
For more quick work out ideas for days when you really don’t feel like working out Checkout this blog: Quick Home Workouts for days when you’re tired to workout
Keeping workouts short and sweet—and focusing on consistency—will be a game changer when it comes to fitting fitness into your busy shift work life.
“Even ten minutes of movement can flip the switch from feeling sluggish to energised.”
With a few simple, consistent tweaks, you can stabilise your blood sugar, support natural fat-burning, and start your day feeling energised, focused, and in control.
Managing Stress and Mental Well-being
Shift work isn’t just hard on your body—it can really take a toll on your mind, too. When sleep is off balance, you might feel wired one minute and wiped out the next. Add in the reality of missing social time with family and friends because you’re working odd hours, and you’ve got a recipe for feeling isolated, overwhelmed, or even burned out. Then there’s the
stress of juggling unpredictable schedules, which can leave you mentally exhausted before your shift even starts.
The good news? There are practical tools you can use to protect your mental health while navigating the demands of shift work.
I’m not going to harp but… sleep.
If you do nothing else, focus on the strategies I shared earlier for improving sleep. Protecting your rest like your life depends on it is a game-changer. When you’re well-rested, everything else—your mood, your patience, your resilience—becomes so much more manageable.
Wan't new ways to get better sleep? Click here to read 7 simple habits to get better sleep
Quality over quantity in relationships.
The juggle is real, and it’s easy to feel guilt or shame about how available (or unavailable) you are to friends and family. My fix? Have honest, open conversations about your availability, and be intentional about nurturing the relationships that matter most. A short but meaningful catch-up with someone you love will do more for your mental health than stretching yourself thin with countless half-hearted interactions.
On the flip side, set solid boundaries with people who drain your energy. Relationships should nourish your wellbeing, not drain it. Nurture the good ones, and give yourself permission to step back from the ones that cost you peace.
Pause for calm.
This is a mental health hack I use every single day, no matter where I am. It takes just a minute, but it’s incredibly grounding.
Find a quiet spot (the bathroom works in a pinch), close your eyes, place one hand on your belly and one on your heart. Take four slow, deep breaths in and out, focusing on your breath. Feel your body and mind instantly soften. Repeat as many times as needed during your shift—you’ll be amazed how quickly it restores your sense of calm.
“Your mental health is just as important as your physical health — and sometimes, protecting it means saying no.”
Final Thoughts
Finding balance as a shift worker isn’t easy—but I hope this post has given you practical, actionable tips you can start using today to feel healthier, more energised, and truly thrive.
Want to join a group of women thriving together with daily lifestyle, holistic wellness and self-care?
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This blog is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider before making lifestyle changes.
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