Good for health...good for business

by Ian Smith, Perth & Kinross Leisure

The following advice is provided by the British Heart Foundation and every employer who cares about his or her employees and the health of their business should call the BHF Orderline on 0870600 6566 and ask for a copy of the Think Fit! Pack. When it arrives, don't leave it on the shelf but put it into action.

Just 30 minutes a day of activity that makes you warm and breathe faster than normal can reduce your risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and stroke. It improves the quality of your life too!

With over half our waking hours spent at work it isn’t easy to find the time and effort needed to fit activity into our busy lives and car or train travel and sedentary jobs can make activity even more difficult to fit into the daily routine.

The good news is that there are many ways to get your daily dose of activity, even if your job involves sitting down all day. You don’t need any equipment and you can ‘work out in your work-gear’. So don’t put off doing your daily activity until you’ve finished work. Energise your day with bursts of activity whenever you can.

Reducing the time spent sitting can be the first important step in achieving the recommended healthy goal of 30 minutes’ activity a day.  Choosing activity during breaks, or active travel to and from work, can also make a big difference to energy levels and working efficiency.

The workplace can benefit from active employees who are healthy, happy and lead a more balanced lifestyle.

Promoting physical activity in and around the workplace is simple and inexpensive, and there are many effective initiatives to choose from.

The workplace can benefit from active employees who are healthy, happy and lead a more balanced lifestyle.

Did you know?

• Increasing activity levels can help to protect against coronary heart disease, strokes, obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure), colorectal cancer, stress, anxiety, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis and low back pain- all major causes of disease and disability in our society.
• Physical activity helps people to manage stress, back pain, weight and medical conditions – all of which may lead to absenteeism and loss of production.
• Active people report less illness and recover more quickly from the illnesses they do get (Shephard, 1997).
• Physically active employees take 27% fewer days of sick leave, which equates to over 2 days improved attendance and a saving of £135 per employee (Physical Activity Task Force, 2003).
• Employees engaged in physical activity initiatives have reported greater enjoyment of their work, increased concentration and mental alertness and improved cooperation and rapport with colleagues (Shephard 1997, 2002).
• A workplace environment that fosters physical activity and good health can contribute to the health and well-being of all employees and presents a positive image both to the outside world and to employees.

So … physical activity is good for health and good for business.