A busy lifestyle, incorporating long working hours and a hectic family or social life is no longer an excuse for choosing a more sedentary lifestyle; Kevin Yates National Fitness Manager for gym chain Fitness first looks at how employers can raise the call to action.
Recent research, conducted by the University of Glamorgan in Pontypridd, South Wales, reveals that people can reduce the amount of time spent working out by two thirds but still achieve the same results.
Best estimates show that obesity related conditions cost over £2.5 billion a year, a figure that also includes the price caused by absence from work and it would seem the news gets worse. Ninety million working days are lost per year in the UK to mental health and stress problems which amounts to an estimated annual bill of £8.2 million.
Regular aerobic exercise not only burns calories, helping to maintain a trim waistline, but also promotes the release of feel good hormones. These help to counter the stresses and strains of everyday life, resulting in a more stable, calm state of mind and in turn assisting to reduce absenteeism while boosting productivity.
The time excuse
If the benefits of regular moderate aerobic exercise are so far reaching, why is it that more people fail to incorporate it into their life? Yates says: “A lack of time is the number one reason people give for not joining a gym but people have an unrealistic perception of the time it takes to complete an effective workout. Results do not correlate directly with the length of time spent in the gym; it is more about the exercises and activity undertaken whilst there.
“The most recent Chief Medical Officer’s report suggests that people should aim to incorporate 30 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise into their day, five times a week and I support this. A little and often is the key to a healthier lifestyle.”
Working it into your routine
With time poor workers, gyms need to offer express workouts that can be squeezed into a lunchtime or after work session.
Yates explains: “Participation in a 30 minute express workout at a moderate to high aerobic intensity can burn up to 500 calories, improve cardiovascular fitness, increase muscular strength and activate feel good hormones. A shorter workout means our members can squeeze in a session where a longer routine might be impossible, often negating the ‘no time’ excuse.”
Corporate gym membership is one of the most popular healthcare perks currently available. Subsidising a benefit of this kind opens the door for lower paid workers who might not ordinarily join a gym or have access to one.
Yates says: “Reducing the barriers to exercise will help more people to participate. This is something that company executives should be thinking about. Fitter, healthier employees will result in less absenteeism. This, in turn will have a positive effect on bottom line profit.”
Top tips for getting active:
1) Offer gym membership: First time exercisers and people who need extra help and motivation to get started will gain a great deal of benefit from seeking the advice of a professional. Subsidising the cost of gym membership for one employee for a whole year might be as little as £300.00.
2) Consider a cash alternative: however good your intentions, some members of staff just hate going to the gym and may not be persuaded otherwise but don’t rule them out. A good approach can be to offer a cash alternative to the gym membership which they must put towards a healthy activity, a sailing course or some rollerblades for example. This can be approved and reimbursed through business expenses to ensure the system is not open to abuse.
3) Support team events: Encourage employees to enter a local event as a team. Hundreds of 5km and 10km races are organised every year for various charities across the UK. Encourage colleagues to get together and train for a local event. To encourage participation, pay entry fees and support the team’s training programme by offering to extend lunch breaks in the two months leading up to the event for example so that participants can train together.
4) Back activities: Encourage the formation of company sports teams. This can range from five-aside football to netball and badminton. Offer to provide the team with branded sports kit and contribute to all competition entry fees.
5) Clean up: Provide showering facilities to encourage employees to cycle, run or walk to work.
6) Exercise the office layout: Introduce small changes to the working environment to encourage more activity. For example, charge employees to park in spaces closest to the building. This will encourage them to park further away and get some exercise. Place the coffee/tea and drinking water facilities at the far end of the building so that people have to walk extra steps to reach them. Encourage the use of stairs instead of the lift by supplying posters which indicate how many calories might be burnt as a result of climbing them twice a day.
7) Make the healthy choice: Vending machines filled with chocolate, crisps and sugary drinks will not help to promote healthy eating – why not replace these or complement them with a fruit bowl and herbal teas for example. The cost may be the same or even lower.
8) Kick the habit: it’s no secret that smoking kills and many employees are factoring in the no-smoking appeal when choosing who to work for. Bosses may also see improved productivity and reduced absenteeism by actively helping to assist workers quit the habit, subsidizing patches and nicotine gum is one option in addition to educating workers about the impact it has on health.
9) Seeing is believing: Every company in the UK is obliged to provide eye tests to employees who regularly use computers. Some employers are, however, going further then the minimum requirements by offering eye tests to all types of workers even those who aren’t regular computer users.
To find out more about corporate membership opportunities at Fitness First contact the Corporate Membership Team on T: 01202 845812
