5 Steps to Workplace Wellness
Workplace wellness is one of the fundamental underpinnings of productivity for businesses today. Choosing to ignore it’s importance can be detrimental to both the health of your business and your employees.
With the cost of time off for illness estimated at £28.8 billion (source CIPD) for UK businesses, it really is time to take action…
With these simple steps you can start to improve the wellness of your personnel and your business.
1. Put a ban on sweets, cakes and biscuits
Having worked in an office environment for over 10 years I know it was always someone’s birthday.. or Christmas…. or Easter and we would have plates of cakes and biscuits most weeks of the year. They are difficult to resist and most people will inevitably end up eating more than they should.
These ‘treats’ add hundreds of empty calories to our daily intake and with obesity related illness on the rise, one way to encourage a more healthy diet is to ban these sugary snacks but encourage fruit or maybe a savory dish (chilli or curry) that can be enjoyed as part of a lunchtime celebration.
2. Replace sugar filled snack machines
For reasons made clear above, having an on tap supply of sugar laden products encourages unhealthy eating. Having these snacks on site daily leads to low productivity as the sugar rush roller coaster gives you that 2-3pm lull…
Protein based snacks (hummus, yoghurt, even protein bars) or fresh fruit offer a much more consistent release of energy and therefore avoids that afternoon slump!
3. Consider adjustable desks
One of the major causes of back, neck and shoulder pain is sitting for hours a day at a desk. If we accept that computer based work is integral to most office environments, think about offering the option of standing at the desks. By adjusting the height of the desk it encourages people to stand which is a more natural position for the spine and engages the strength in the legs…it also burns more calories that sitting….
4. Encourage feeling based goals
Whilst everyone looks to earn enough money for the new car, fancy holiday or latest gadget it is actually how you feel when you get there that will be the driving force…for some having a new car might be the goal, but actually they just want to be admired and respected by their peers and as an employer you can help them achieve that.
5. Consult a wellness expert
As your business is unique there may be things that you could be doing to improve your wellness that are different from any other business. Wellness experts can help to come up with ideas to drive the productivity of your most valuable asset…your team!
Samantha Bramley is a Sports Therapist and owner of Active Potential Therapy Sports and Health Clinic.