businessinfomag.uk
magazine
12
Step to it
More than 3,500 workers from
businesses across England took part
in this year’s Shake Up September,
a sporting challenge set up to
encourage employees to take more
exercise.
The programme, run byWorkplace
Challenge, urged employees to try
as many sports as they could, taking
inspiration from the Olympic and
Paralympic Games in Rio. The top
performer in England was Diane Stokes
from Hinckley and Rugby Building
Society in the East Midlands who logged
31 unique activities in 30 days.
Commenting on Shake Up September,
Lee Mason, chief executive of the
County Sports Partnership Network,
which runs Workplace Challenge, said:
“It’s been a lot of fun, but there is also
a serious message behind all of this.
Campaigns like Shake Up September
and our Lunchbreak Manifesto, which
encourages people to get active on their
lunch break, are designed to help people
introduce physical activity in and around
the working day. Not enough people are
exercising and it is having a serious effect
on our health, which is why we want
businesses to encourage their employees
to get active.”
Sport is one way to do this, but there
are plenty of other ways in which office
workers can be more active. Here are a
few ideas to get you started.
1. Take public transport instead of
your car.
Using public transport rather
than driving to work is better for you and
the environment. Standing while waiting
for a bus/train, walking to and from the
bus stop/station, and opting to stand
while on the bus/train will really increase
your activity levels. If you do need to
drive to work, park further away from the
office and walk the difference.
2. Sit-stand desks.
Instead of sitting
down all day, alternate between sitting
and standing with a sit-stand desk or
retro-fit desktop solution. Just make sure
you don’t spend too long on your feet,
as that produces problems of its own.
Find out more by downloading Osmond
Ergonomics’ sit-stand best practice
guide at
/
Sit_Stand_Tips.pdf
3. Take the stairs not the lift.
Taking
the stairs is a simple way to introduce
movement into your daily routine. A
smart watch or fitness tracker like the
Philips health watch and companion
app could give you the encouragement
you need. Use it to count steps,
measure your daily activity, set goals
and programme alerts to stop you from
spending too long sitting down.
4. Deskercise.
Even if a busy schedule
makes it hard to set aside a fixed time
for exercise every day, you can always
perform discreet exercises while
working at your desk. Try leg or heel
raises, simple stretches and shoulder
rolls to dissipate tension.
5. Speak to colleagues face-to-face.
Don’t email or phone colleagues in the
same office; walk over to them instead.
Doing so will improve your circulation
and give your eyes a screen break.
6. Use a headset.
Boost your step
count with a wireless headset that lets
you make and take calls while moving
around. Standing up to make a call will
make you sound more confident and
assertive as well.
7. Re-design your workspace.
Arrange
your office in a way that encourages
movement, for example by locating your
printer, scanner, rubbish bin etc. away
from your desk. Yes, it’s fun to try and lob
things into the bin, but walking over to
put them in might be better for you.
8. Go for a walk at lunchtime.
Avoid
eating al desko and go outside at
lunchtime.
9. Introduce walking meetings.
Enjoy
the health benefits of walking by
suggesting a walking meeting. A pilot
study by the University of Miami Miller
School of Medicine found that changing
just one sit-down meeting per week into
a walking meeting increased the work-
related physical activity levels of white-
collar workers by 10 minutes (source:
Opportunities for Increased Physical
Activity in theWorkplace: theWalking
Meeting
, published by
Preventing
Chronic Disease
).
10. Increase unconscious movement.
As well as increasing conscious
movement through ‘deskercise’ and
walking more, office workers can improve
their health by increasing unconscious
movement. Try Hovr, a new solution
that allows you to unconsciously swing
and twist your legs while sitting, or the
Fellowes Foot Rocker, a foot rest with a
rocking motion that improves circulation
and reduces fatigue.
For 2017, why not aim to be more active? You can start gently and gradually
introduce more demanding goals. You don’t even have to leave the office to
start making a difference
Fitness
