So, it is now spring and you made that commitment earlier this year to exercise regularly. You joined a gym or health club to progress your healthy lifestyle and have someone helping you with your goals. What do you do when you cannot make it to the gym due to work but want to keep your commitment? Get your co-workers involved!
A recent study from the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine showed that integration seemed to promote staff engagement in health protection and promotion. You are most likely not the only one who is making that commitment to a healthier lifestyle at work. Get your co-workers to take a walk with you around campus or at the nearby park during your lunch break. Take the time during the walk to talk about how to improve that healthy lifestyle we are all trying to achieve. This brings together the physical aspect of promoting exercise and the social well being of interacting with co-workers on a level outside of work.
Integrating education of employee health during the day also improves the understanding of the link between work and health. Employee health engagement, as well as corporate culture and structure, and employee well-being are the factors of health integration into business. Health promotion such as workplace ergonomics and health interventions can help reduce medical costs to not only the employee, but the employer as well.
Getting together for group health activities can promote not only physical health, but psychological health as well. The perception of employee well-being reflects positively upon individual performance. Knowing your co-workers outside of work activities can improve work relations.
Have a company barbecue coming up soon in the spring or summer? Bring a Frisbee or volleyball and get a game going. It keeps you active and builds teamwork to better improve work dynamics.
References
About. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://www.healthandfitnessmonth.com/about
Parry, T., & Sherman, B. (2015). Workforce Health–The Transition From Cost to Outcomes to Business Performance. Benefits Quarterly, 31(1), 32-38.
von Thiele Schwarz, U., Augustsson, H., Hasson, H., & Stenfors-Hayes, T. (2015). Promoting Employee Health by Integrating Health Protection, Health Promotion, and Continuous Improvement. Journal Of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 57(2), 217-225. doi:10.1097/JOM.0000000000000344
About the Author
Wen-Fu received his B.S. in Exercise Science with a focus on exercise physiology from Rutgers University in New Jersey in 2012. He is a graduate student finishing his final clinical affiliation for his Doctorate in Physical Therapy degree with BaySport. He previously worked at an outpatient orthopedic clinic, acute inpatient hospital and a long-term acute care facility for his previous clinical affiliations. He currently belongs to the Orthopedics Section and the Sports Section of the American Physical Therapy Association. He takes his experiences from his clinical affiliations as a graduate student and as a student athlete when he was younger to help treat patients. In his free time, he enjoys playing volleyball, swimming and any outdoors activity that takes him to experience new cultures.
