Women’s Fitness Australia — September 2017

You mightn’t be able to avoid sitting at a desk or working to deadlines.

But you can stop work destroying your health with these wellness strategies

WORKING THROUGH LUNCH,

STAYING LATE to meet a deadline or

even spending the occasional Saturday

arvo perched at your laptop answering

emails... These hardworking habits might

seem like the best way to climb the ladder,

but they’re not doing anything positive

for your productivity or, more importantly,

your health. In fact, not only have studies

found that eating lunch at your desk can

limit creativity, research also shows that

people who work 10-hour days or longer

have a 60 per cent increased risk of

suffering a heart attack. Eek!

Recent data from the American

Physiological Society shows that, even

if you clock 150 minutes of moderate-

intensity exercise each week, you’re still

likely to increase your risk of developing

a chronic illness, such as cardiovascular

disease, if you spend too much non-

exercising time sitting. Why? Because a

sitting body uses energy differently from

a standing one, as processes related to the

breakdown of fats and sugars stall when

you sit down for a long time. The result

is you use less energy, your metabolism

slows, your body becomes more resistant

to insulin and less able to handle blood-

sugar level changes – plus, you’re

increasingly likely to suffer from postural

problems such as back or neck pain. It’s

been described as the “silent killer” and

yet the average Aussie still spends a total

of 39 hours a week parked on their behind.

So, should we point the finger at work?

The inactive off ice

Numerous experts confirm that an inactive

working environment isn’t helping. “The

workplace is sadly becoming increasingly

detrimental to employee health,” explains

Harkirat Mahal, founder of MotivatePT,

a fitness company that provides exercise

solutions to corporations in London.

“Most companies simply aren’t doing

enough to prioritise staff wellbeing.”

The problem is, health and safety

measures have changed. “Where once

it was unsafe mine shafts and asbestos

insulation that were the scourges of our

workforce, today it is the humble office,”

agrees Steven Ward, executive director

for UKActive. “Research shows that office

workers spending eight hours sitting a day

are more likely to die early from diseases

such as cancer and heart disease.”

And all that time spent sitting at a desk

is not only bad for your physical health, but

also detrimental to your mental wellbeing.

With an increasing number of office staff

reporting feeling stressed at work, research

published in the scientific journal PLOS

One claims that those who work 11-hour

days are twice as likely to suffer from a

severe bout of depression compared to

employees who clock eight hours a day.

Occupational safety

For many, the answer is to hit the gym.

But experts argue that bad working habits

continue long after we’ve clocked off.

“The working day has no end, with

emails hitting our inbox long after we’ve

left the office,” adds Mahal. “This allows

people little or no downtime to simply

breathe.” While there’s not much that can be

done to remove the fundamental problem

(if you’ve got a desk-based job, you will

have to spend some time at your desk),

forward-thinking companies are building

a healthier workspace for their employees.

Increasingly, employers are realising that

investing in workplace wellbeing has big

business benefits. It creates a positive

culture and boosts productivity.

“For many business owners, the

concept of an employee wellness strategy

may sound costly, but needn’t be,” says

Ward. “It can be built on simple principles,

such as altering office layout to encourage

more movement, or placing ‘nudge’ posters

to encourage staff to take the stairs.”

Need to implement some changes

in an office near you? Just leave this

story open in the shared kitchen...

OF YOUR HEALTH

BOSS

Be the