Physiotherapists believe that exercise can do more than just help manage body weight and prevent disease. Evidence suggests that exercise can have a positive effect on managing and reducing stress and improving well being. Because of this, the Chartered Institute for Personnel Development (CIPD) and the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) have come together and developed new guidelines to emphasise the importance of building some level of physical activity into the working day.

The guidance starts off by explaining that too much pressure in the workplace can create stress and sustained exposure to stress is linked to mental health conditions, like anxiety and depression as well as physical problems. Having said that, it makes a reference to physiotherapists who know very well that back and neck muscles are especially sensitive to the effects of stress which can cause pain and sometimes even headaches. These prevent us from enjoying our work and from doing our jobs efficiently and effectively, as well as costing employers thousands of euros a year in terms of sickness absence. The guidance explains how being physically active can promote mental well being and reduces or wards off stress by:

Causing the body to release chemicals which help lift one’s mood and make one feel more relaxed

Focusing attention away from issues that make one feel stressed and on to what their body needs to do to run, kick a ball, or swing a racquet

Helping release pent-up stress and tension and making one more resilient to pressure.

The guidance goes further, explaining that good employers are keen to help their workforce stay healthy. After all it’s in everyone’s best interest to keep staff happy, motivated and productive. As such, it emphasises the importance of employers doing what they can to promote a culture of good physical and mental health in their workplace by providing a supportive environment and ideas for activities in and around the workplace location. Much of this, the guide explains, can be achieved for little or no cost and can bring real benefits in terms of reduced sickness absence. In fact, the guidance highlights the fact that almost any form of physical activity can provide relief from tension or stress. Physios recommend being active every day, taking at least 150 minutes (2.5 hours in total) of moderate to vigorous exercise each week. However, the guidance highlights that the smallest steps can go a long way to improving mental well being, while also helping one look and feel better physically. The following are some tips and advice the guide gives on how one can build physical activity in the working day that enable one to lead a happier and healthier life in the workplace and beyond:

Active travel

Get off the bus one stop earlier and walk the final part of your journey. If you drive, park further away than usual

At car parks, take the stairs instead of lifts or escalators

Cycling is great for fitness and a good stress reliever – it can also save money on fares or fuel.

Easy exercise at work

Too much time spent sitting at a desk or doing repetitive tasks can contribute to the development of back, neck and arm pain and other health problems. Breaking up your day so that you rotate your time spent doing other tasks, and moving and stretching regularly can help you think more clearly and be more efficient.

Take the stairs instead of the lift at work and, where possible, walk further to use water coolers and other office equipment

Rotate your tasks. Alternate sending emails with going to speak to people. Wear a lightweight headset and stand up to make some of your phone calls. Don’t wedge the phone between your head and shoulder

Take all your breaks and get away from your workstation. Go for walks at lunchtime, or sign up for a class like aerobics, or Tai Chi

Don’t skip meals and do drink water regularly.

Simple stretches ‘chairobics’

Sit to the front of your chair and rotate your upper body to the right, holding on to the backrest of your seat with your left hand. Hold for five seconds, and then swap sides.

Hold your hands together loosely behind your neck and stretch your elbows back so you can feel the pull on your shoulder blades–don’t press your hands into your neck. Hold for five seconds.

Lace your fingers together and push your palms away from your body for five seconds.

Out of hours

Ensure you help yourself by making the most of your holiday allowance and the scheduled break times you are offered. Avoid taking your work home with you and make the most of your free time to do other activities you enjoy. Combine this with eating well and getting a good night’s sleep and you’re much more likely to feel mentally refreshed and ready to face the working day.

Studies confirm that promoting good health in the workplace makes sense and is productive in itself. In fact, the World Health Organisation (WHO) stated that workplace physical activity programmes can reduce sick leave by up to 32 per cent and increase productivity by up to 52 per cent. Also, interestingly, a document by the Malta Ministry of Health, the Elderly and Community Care called ‘Healthy Employees in Healthy Organisations’ quotes a UK research study, which shows that survey participants returned to work more tolerant of themselves and more forgiving of their colleagues after they had exercised. What is more, the study showed that their work performance was consistently and significantly higher, as measured by the ability to manage time demands, by the ability to manage output demands and by their mental and interpersonal performance.

Unfortunately, Malta still has some of the highest levels of overweight and obesity in the WHO European Region: 72 per cent of men and 53 per cent of women are overweight or obese, according to self-reported data provided to WHO. WHO’s European childhood obesity surveillance found that one in every three school age children is already overweight or obese. Having said that, one of the aims of the recently launched National Strategy for Malta 2012-2020 − “A Healthy Weight for Life” is that of strengthening and expanding workplace health promotion initiatives which specially target both nutrition and physical activity.

Employees spend a large amount of time in the workplace. Organisations would already have made a significant investment in each employee with regard to hiring, training, compensation, and benefits packages. Fostering and driving a culture of physical activity not only helps to protect that investment but moreover helps to maximize the returns in terms of cost savings, cost avoidance, productivity and human capital. After all, as Schopenhauer, a German philosopher was once quoted saying: “Health is not everything, but without health, everything is nothing.”

Ms Camilleri is a researcher at the Foundation for Human Resources Development