Breaking News: Activity Trumps Stillness

The biorhythms of individuals differ, and the way we function daily is driven by a variety of factors. Yet for everyone, it goes without saying that a good diet and exercise is critical to our overall health. Maintaining a balanced lifestyle is a recipe for success, with health and wealth a perfect unity. Healthy, active employees take fewer sick days and bring more energy to the workplace, however it is the struggle of integrating regular exercise into a restrictive work environment that poses the ultimate challenge.

Like trying to catch a butterfly, achieving the perfect balance can be impossible, but by making the right decisions, it could just land on your shoulder. When reflecting on your own office, what percentage of staff can you truly say has struck this harmonious chord? Who receives a heady rush of daily endorphins? Whilst it is a personal struggle it can be facilitated by the employer through various techniques; Providing shower facilities, promoting the cycle to work scheme, allowing employees to exercise throughout the day, all these practices allow the individual to take exercise into their own hands. This is a beneficial practice as employees return to work refreshed and focused, and after all, it is exercise that gives your imagination wings.When we exercise the body releases chemicals called endorphins, which interact with the receptors in our brain, and a recant study done at the University of British Columbia found that regular aerobic exercise boosts the area of the brain involved with memory. In addition to this exercise improves mood and sleep, and reduces anxiety and stress, which are all factors that contribute to cognitive impairment. The health benefits of an active lifestyle, from every perspective, lie bare before our eyes, with positive impacts on work, and mental health. From employee to employer everyone must take up the baton in encouraging this basic human need. Movement melts stress, and its time we all got a bit more comfortable with being uncomfortable. As Baz Luhrmann aptly said, ‘The race is long, and in the end, its only with yourself’.

Stretch,

And enjoy your body, it’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own.