|
BENEFITS FOR EMPLOYERS
Employers with physical activity programs have:
- Reduced healthcare costs by 20 to 55 percent;
- Reduced short-term sick leave by 6 to 32 percent; and
- Increased productivity by 2 to 52 percent.
Fast Facts About Physical Activity:
- In Marion County, 60 percent of our residents do not get the minimum recommended amount of physical activity.
- Despite the proven benefits of being physically active, more than 28 percent of American adults report no leisure-time physical activity.
- Physical activity can make you feel more energetic, sleep better and control your appetite.
- Physical activity helps prevent being overweight and obese and is important in maintaining weight loss.
- Physical activity helps prevent heart disease, helps control blood pressure, cholesterol levels and diabetes, slows bone loss associated with advancing age, lowers the risk of certain cancers and helps reduce anxiety and depression.
- All adults should accumulate at least 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity physical activity on most, and preferably all, days of the week. If there isn't time for a continuous 30-minutes some days, even three 10-minute segments daily will provide benefits.
Opportunities for Employers:
- Begin an employee walking program.
- Encourage employees to take the stairs instead of the elevator by making the stairwells safe and aesthetically pleasing.
- Create a walking path outside, or mark a course inside the building, with directional signs and distance displayed, so people can determine how far they have traveled.
- Offer health club discounts paid by the employer.
- Install bike racks at your worksite.
- Make pedometers available for employee use.
- Encourage stretching breaks at meetings and workstations.
- Create departmental competitions for miles walked, weight lost or minutes of physical activity.
- Organize company Olympics to encourage physical activity and team-building.
- Display signage and materials around the workplace encouraging employees to be active, providing information on the benefits of physical activity and practical ideas for incorporating activity into their lives.
National Programs
The 10,000 Steps Program is sponsored by Shape Up America! Using a pedometer, it s a relatively simple program that can be done by one or many. Get a program kit from their website: http://www.shapeup.org/.
Fitness Fundamentals, a basic physical activity instructional program sponsored by the President's Council on Physical Fitness, provides comprehensive, beginning-to-end, information on developing an exercise program. This information can be found on the Council's website at fitness.gov/fitness.
Active For Life is an American Cancer Society physical activity program for worksites. It's a 10-week program that encourages employees to be more active on a regular basis by setting individual goals and forming teams for motivation and support. For more information visit: http://www.cancer.org/.
America on the Move (AOTM) is a nationwide initiative designed to promote active living and healthy eating in order to stop weight gain and the many health complications that result from being overweight. http://www.americaonthemove.org/
Start your own walking program
If you are interested in starting an employee walking program, please contact Ellen Quigley at 327-3862.
|
