Don't let your staff be shackled to desks

Are you adding to the obesity problem in the workplace? If employers are not being proactive against the issues with employee health, they will only add to the mess and will make it more of a challenge for everyone to stay in shape and to keep your health insurance costs down. Many companies are taking steps against employee obesity and looking for ways in which they can help to improve the health of their employees. If you have employees that are shackled to their desks, they won't be able to get hardly any exercise in at all and they likely fill up on soda and snacks while they are sitting for hours at a time.

Something as simple as walking can reduce the risk of some of the most dangerous health problems out there like diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. It is important that you do what you can to encourage your employees to get the daily exercise that they need to get in shape and to stay healthy. The Surgeon General recommends that everyone get at least 10,000 steps in each day in order to stay healthy. To really kick off a fun employee wellness program you should offer all of your employee's heart rate monitors and also devices that will count the number of steps they take in a day. This is a great way to see just how much exercise you are getting and it will raise awareness to your staff members that think they are getting in their recommended number of steps each day.

Start giving your employees time to work. Your employees need to get up and get moving so they aren't just sitting all day long. It is a good idea for you to encourage them to get up from their desk at least once an hour and stretch and then to give them an extra 20-30 minutes in the day to go and exercise. Exercise like going for a walk around the building is a great way to get in shape. Other great ways to exercise will include adding an on-site exercise center to the building. You might even consider adding a yoga class to the company 2-3 days a week.

Employers need to stop contributing to obesity and the rising healthcare costs. This is easy to do when you take a look at how your employees are working. Are they shackled to their desks? If they don't get up and move around enough, it will lead to obesity. How about adding treadmill desks to the office? You'd be surprised to learn just how many of your employees like using these desks. Another thing to do that will reduce obesity is to get rid of the junk food in the office. You need to clean the vending machines and rid them of sugary sodas and snacks so that your employees aren't fueling up on these unhealthy things.

The more your employees sit, the fatter they get. Your body will automatically shut off it's natural ability to burn fat when you are sitting and being sedentary. Some employers have given their employees exercise balls to sit at when they are working so they can bounce around and move their bodies. Another thing you can offer is an under the desk bike. It will allow them to keep moving their legs to keep the blood flow moving throughout their lower body.

Encourage your employees to go for daily walks and to quit sitting all the time. Even standing and rotating the amount of time between sitting and standing throughout the day can make a big difference in their health.