Wellness in our personal lives is equally as important in the workplace. Practicing wellness is essential to preserve our mental and physical health, no matter how busy our lives get. In the workplace, we often forget that stress and our daily routine can overpower our well-being. Employees often feel drained due to sitting down for many hours or feeling “brain dead.” Fortunately, there are many free ways for employers to support their employees’ wellness just by sharing simple information.
Below are simple wellness tips to incorporate in the workplace and share with colleagues.
1. Fitness Challenges: There are so many ways to encourage your employees to stay fit whether they’re working from home or at the office. Usually, the HR department plans fitness challenges for the company by forming groups and creating a variety of customized challenges or using phone apps which is common (for example: tracking daily steps for one month). This encourages people to stay active and competitive among other groups as well as team building. By the end of any fitness challenge, a prize is compensated to each member of the winning team. What better way to stay motivated than receiving a freebee for staying active?
- A great app to use for step fitness challengers is Pacer: https://www.mypacer.com
2. Breaks: Encouraging your employees to take small frequent breaks is essential for their physical health. Sitting down at a desk all day can feel tiring or if they’re on the road or on their feet all day, breaks can help them refuel and feel good overall. Whether it’s taking a walk around the office or getting fresh air, it will help improve their work performance.
3. Desk Exercising: Sometimes standing up every hour is not an option on a busy day when sitting at your desk for long hours. Thankfully, desk exercises are a great (and convenient) way to be active whether your employees are working from home or the office. There are many types of exercises to incorporate at your desk. Sharing sources like the following are a great way to get your employees to incorporate physical activity at their desk.
4. Mindful Breaks: Mental health is just as important as physical health. Encouraging individual or group meditation sessions once a week or twice a month whether it’s virtual or in person is an effective way to keep the mind calm. Check out the following link for free mindfulness apps that will help:
- Free mindfulness apps: https://www.mindful.org/free-mindfulness-apps-worthy-of-your-attention/
5. Promote Healthy Eating Habits: It’s easy to grab a quick snack at work from the vending machine and sit back at your desk. If your office has a cafeteria, encourage the staff to plan a healthier menu. Also, inviting a nutritionist or healthcare professional for a “lunch and learn” can be effective to motivate your employees.
Check out this source that shares extensive details about healthy eating in the workplace; it’s very informative to share with your employees:
Every little action towards wellness makes a difference in the workplace. It’s all about sharing knowledge and encouraging everyone to be their best self.
