Can you be sure you are getting the most out of your life and work?

How can you quantify the impact of poor health?

We have all been in the situation where we are either unwell, a health issue has distracted us from work or even prevented us from doing what we should or would like to be doing.

In Australia it is estimated that poor performance due to poor health will cost business $25.7bn annually in addition to absenteeism, which costs on average 7bn annually. (Medibank 2006)

The phenomenon of poor performance due to poor health is known as presenteeism. Basically the lights are on but nobody is home! On average each employee will lose 6 full working days per year to presenteeism.

The facts are astounding which is why a number of blue chip organisations have been investing in the health of their employees to negate the cost of poor health.

Firstly comes assessment. A number of studies have been conducted over recent years using thousands of employees, linking the cost of certain health conditions and risks with a decrease in worker happiness and productivity.

Through using these tools companies can assess what level of productivity loss they are suffering. Once assessed it is possible to specifically target these areas for attention and decrease the health risks. With a decrease in risk comes a decrease in presenteeism. Decreased presenteeism equals an increase in productivity.

The largest drivers of our medical costs and absenteeism rates are not occupational costs. They are conditions related to the health and wellbeing of the employees. (Adams report Intel 2007)

The biggest commodity is information and second to that is the talent to process the information, if companies want to become more competitive they will need to attract and develop talent combined with creating a culture of productivity.

Life around us is changing and we are changing with it. In the age of information sedentary behaviour is increasing. Sedentary behaviour = health risks. That’s right, sedentary behaviour = health risks. The jury is out on this one the hard facts are everywhere.

You simply can’t have your cake and eat it! With chronic disease growing exponentially in society, negatively impacting the lives of millions. The workplace, a microcosm of society, will almost certainly suffer the same consequences of poor health, unless proactive measures are taken.

Biggest untapped source of improved performance is better functional health (Sullivan 2007, IHPM)

The bottom line is, if you want to be productive, if you want your company to be productive, if you want those around you to be really present, You need good health.
Don’t waste resources, invest in health and make sure that when the light switches on, there is definitely someone home!

JOEM November 2003,The Relationship Between Health Promotion Program Participation and Medical Costs. A Dose Response
JOEM August 2005, Estimating The Return on Investment From Changes in Employee Health Risks on the Dow Chemical Company’s Health Care Costs
The Art of Health Promotion July/Aug 2005 Meta Evaluation of Worksite Health Promotion Economic Return Studies: 2005 Update By Larry S Chapmen

If you didn’t quite stick to your new years resolution and your weight has increased over the winter, it is time to do something about it. The right time to get fit and healthy isn’t next week or next month, it is NOW. We spend every hour of every day in our body; so why not feel good in it year round.

Many of us have tried and succeeded in getting in shape for summer in the past; before falling back to our old habits and repeating the cycle year after year. This article isn’t about trimming those extra kilos so that we look good on the beach this summer. It is about changing our daily habits, so that when bikini season does come around, it hasn’t snuck up on us; instead we have been ready for it all year.

Winter can be a time when we are spending large portions of our day indoors, and either consciously or unconsciously enjoying warm comfort food, often very high in energy. Because we are putting this extra fuel into our body yet staying inside and not burning it off, this fuel gets converted to extra padding around our stomach and hips. Remember, the aim is not to shed those extra pounds before Summer, just to have them return over the colder months. On the journey to achieving and maintaining your healthy lifestyle and body, often the first hurdle is the biggest. Starting.

Start slowly and ease your way into it. When starting or restarting a program you will pull up quite sore on the days following the first few sessions; don’t let this deter you, these aches will subside and the benefits will start to shine through.

It is important that your new program has a balance between the many forms of exercise.

Top 5 Things to Remember:

1. Your program should include:
   • Cardiorespiritory Training
   • Muscular strength, endurance and core stability work.
   • Flexibility Training
2. Try to get some form of exercise in for 30 minutes a day; most if not all days of the week. This can be in the form of walking or running, doing a resistance training program or exercise such as pilates or yoga.
3. If 30 minutes all at once seems to far away, recent research has shown that 3 x 10 minute or 2 x 15 minute sessions can be added together to achieve a similar result. You can start at this intensity and work towards and beyond a 30 minute session; remembering to stretch at the conclusion of each session.
4. Resistance training can be done with equipment such as free weights or using exercises that utilise your bodies own weight as resistance (if you are having trouble coming up with a safe resistance training program that is tailored to your needs, consult a health and fitness professional such as your exercise physiologist).
5. Remember when starting your program vary the exercises that you complete, and have fun with them. This will keep it interesting and improve the chances of adhering to your program in the long run.

Sticking to a simple program like this, as well as watching your diet will have you looking and feeling great this summer and many more to come.

Earlier this year I embarked on a goal to run the 2007 Gold Coast Marathon. ‘Why do you want to put yourself through that much pain?’ people would ask. My answer was simple; ’short term pain, long term gain.’

There were a few reasons why I wanted to run the marathon; curiosity, the enjoyment of running, improving fitness to name a few. However the main reason behind the goal was to experience a sense of achievement to the extent I had never experienced before. For me, this reason alone far outweighed the pain involved in achieving my goal, or at least I thought it would.

The journey started well but it wasn’t long before I encountered some road blocks. Time, sleep, work, nutrition, and injury were issues that presented challenges to my training. Each one took a little chunk out of my motivation as they appeared. I knew these issues would present at some stage but I underestimated the effect they would have. My goal was becoming a distant sight. At one stage my motivation and confidence got so low that I started to doubt myself. I had to do something.

It would have been easy for me to give up at that stage. After all, I did have plenty of excuses to fall back on. Instead I decided to give myself to the process for a few weeks. During this time I focused on the little things that were in my control and made sure I did them. I broke my goals down into smaller more manageable tasks. A run 4 times per week, eat 5 meals per day, get to bed at the same time every night were some of the goals that I set myself. I didn’t let myself get caught up in specifics and I didn’t let anything get in my way. I just did it. At the end of the week I noticed a significant shift in my thinking and motivation.

With each achievement of these smaller goals I could feel momentum gathering, and it felt good. I continued with the same method for the next few weeks. The momentum grew from week to week and I could feel my confidence and motivation growing with it. Before long I gained sight of my goal again, I felt in control once more. A few weeks later I crossed the finish line and experienced a sense of achievement like no other. My goal was complete.

No matter how big or small your goals are, you will always face challenges. Some you can prepare for whereas others can appear from nowhere, to sap your motivation and confidence. It is the way you respond to these challenges that will shape your experience and eventual outcome. Try being more mindful of the times when you are lacking motivation and focus on the small things to help pull you out of it. You’ll be amazed at how much your confidence can grow by taking small steps. If you can string enough small steps together, you too can run your marathon.

- by Alister Murray