Motivation Matters

Encouraging a healthy lifestyle in your office can really add up.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2000, the total cost (direct and indirect) attributable to obesity was estimated at $117 billion.

And medical expenses for obese employees are estimated to be between 29% and 117% greater than medical expenses for employees with a healthy BMI.

So how can you get your employees motivated to be healthier?

According to Dr. Dean Ornish, founder and President of the Preventive Medicine Research Institute, slow and steady wins the race against obesity.

Instead of the word “diet,” encourage your employees to live healthier lifestyles by choosing better food items each day, and exercising more.

Here are a few tips to help get (and keep!) your employees on a healthy track:

Encourage documentation. Studies show that people who keep a food journal are more successful at losing weight than those who do not keep one. Why does it work? Experts think being accountable for what goes into your mouth makes people think twice about what they are eating.

Move more. Encourage employees to get up and talk to each other verses sending an e-mail, or take the stairs instead of the elevator. Other suggestions may be parking in the last spot from the entrance, committing 20 to 30 minutes of lunch to exercise, and cutting down on the number of regular soda or sugary coffee drinks consumed at work.

Make it easy. Your employees may not realize the benefits to being healthy. Try tacking up posters about easy, quick, and healthy snacks you can bring to work, and place tabletop reminders in your lunch area about the emotional and physical benefits to a low-calorie diet.

Also, encourage employees to move more together through a work-sponsored walking program. Studies show that people who exercise together achieve greater weight loss. And who knows? Camaraderie may just boost the mood and productivity in your workplace, too.