5 Ways to integrate health into your work environment

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Here are five tips for combining your health with a busy work schedule, and an explanation of what this means for your overall productivity and creativity.

Create a positive day for yourself (and others)

How many steps do you have now? When was the last time you left your desk? All very important questions! Whether you're in a company-wide stride challenge or just challenging a spouse or friend to reach your stride goal, we want to make the whole day a part of the overall event. The BP Activity tracker is a perfect reminder! To keep you moving throughout the day, set a personal goal of not having your movement bar appear. Make sure you take regular breaks at least every 50-60 minutes. Simply taking a walk around the office, doing a lap around the neighborhood, or climbing a flight of stairs to get your body moving are all good options. We know that regular exercise is one of the best things we can do for our bodies! Creating a day full of sports and activities is always the best option. You can be as creative as possible and get others involved to keep your work motivated.

Eat more healthy foods

How many times in the last week have you found yourself being sent to the office with doughnuts, pastries and leftover holiday pies? If we want to avoid these foods, we can't keep them around, but we still do. The benefits of healthy eating are obviously indisputable, so why not surround ourselves with healthy foods when we want to be alert and productive at work? Create an environment where the healthy choice is the easy choice. When you're surrounded by healthy food choices, it also establishes healthy habits and makes you feel like making that choice is a great win for you that day. Take it! Have fun -- Challenge your team or colleagues to a healthy salad contest, where everyone contributes to the purchase of ingredients and a healthy cooking outing for the department. Come up with creative ways to share the health benefits of various fruits and vegetables. Believe that food is fuel and help support others to eat healthier.

Lead by example, healthy work/life integration

We've all heard a lot about flexible working, and it's nothing new. Today's technology, however, makes it easier than ever to work from home, on the road, and anywhere in between. In the ever-connected society we live in, there is no longer a noticeable break or work-life balance. The key is to combine the two and know what a healthy balance in every aspect of your life means to you. Set healthy boundaries by example. Openly share with your team how you found a healthy work-life mix. When this becomes a top priority for many people, it actually dramatically increases their productivity and creativity at work. Who doesn't want to feel productive and creative while still feeling able to prioritize their family and personal life?

Incorporate daily mindfulness and meditation practices

Well, maybe others haven't learned to meditate like I have, but I promise everyone should practice mindfulness every day. Mindfulness practices improve attention and concentration, help you to be fully in the moment, drive authenticity and innovation through focus and clarity, and help support resilience and happiness - isn't that what we all want? Creating an environment in the workplace that encourages and understands the value of mindfulness (even for forward-thinking companies like ours) leads to a sense of cohesion and a better understanding of each other that creates great success.

Think outside the box

We have to recognise that health is not just about fitness and is constantly evolving - although we do feel particularly passionate about our products and active lifestyle. Taking a step back from the day-to-day chaos and reflecting on what happiness really is and what it means to integrate happiness into your workplace will lead to a better workplace culture and overall business. Recently, we successfully conducted some internal planning, such as a series of meditation, four parts of a whole seminar about taking care of elderly parents, what healthy economic means, to realize personal elasticity in work and family, and to build a healthier community (for example), we realize, Sometimes "out-of-the-box" ideas and actions are what our colleagues want and need. Over time, take the opportunity to start a shift to take a more holistic view of what workplace health and well-being really looks like. It's almost exciting to have the ability to think that the opportunities are limitless!