Companies increasingly pushing healthy habits

[The Straight Story]

Companies increasingly pushing healthy habits
To tame healthcare costs, they encourage exercise and good diet choices

NEW YORK - Many companies are starting to sound like moms: They’re pushing employees to eat their vegetables and go outside and play. And they’re not being gentle about it.


....
Yancey and others say that work gyms are used primarily by people who would exercise anyway. For everyone else, a little manipulation goes a long way. Her suggestions include incorporating exercise breaks in to the work day, restricting parking close to the building, limiting elevator access to people with disabilities, widening and brightening stairwells and hosting walking meetings. (People seldom refer to the notes they take during seated meetings, she says.)

.....
Dan T. Cathy, president and chief operating officer of Chick-fil-A, Inc. restaurants and a runner, has cajoled 265 company employees to run the January Walt Disney World marathon or half-marathon with him. Most of the runners joining him “have never done anything like that distance-wise,” Cathy said of his group. “There’s a lot of first timers.”

Cathy said he’s motivated by his religious belief that the body is a temple and a more practical thought.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16041632/

[Az]

1. Keeping employees healthy is cheaper than paying for increasing insurance

Simple math.

[MadHound]

4. Still doesn't give the company the right to force or impose a healthy lifestyle

On their employees. Stairs, massive walking, some companies are forcing smokers to quit or get fired. What's next, eat healthy, lose X amount of pounds in X amount of time or they're fired? This can easily go too far, another sad consequence of putting our health insurance in the hands of corporate beancounters.

[Dr Batsen D Belfry]

2. This has added benefits beyond just health and cost

1) I notice I am far less stressed when I get the chance to work out. Less stress in the workplace leads to better teamwork.
2) More blood flow to the brain leads to far more creativity. In my company, our brainstorms and solutions to problems usually happen not long after workouts

DBDB

[MonkeyFunk]

3. well

If the government told me to do those things, I'd tell 'em to screw off.

Same with companies. My habits are none of their business, as long as I show up and do the job.