Low-Cost Corporate Wellness Options
One of the most effective ways to implement wellness in your company is to get social support, but getting your team working together towards health can be difficult. Many existing solutions are outrageously expensive
Pantheon loves to help companies improve their health and fitness culture by getting employees involved in each others’ fitness journeys at a low cost, so we thought we’d share how we do it, and some of our other favorite affordable corporate wellness options for companies.
Challenges
Fitness challenges and competitions are an ancient tradition, so it’s no surprise they're so effective. Incorporating an element of challenge for your employees' health & fitness goals is a sure way to build social support and increase involvement.
Competition is one of Pantheon's core elements and we beat every industry benchmark for participation and retention. Rather than give you a step goal and award whoever gets the most steps, Pantheon recognizes each person based on their level of effort. Pantheon creates objectives based on your activity, exercise, meditation, and ability to cooperate with team members.
If you're looking to experiment with a company fitness challenge, take advantage of your workplace landscape - if there's a walking/biking trail, challenge people to use it. If there's stairs, start a stair climbing competition. If there's an onsite gym, even better!
De-stress & mindfulness zones
Mental health is vital to overall wellness and often overlooked at the workplace. If you have some spare room, consider dedicating it for mindfulness breaks and encouraging employees to participate in meditation, stretching, or intentional thought.
For more on how to start a yoga practice, or benefits of mindfulness, check out our blog.
Incentivize Health
Probably the surest way to drive engagement in a wellness program is to reward participation and progress. Pantheon has done this by curating a rewards shop for employees. When an employee has earned a reward, we take care of fulfillment.
Other ways to incentivize employees include reimbursing their gym memberships, rewarding accomplishments with celebrations, but most importantly reinforcing the built-in reward of fitness which is becoming a healthier person. Encourage them to record benchmarks for their strength, endurance, flexibility, etc. and the visualization of progress is often enough to keep them motivated.
Healthy Snacks
This one is tricky because everyone's idea of a healthy diet varies, but keeping a variety of snacks with little to no processed sugar, that improve satiety can reduce their need for unhealthy alternatives.
Keeping a variety of fats, proteins, and carbs to accommodate different diets is the way to roll. Snacks like nuts, dried fruit, tuna pouches, greek yogurt, edamame, and jerky are all better than fast food or vending machine options.
ergonomic work stations
An ergonomic work station situates office furniture in such a way that your neck isn't bent back or down or contorted, your arms aren't lifted or extended out to the side of your body, your wrists and hands aren't bent up or sideways, and your spine isn't twisted. This allows comfortable working that is good for posture and productivity.
One of the best tools for ergonomics as well as health & fitness is a standing desk. Here's why we love them. If that's not an option, consider upgrading your chairs, adjusting furniture height, and reorganizing to reduce discomfort and increase productivity. Adjustments as small as changing the angle of a monitor can improve the overall wellbeing of employees.