12:00a.m. 27th August 2008

| Renee Anderson

Garry Thompson of Definitive Finance with work colleague Rebecca Ivanfy. Photo: Nicholas Falconer/177746

Rebecca Ivanfy relishes her working conditions, especially when half an hour each day is spent taking in the fresh coastal sea air along the Pumicestone Passage in Caloundra to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle.

Imagine having a boss who encourages you to take time out, to exercise and regather your thoughts.

This is exactly what Garry Thompson, owner of Definitive Finance in Caloundra, encourages his team to do.

Definitive Finance is full of sporting enthusiasts. Garry plays over 40s Queensland hockey, while his wife Sharon starts the day with a surf.

Office manager Ashley Reck finishes work early each Wednesday to play a round of golf, and Rebecca enjoys long jogs in her lunch break.

After having her four-year-old and 16-month-old boys, Rebecca found she was putting on weight because she was confronted with the difficulty of time management between work and home to exercise regularly.

“That’s where I found exercising during work hours useful,” Rebecca said. “When I get home, it’s 8pm before I sit down, especially after making dinner, family time and packing the children’s bags for the next day.”

After working in an office environment for the past 18 years, Rebecca said having a boss who encouraged exercise and health in workplace helped to refocus and develop strong relationships among colleagues.

“Garry will often join me for a walk,” she said. “We won’t talk about anything work-related, but rather about how his weekend hockey game went or how my sons are.”

Garry said implementing exercise in the workplace was a two-fold process, making staff feel better and also increasing productivity.

“I think we all want to live a long and healthy life,” he said. “By encouraging activities like walking in your lunch break, it helps staff to work productively till five.”

The benefits are immeasurable among Gary’s staff, with Rebecca yet to have a sick day since she started three years ago.

Head of the School of Health and Sport Sciences at the University of the Sunshine Coast Professor John Lowe said it was important for corporate businesses and workplaces in general to endorse health programs for their staff.

Professor Lowe said many research findings suggested walking for even just an hour could do employees a world of good and alleviate stress and strain in the workplace.

“The key is the lifestyle of an organisation, how it functions and providing a workplace where people can go for a walk. It’s a joint venture between a corporation and employee to work well together,” Professor Lowe said.

Suncoast Fitness Health Club has recognised this need and is providing corporate health programs which offer membership, on-site visits and seminars.

Amber Hackworthy, from Suncoast Fitness, said the value of health programs was being recognised by both large and small Sunshine Coast businesses.

“We provide on-site visits for free health checks which include body fat measurement, body mass index calculation, blood pressure, resting heart rate, fitness tests and posture analysis,” Amber said.

Another local organisation, Balancenoosa, offers corporate health programs along with nutritional advice, yoga, Pilates and massage visits to the workplace.

Balancenoosa owner Helen Eames said introducing yoga and Pilates in the workplace was not only a useful tool to destress, but also helped people with back and breathing problems when they were confined to a desk.

“If people aren’t breathing properly, they aren’t thinking properly. Introducing things such as yoga and Pilates relieves strain and posture issues,” Helen said.

Helen said more managers were waking up to the benefits of workplace well-being.

She said simple things such as an office massage made staff feel valued and want to achieve more.

“When an employer goes out of their way to nurture their staff, you can expect not only better employee morale but you will have a higher performing organisation with greater results,” she said.

For further information on Balancenoosa programs, contact Helen on 0408 003 199 or visit www.balancenoosa.com.au.

To organise corporate membership, an on-site health check or seminar with Suncoast Fitness Health Club, phone 5443 1870 or visit www.suncoastfitness.com.au