According to recent survey results, this is in line with what employee’s are looking for as well.  Based on findings published by the Principal Financial Well-Being Index, employees want more of a hands-on and inter-personal experience out of their wellness benefits.  Among the four most desired benefits, onsite fitness centers was listed at 19%, preceded by fitness center discounts (25%), onsite preventative screenings (22%), and access to wellness experts (21%).    

In contrast, the survey found that the most commonly provided benefits are more media based; with 19% of employer’s giving access to online wellness information, 18% offering educational tools or resources, 17% providing fitness center discounts, and 17% distributing printed wellness information.

Interestingly, what employer’s and employee’s hope to gain from wellness benefits is similar; namely improved physical health and savings on healthcare costs.  The survey results identified perceived benefits that encourage employees to participate in their company wellness programs.  An overwhelming 45% chose better overall physical health as the primary benefit that would encourage their participation.  This was followed by 30% encouraged by receiving meaningful incentives from their employer.  Close behind this were a combination of reduced personal healthcare costs, increased chance of living longer, healthier life and reduced stress – all at 29%.     

Research on the economic impact of worksite wellness programs that target lifestyle and behavior change indicates they are worthwhile investment.  Research reviews of several worksite wellness studies sited by the American Institute for Preventive Medicine identified that for every $1 invested, company’s experienced an average return of $3.48 due to reduced medical claim costs and a return of $5.82 in reduced absenteeism.

The return benefits are also reflected from the employee’s perspective.  Looking back at the survey results, 52% agreed that by participating in at least one wellness program per year they have more energy and feel more productive at work.  41% believe that their wellness benefits encourage them to work harder and perform better, and 35% of employee’s that noted participating in at least one wellness program a year missed fewer days of work due to illness.     

Corporate Fitness Works specializes in onsite fitness facility consulting, operations and program management.  We work closely with our clients to create the type of healthy workplace environments that inspire employee participation in physical activity and overall healthy lifestyle.  Click here to learn more about our services. 

ABOUT THE SURVEY:

The Principal Financial Well-Being Index survey was conducted online with Harris Interactive providing third party administration.  Survey responses were captured from 1,121 employees and 533 retirees within the United States working at small to mid-sized businesses (ranging 10-1,000 employees).  The results as presented within this article are from the 2011 fourth quarter survey report available to view at http://www.principal.com/wellbeing/2011/wbwellness-4q2011-execsumm.htm.

The WBENC 10-year award was presented to Corporate Fitness Works’ and accepted by Co-Founder, Brenda Loube at an awards luncheon during the Florida Regional Women’s Business Development Council (WBDC) Conference.  Brenda was a featured speaker at the 4^th Annual WBDC conference which focused on Life-Work-Balance and took place December 1-2 in Deerfield Beach, Florida.  Pictured below, Brenda accepted the award in the presence of WBENC CEO Pamela Prince-Eason (right) and Florida WBDC President/CEO Nancy Allen (left).   

(Right to left: Pamela Prince-Eason WBENC CEO, Brenda Loube Corporate Fitness Works Founder, Nancy Allen Florida WBDC President & CEO)

 ABOUT WBDC / WBENC:

Founded in 1997, WBENC is the largest third-party certifier of businesses owned, controlled, and operated by women in the United States.  A national non-profit organization, WBENC is the nation’s leading advocate of women-owned businesses as suppliers to America’s corporations.  Per their mission, WBENC is dedicated to advancing the success of Corporate Members, certified women’s business enterprises, and government entities in partnership with their 14 Regional Partner Organizations.  More information about WBENC may be viewed at http://www.wbenc.org/About-WBENC/.

The Florida Regional Women’s Business Development Center (WBDC) is one of the 14 WBENC partner organizations providing the national standard of certification to women owned business throughout Florida territories, with exception to the pan-handle, Puerto Rick and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  WBDC extends business development programs, training and networking to regional members in support of the mission to assist in the establishment and growth of women businesses.  For more about WBDC, go to http://www.womensbusiness.info/about-us.aspx.

Along with fellow finalists, Catalina’s worksite wellness and fitness program was objectively assessed in six different categories through the Healthiest Employers Award Program:

1. Culture and Leadership Commitment
2. Foundational Components
3. Strategic Planning
4. Communications and Marketing
5. Programming and Interventions
6. Reporting and Analysis

With an outstanding assessment score of 78.7, Catalina was celebrated as the Healthiest Employer Category Winner for company’s sized between 500 to 1,499 employees.  View the article published by Tampa Bay Business Journal announcing Catalina’s achievement at http://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/news/2011/09/15/tampa-bays-healthiest-employers-award.html.

ABOUT CATALINA MARKETING:

Catalina is the global leader in shopper-driven marketing solutions, providing brand manufacturers, retailers, and healthcare providers with shopper-driven marketing solutions to meet growth objectives.  View Catalina’s website at http://www.catalinamarketing.com.     

AEGON Transamerica employee, Holly Graziadio, nominated Amanda and collected a host of participant testimonials highlighting specific examples of how she embodies the award attributes.  Through personal stories and convictions, members reflect on Amanda’s creative programming, her wealth of fitness knowledge, and devotion to their safety, that has helped them meet and many times exceed their fitness goals.  Further noting her motivating energy and positive attitude, members celebrate Amanda for these inspiring qualities, which as Ms. Graziadio states “permeate through all of her interactions and let members know how much she cares about them.” 

Continuing a tradition of excellence for both, Corporate Fitness Works and AEGON, Amanda is the third team member to receive this high honor while at the AEGON fitness facility.  This is a unique achievement in our award history, as AEGON is the only facility honoring multiple award winners.  In nine years, there have been 36 Corporate Fitness Works team members nominated for the Rachel House Hudson Award from fitness and wellness facilities all across the nation.  

In response, Amanda recognizes how the members and AEGON’s atmosphere inspire her creativity and lend to her dedication to help others reach their goals and live healthier, more active lifestyles.  She states, “I’m humbled by this tremendous honor. As the coordinator of the AEGON Fitness Center, I have the privilege of working with exceptionally motivated individuals who welcome physically active lifestyles.  The AEGON companies not only support employee wellness, but also provide unlimited opportunities to achieve optimal health & fitness.  It is largely thanks to this atmosphere that I am able to do my job effectively and with such enthusiasm.”

Ranked by the St. Petersburg Times in 2010 as a Top 5 large company in the Tampa Bay area, the AEGON companies’ work culture exudes a strong sense of community in an environment that supports work-life balance rooted by a genuine commitment to employee health and well-being.   As a tangible display of this commitment, AEGON aligns with Corporate Fitness Works to professionally manage the fitness center and engage employees through a range of programs and services.  Extending their efforts to nominate Amanda, as well as team members in the past, it is evident that AEGON Transamerica employees take great pride in their on-site fitness program and value the opportunity to enhance their fitness and well-being through Corporate Fitness Works professional services.

Rachel House Hudson was a valued Corporate Fitness Works team member who tragically lost her life in a car accident in 2002.  Nominees display the characteristics that endeared Rachel to the fitness center members and team members who knew her.  Corporate Fitness Works’ recognition of team members who demonstrate these unique abilities will forever memorialize Rachel’s contributions to Corporate Fitness Works and our clients.  A donation is made in the winner’s name to a church camp that Rachel was involved with in Missouri.  Seventeen kids have received scholarships and have participated in summer enrichment camp programs as a result of this award.  

ABOUT CORPORATE FITNESS WORKS:

Corporate Fitness Works is a certified woman-owned health and fitness management and consulting company, that provides customized services for corporations that include fitness facility planning, design, and implementation; fitness center management and evaluation; and fitness and wellness consulting.  Our conviction is to set the standard for creating well cultures that encourage individual and corporate well-being.  To learn more about Corporate Fitness Works services, click here.

This year’s conference is focused on Life-Work-Balance, providing women in the professional world with a combination of networking opportunities, resources and insight to succeed in all three.  Through her interactive presentation and personal perspectives as a fellow woman-business owner, Brenda inspires women to connect the value of health with being a successful business leader empowering attendees with awareness and physical activity solutions to balance professional work with healthy, active lifestyle.

At the conference Award Luncheon, Brenda will also accept honors on behalf of Corporate Fitness Works being recognized for ten year certification status as a woman-owned company under the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council.  Established in 1988, Corporate Fitness Works has operated as a woman-owned business for over 23 years, providing a wide range of fitness management and consulting services to companies, communities and government organizations across the nation.  Read more About Us to discover how women-business ownership has shaped who we are throughout our company history. 

ABOUT WBDC / WBENC:

The Florida Regional Women’s Business Development Center is one of 14 regional partners of the WBENC (Women’s Business Enterprise National Certification) dedicated to providing the national standard of certification to woman-owned businesses throughout the country.  The WBDC serves territories of Florida, with exception of the pan-handle, Puerto Rock and the U.S. Virgin Islands, providing business development programs, training, and networking the underlying mission to assist in the establishment and growth of women in business. For more about the WBDC, go to http://www.womensbusiness.info/about-us.aspx.

The WBENC is the largest third-party certifier of businesses owned, controlled, and operated by women in the United States and is the nation’s leading advocate of women-owned businesses as suppliers to America’s corporations.  More information about the WBENC, go to http://www.wbenc.org/About-WBENC/. 

Chairing this first-ever month long observance is Corporate Fitness Works Principal and Founder, Brenda Loube.  Brenda serves on the NAHF Board and states, “As a long-time advocate of healthy, active living I am excited to be leading the way for the Employee Health & Fitness Month.  We hope this event plants a seed that the small choices you make each day can have a big impact on long term health.  Decide to move, eat right, and live well today and encourage others around you at work to do the same.”

Launching the extended EHFM, Brenda’s leadership is combined with that from NAHF President, Diane Hart and CEO of ACTIVE Life, Baker Harrell.  The formed partnership between NAHF and ACTIVE Life brings new light to the observance with enhanced tools and resources with an aim to inspire employers and employee participation in Healthy Moments based on individual activities, Healthy Groups via organized activities involving colleagues or community members, and Culminating Projects that support and promote healthy lifestyle throughout an entire company or community.

The NAHF has posted program descriptions and details on how to participate in the first-ever Employee Health and Fitness Month at www.physicalfitness.org/nehf.html.  Employers and employees, their families and fellow community members everywhere can get involved by registering at http://www.healthandfitnessmonth.org/. 

EHFM is presented by the NAHF and ACTIVE Life.  Click on the links below to view the official Press Release and Save the Date information. 

• EHFM Press Release
• EHFM Save the Date

NAHF is a non-profit organization that improves the quality of life for individuals in the United States through the promotion of physical fitness, sports and healthy lifestyles. NAHF accomplishes this work by fostering and supporting Governor’s and State Councils and coalitions that promote and encourages regular physical activity. For more information visit: http://www.physicalfitness.org/.

ACTIVE Life is an Austin-based, 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization. Our mission is to make healthy the norm by enlisting and equipping people and places to build and sustain healthy communities. For more information visit: http://www.activelifehq.org/.

This year’s pre-conference is titled Aging is Good Business: Fitness Pays.  Brenda’s presentation provides attendees with insight on how integrated fitness and wellness programming successfully promotes life-long play, vitality and interdependence.  Through Corporate Fitness Works collaborative style and expertise in providing residential communities and corporations with engaging fitness center and wellness program management, participants gain knowledge on the program foundations for aging well which enable the vision for well-being at all stages of life.        

The Southern Gerontological Society is a network of the South’s most respected gerontology professionals.  Southern Gerontological Society members are educators, aging network personnel, researchers, health professionals, and policy makers.  SGS provides the bridge between research and practice, translating and applying knowledge in the field of aging.  For more information, go to http://www.southerngerontologicalsociety.org/.

The University of North Carolina Gerontology Program delivers leaders in the profession with the highest quality transdisciplinary education in gerontology and performs basic and applied research, preparing students for academic and professional careers serving age-related markets nationwide. Visit their website at: http://www.uncg.edu/gro/.

The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) feature 23 recommendations with 6 additional guidelines for specific populations and may be viewed in their entirely at http://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/.  Per the intent for the American public to adopt these interrelated recommendations for healthy eating, the HHS and USDA published Executive Summary state the combined guidelines identify with two primary concepts:

1)      Maintain calorie balance over time to achieve and sustain a healthy weight

2)      Focus on consuming nutrient-dense foods and beverages

While physical activity has been a component to recommendations of years’ past, there are key differences in the new guidelines..  Recommendations for balancing calories to manage weight centralize on the need to control total calorie intake to match daily energy needs and by being more physically active at all stages of life.  The guidelines promote Americans to increase physical activity and reduce time spent in sedentary behaviors.  The first ever inclusion of research and recommendations for building healthy eating patterns has also been combined with the guidelines to help Americans be more conscious of what, when, why and how much they eat, driving deliberate choices for improved activity and calorie intake.  Recommended amounts of physical activity cited in the DGA have also been revised to correlate to the Federal Government Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, released for the first time in 2008.

Driving Americans to consume more nutrient-dense foods and beverages, the 2010 DGA identify foods and food components to reduce as well as those foods and nutrients we need to increase.  Key recommendations align with eating more fruits and vegetables, making ‘half your grains whole, selecting fat-free or low-fat dairy, and eating a variety of proteins including seafood, lean meats, poultry, eggs, nuts, beans and peas’.  In terms of areas to limit, specific attention has been placed on reducing sodium intake.  The average American diet contains 3,400 mg of sodium per day, well above the 2,300 mg/day maximum recommendation.  For adults over age 51 and those of any age who are African American or have hypertension, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease should further reduce sodium to <1,500 mg/day.  As stated in the DGA summary, this accounts for over half the U.S. population.  Limiting consumption of saturated fats (10% of daily calories), cholesterol (300 mg/day), little to no trans fats, while avoiding foods with solid fats and added sugars, and limiting consumption of foods containing refined grains, are all consistent with the 2010 DGA.

 Additionally, the 2010 guidelines pose a broader call to action aiming beyond individual awareness by targeting larger sectors of influence to improve community-wide physical activity and eating habits.  An entire section of the guidelines acknowledges how environmental factors influence food, beverage and physical activity choices among America’s youth and adult populations.  Consistent with other national health agendas from the Surgeon General and Healthy People 2020, the 2010 DGA engages a range of sectors from government, health care, community, schools and workplace employers, to take action and create environments that provide access to and facilitate behavior change for lifelong healthier eating and physical activity habits. 

Employers can answer this call to action by implementing worksite initiatives and policies that promote employee participation in daily exercise, provide access to health and fitness facilities, as well as offer cafeteria menus and vending machines with healthier meal and snack options.  Corporate Fitness Works consulting and management services help all types of organizations implement initiatives like these, coming together to create environments that support healthier, more active worksites and communities.  Click here to take action now!

Among these six recommendations is Creating Healthy Worksites, establishing work environments where it’s easier for employees to participate in exercise and make healthy eating choices. From the press release description for healthy worksites, The Surgeon General more specifically urges employers to “implement wellness programs that promote healthy eating in cafeterias, encourage physical activity through group classes and create incentives for employees to participate”. 

The 21 page vision further justifies cost effectiveness and importance for implementing workplace health and fitness programs.  Considering the majority of employed American’s spend vast amounts of time at their workplace, the Surgeon General identifies it as an ideal venue for intervention.  Employer cost benefit for implementing initiatives and programs that encourage exercise and healthy eating in the workplace is noted per the correlation between obesity prevalence and reduced productivity as well as increased health care costs.  Some of the attributes listed with the vision for creating healthy worksites call upon employers to:

• Establish creative wellness programs with on-going employee challenges
• Create culture of wellness integrating messages about benefits of physical activity and healthy eating
• Provide opportunities and incentives for physical activities through onsite facilities, group classes or personal training, outdoor exercise areas, walking paths, and stairwell usage
• Make healthy food and beverages available and affordable
• Become active partners with local community health groups/coalitions
• Sponsor community health events

Looking ahead, Surgeon General Benjamin continues to advocate physical activity and the importance of fitting exercise into a busy schedule.  Recently dubbed by FITNESS Magazine as one of our nation’s top ten 2011 Champions of Health and Fitness, she quotes exercise as “the new medicine”, promoting that even 30-minutes a day provides substantial benefits.  In the article, Surgeon General Benjamin notes her goals for shifting focus away from the “negative conversation about disease” with less talk of what people can’t do, “to a positive conversation for being healthy and fit” by talking more about what they enjoy doing.    

The Surgeon General’s Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation may be viewed in its entirety at http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/.  

Corporate Fitness Works is an established leader in helping corporations develop and implement worksite health and fitness initiatives as identified in the Surgeon General’s report.  Click here to learn more.