Workplace wellness experts have long tried to pry workers from their desks for lunch or a little physical activity. So is it a sign of failure or just ingenuity that there's a new trend toward desk-based activities?
There are videos and tips for exercising at your desk, doing yoga at your desk, even dancing at your desk. If the universe of desk-bound activities continues to expand at its current rate, can instructions for parenting at your desk be far behind?
The Alberta Centre for Active Living, a government-funded organization based at the University of Alberta, recently scored itself a minor Internet hit with a series of videos including Yoga @ Your Desk and Stretching @ Your Desk. After just a couple of months online, they have attracted fans from around the world, according to Judith Down, the centre's director, though she can't share specific traffic figures.
"We've had a lot of response, not only in Alberta but around the world," she says. "They really like it in Australia."
She does caution that deskercize shouldn't be the "first choice" for physical activity.
"It's a fallback for when you really can't get away from your desk," she says.
Another office workout video, produced by the health site Sparkpeople.com, has garnered close to 100,000 hits on YouTube, partly because of the ease and effectiveness of the 15-minute routine and partly because of the attractiveness of the instructor. From using an office wall to do squats to turning a chair into a strength-training apparatus, it gives new meaning to the term "office gym."
The latest frontier in desk activity is set to launch today. DanceAtYourDesk.com is a project by Elastic Illusion, a group of California break-dancers who want to bring the joy of movement to the cubicle, while also possibly raising the standards of the office party in the process. The site offers brief clips that teach workers how to do basic break-dance moves at their desks.
"Music has been such a stress reliever for us and it can help you get away from the 9-to-5 routine," says Joshua "Ace" Ventura, one of the founders. "I really think you can be funky at your desk."
In Alberta, Ms. Down's organization is looking to expand its @ Work series. How about, say, Boxing @ Your Desk to resolve personal issues and improve fitness? "That's a possibility," she says.
globeandmail.com/life
BOSS ETIQUETTE: AVOID THE SAUSAGE
The latest, strangest tale of workplace harassment involves karaoke, "non-sexual massage," a camera phone and a link of so-called Italian sausage. James Bonomo, a former paper-sales manager for Mitsubishi International, is suing the company as a result of events he said took place during a 2005 business trip to China. In addition to a booze-filled night of karaoke, he alleges his male supervisor subjected him to a visit to a bathhouse for a "non-sexual massage." Mr. Bonomo says the supervisor made remarks about the size of Italian-American men's penises and, when in the bathhouse, another colleague took a picture of his genitals. At that point, the suit alleges, the supervisor compared it with an "Italian sausage." The suit asks for damages and lawyers' fees as a result of the abusive work environment.
New York Post
BY THE NUMBERS: STRESS EFFECTS
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Percentage of Canadians who say workplace stress has prevented them from advancing in their career, according to a survey released last week by Multi-Health Systems Inc., a company that provides psychological assessments. Forty-one per cent of Canadians say they frequently experience stress in the workplace.
NIGHTMARE JOB: LUNG GUNNER
Discourse.net, a blog operated by Michael Froomkin, a professor at the University of Miami, recently asked readers to share their nightmare jobs. "Operating a lung gun in the kill room of a poultry processing plant," one reader offered. "It is hot, dusty, the air is foul, noisy, bloody and you are sticking a nozzle down the chopped neck of a chicken and sucking the lungs out. All this for $6-7 per hour." Chicken anyone?
