The Benefits Of Exercise For Productivity

Exercise has been proven to bring various health benefits – from helping combat fatigue, reduce the risk of disease as well as improve mental health. Exercise, in short, is a great way to improve your overall quality of life.

However, did you know that exercise can also benefit productivity levels? Several studies and research has shown that exercise can also have a positive impact on workplace productivity. So, businesses should now start considering implementing more active tasks either at work or on away days!

How Does Exercise Improve Productivity?

The general science behind exercise influencing productivity stems from how exercise ‘stimulates the development of new mitochondria within your cells, meaning that your body will be able to produce more ATP (an energy carrying molecule) over time.’ Consequently, meaning your body has more energy for physical exertion as well as mental stimulation.

Therefore, by exercising, your body is more fit for mental output and therefore more likely to help increase an individual’s productivity levels at work. Exercise, therefore, should be something more businesses are now looking to encourage during the week!

5 Reasons Why Exercise Helps Productivity Levels

So, here are 5 reasons why exercise can help business productivity levels:

Reduce Fatigue

Do you find yourself frequently tired? Are you always relying on caffeine to get you through the work day? Fortunately, exercise can help! Exercise, while it requires physical exertion, can help your energy levels throughout the day.

There are various ways scientifically that exercise can help reduce fatigue. But the main reason why is because when you exercise, you increase your oxygen levels in your body. In-turn, your body will then have more energy meaning you’ll likely be more productive throughout your day.

Lower Stress Levels

Those that are stressed at work are more likely to have lower work performance, possible strained relationships and it may lead to burnout. Exercise, however, can help reduce stress-levels as when you exercise you release hormones called endorphins. Endorphins, in-short, are “feel good” hormones that help your brain feel happier!

Improve Well-Being

Leading on from the above point, exercise has been scientifically proven to help mental health and wellbeing, with many companies undertaking corporate events and team building activities utilising group exercise as a way in which to help staff in more than one way. Even a quick 10-minute walk can simply help you feel better and therefore in a better position to be more productive throughout your day.

Improve Concentration

Exercise means you pump more blood around your body, so more oxygen is therefore delivered to your cells. This then means more blood is pumped to your brain, helping stimulate cell growth and neurons. Therefore, whether you are a student or at work, exercise can help you concentrate and perform better. In summary, regular exercise can then help not only your energy levels but also your concentration.

Increase Energy

As mentioned, exercise helps blood circulation which is important for many health reasons. A major benefit of exercise is that it helps your cardiovascular system – which without, you’d have no energy or productivity levels at all. By exercising more regularly, you can help improve your heart and lung health and therefore find daily tasks a little easier.

What Are the Best Exercises for Productivity?

Exercise is good for everyone! Nonetheless, more and more businesses are now understanding how important exercise is for employees. Businesses today are now finding ways to encourage and implement exercise into the work week.

For instance, companies could include a form of active exercise in a work outing. Or perhaps, businesses could start to encourage exercise through certain walk or cycle to work schemes. Likewise, those with hybrid working models can even implement low-intensity workouts, such as yoga, through weekly remote calls.

There is no ‘best exercise’ for productivity – to simply put it, all forms of exercise are great. Even if you get up and walk around briefly during your work day it will benefit your productivity and concentration levels. There are plenty of inclusive and accessible forms of exercise, either through outings or weekly activities, that businesses can now take advantage of.