United Kingdom, 2007-Sep-11
29 August 2007- Half of theUK business population rarely takes part in any sporting activity or physical exercise, according to a recent survey conducted by Siemens. This lack of regular exercise may be contributing to increased levels of stress, ill health and impaired performance in the work place.
The poll of 1,087 UK business people, commissioned by Siemens, found that 29% of female executives did no exercise at all, while less than a third (31%) did the recommended levels of three sessions per week. The results are not much better for men, with 32% admitting that they fail to take any exercise at all.
The research found that 80% of business people agree that exercise helps to reduce stress levels, with 69% of women and 62% of men wishing that they could spend more time working out, but finding that their busy, time-poor lifestyles prevent them from doing so.
Siemens, the high performance partner of GB Rowing, conducted the research as part of a campaign to encourage the business community to take more exercise in order to improve their health, combat stress and to enhance performance in the workplace. With the World Rowing Championships currently taking place in Germany, rowing has been identified as an ideal form of exercise for busy, stressed executives.
Dr Chris Shambrook, GB Rowing Team psychologist said, “Today’s workplace is an uncompromising arena that shares many characteristics with the world of the elite athlete; intense pressure, tough competition, small margins of error and high costs of failure.
“It’s an arena that makes performance demands of key players which exceed anything that might be asked of the finest athletes. There's a level of physical preparation that would make a difference to performance in the workplace for any executive and Rowing is a great choice of activity to give some worthwhile time out from the demands of the job as well as helping to provide a body that is fitter to take on the demands of life in the corporate world.”
Teresa Frost, head of talent management at Siemens said, ‘We conducted this survey to highlight how stressed UK business people are in the workplace and to remind them that regular exercise is key to dealing with this and improving individual performance. An estimated 2.3 million people suffer from ill-health caused by work-related stress each year and our work with GB Rowing has highlighted to us the all-round benefits of rowing as a sport and we’d encourage everyone to find more time in their week to take exercise.”
Siemens, the high performance partner of the GB Rowing team until 2012 commissioned the report ahead of the 2007 Rowing World Championships that started on Sunday in Munich.
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Editors Notes
K2 deliver the Athlete@Work programme to corporate high flyers and it's clear that preparing to perform, using the same rules of engagement as a rower does, makes a huge difference to the confidence, control and performance of people who are already at the top of their game. Paying attention to physical influences on performance, such as activity levels, hydration and nutrition have a great impact in the workplace, and to get some regular activity through rowing would be a great idea for many people in the workplace - not only from and individual perspective, but also from really appreciating team work in its most fundamental form!
For more information visit: http://www.planetk2.com/athlete_prog.php
Dr. Chris Shambrook, GB Rowing Team Psychologist, and Teresa Frost, Head of Talent Management are both available for interview
About Siemens in the UK:
Siemens was established in the United Kingdom 164 years ago. The company employs 20,314 people in the UK, including about 6,500 in the manufacturing sector. Last year’s revenues were £3.5 billion, including exports of £580 million, and it spent almost £75 million on research and development. As a leading global engineering company, Siemens provides innovative solutions to help tackle the world’s major challenges, including the shortage of natural resources, increasing environmental care, and a growing demand for healthcare, mobility and security. Siemens has offices and factories throughout the UK, with its headquarters in Frimley, Surrey. The company’s global headquarters is in Munich, Germany. For more information, visit www.siemens.co.uk
Mr. Lindsey Evans or Arron Duddin
Threepipe
For further information please contact:
Tel: +44 (0) 207 470 8830
lindsey.evans@threepipe.co.uk / arron.duddin@threepipe.co.uk