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Benefits of Exercise in the Workplace: Ryan Henderson 32

Innovation and Empowerment: SNU-Tulsa Research Journal, Volume 1, Issue 1

BENEFITS OF EXERCISE IN THE WORKPLACE

ABSTRACT

The general idea of this study is about the benefits that exercise has in the workplace,

primarily a manual labor workplace such as construction. Heavy research has been done on this

topic along with experimentation. The study shows why it is important for an organization or

company to keep their employees or members physically healthy to complete their tasks in an

appropriate amount of time which would result in greater profits for said organization or

company.

The experimentation process was very fun and informative. Two groups, one that

exercised and one that did not exercise, competed in a fair and neutral atmosphere where their

times were noted. The results of the study were very interesting and it showed data on many

independent variables involved.

This study would not work with all workplaces but could definitely not hurt any

organizations or companies. The project would greatly benefit other organizations or companies

where they had manual labor employees. Depending on how much money or time was invested

to their employees would probably determine the level of health a company could get out of their

employees. Each company is different and would have to find what works for them best.

However this study specifically shows why it is important to exercise and be healthy. In the end

it is for the greater good of not only the organization or company but the employee that works for

such organization.



INTRODUCTION AND STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The benefits of exercise for the workplace have been immense. There have been many

studies that have shown benefits from exercise from everyday life to primarily benefits for the

workplace. The setting of the primary study was done at the job sites of RHC, LLC. RHC is a

construction company with more than twelve employees. The benefits of exercise were shown

through vigorous work hours from employees who exercised to those who did not.

Statement of Purpose

The purpose of the project was to show how exercise benefited the employees, employer,

and customers that are associated with RHC LLC, a construction company based in the greater

Tulsa, OK, area during the work year of 2008. Exercise has been found to allow greater

flexibility for the company as a whole, by controlling absenteeism and improving production

levels. All employees were monitored during the process to show how and why the benefits were

helpful.

Organizational Context

Setting of the Problem

The organization looked at was a construction company in the greater Tulsa area called

RHC, LLC. RHC an interior trim and remodeling company that started in 2003. RHC did

research on all twelve of their employees. Of their twelve employees, RHC has had some



workers that exercise and some that do not exercise. RHC dissected the benefits from the

employees who exercised and compared them to those who did not. The results that were

obtained guided RHC on where to put certain employees so they could better help the company.

History and Background of Organization

Exercise has been proven a key contributor to good health. The problem at hand with

RHC is not everyone exercised. Therefore there were employees who could not keep up with the

workload that other employees were keeping up with, especially from the employees who

exercised. Being active in one’s job has shown to be an advantage to overall health. But if one’s

job is an active job then they had to go a step further to keep up. Competing with the younger

employees has been something a lot of the older generation workers at RHC have had a problem

with, which has gone on to show problems with production which slows down jobs and affects

the budget and profits of the company.

The employees at RHC ranged from the ages of 22 to 58. Employees ranged from skinny

and moderately strong to overweight and fat. All employees studied were men. All levels within

the company were studied from the entry level trim carpenter, lead carpenters, job foremen, to

the owner himself.

Scope of the Problem

Some of the employees at RHC were not able to endure a strong work pace for an entire

day. All the research was gathered from the day’s workload at particular jobsites. Heavy lifting,

moving, and carrying were all involved. There were no limits to the studies reported in the

project. Each employee was studied on a particular day chosen by the owner of the company.



The days were randomly chosen and not one employee knew they were being studied. The

project has shown the benefits that the employees, employer, customers, and the company in

general gain from exercise.

Significance of the Project

Exercise has benefited many that are associated with RHC. Those who exercise have

shown better production rates, less absenteeism, and better attitudes than the other employees

who do not have an exercise plan. The benefits to the employer are employees who have a good

morale which strengthens the core of the company. The employees with their better production

rates also showed an improvement in overall profits and time getting the job completed. The

customers benefit by getting a quality product at a more affordable price, in significantly less

time than they would have received it before. Finally the company benefits from exercise

because it maintains a hardworking employee base that can grow not only the profits but its

customer base. The goals of RHC are to provide the customer with impeccable customer service

while still turning substantial profits. Exercise contributed and helped RHC realize all its goals in

the year 2008.

Definition of Terms

Interior trim: All woodwork done on the inside of structures.

Job foremen: persons within the company who have reached the ranking of supervisor of a

particular project.

Lead carpenters: trim carpenters who are leaders on a worksite who can help the supervisor relay

instructions



Remodels: Renovating a structure that has already existed.

Trim carpenters: workers who primarily work with wood from setting doors, building cabinets,

and doing all woodwork related to the interior of residential homes to commercial buildings.

REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Introduction

Being healthy and in shape has been vital to a lot of manual labor and physically

challenging jobs today. Many manual labor jobs are fast paced so one should be in the best

health possible in order to keep up with today’s demands. The two best ways for a person to be

healthy is by eating right and exercise (Jensen, 2007). This report has shown the benefits

exercise has in the workplace, and just being healthy in general. Also, the report went into detail

on how one could reach the best possible health by exercise and using various supplements in

aiding one to get their body healthy.

Decreased Levels of Absenteeism

Research has shown that with healthy employees the absentee rate at work decreases of

unhealthy employees. Employees that have been healthy are more resistant to illnesses that go

around from person to person (Doyle, 2007).

Many companies have found that having a fitness center on site or offering in a benefit

package a membership to a gym has gotten their employees exercising more. Work-site fitness

programs have gained in popularity because of the potential to lower absenteeism, job turnover,

and increase job productivity and morale (Wattles & Harris, 2003). This removed the excuse that

one cannot afford to go to the gym or often that the gym is too far away.



Increased Energy Levels

One key in manual labor jobs has been to get the most out of the employees. Typically

most manual labor jobs have had to generate high production levels. In a study shown by

Mathew Wattles and Chad Harris (2003), more than ninety percent of the individuals tested

agreed that exercising helped their productivity at work. The report meant that with a higher

productivity level there were higher energy levels that came from the exercise.

Manual labor employees who exhibited higher energy levels typically set higher

standards for themselves at work, which benefits the employer and the company, because of

higher production levels. Employees have shown a stronger satisfaction of what they are doing.

Satisfaction and higher standards resulted from higher energy levels that can be produced from a

regular daily exercise plan.

Additional Benefits from Exercise

High energy levels and day to day health were not all the benefits that came from

exercise. Weight loss is an incredible result that has occurred from exercise for some people.

Increasing physical activity has been shown to burn more calories, which helps in breaking a

weight loss plateau (Scott, 2008). Physical activity has not only shown to lower stubborn body

fat, but also to reduce levels of blood pressure, cholesterol, and lessens the risks of cancer and

diabetes (Hellmich, 2008). This allows a person to live longer and healthier just with a little

exercise. Helping weight loss Hellmich (2007) notes that exercising can also be an appetite

suppressant. Exercising has shown to leave a person feeling less hungry. Some overweight

people have been seen to have troubles with heart problems later on in life. Regular exercise has



shown to protect against diseases associated with chronic low-grade systemic inflammation

(Peterson & Pederson, 2005).

Being overweight doesn’t necessarily mean one might not be in shape. Many people have

shown to carry extra weight; it is just in their body’s nature. One study depicted the benefit of

exercise was enjoyed regardless of body mass, and that being fitter does not always mean being

thinner (Australian, 2007). One could look at a manual labor job of many athletes from football

to boxing and see overweight people that are in tremendous shape. Some types of exercise have

shown not to help rid away body fat.

Exercise has even been linked to reduce stress levels. Exercise has been shown to fire up

various brain chemicals, which may leave a person feeling happier and more relaxed than before

he or she worked out (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2007). High levels of stress could damage a person

mentally and physically. Stress has caused ulcers and heart problems. Stress has shown to affect

one’s job. High stress levels reduced productivity and cause many errors that should not have

been made. There have been other findings of benefits from exercise for the brain.

Cardiovascular exercise has been associated with improved cognitive functioning in aging

humans. These effects have been shown to be the greatest in higher order cognitive processes,

such as working memory, switching between tasks, and inhibiting irrelevant

information, all of

which are thought to be subserved, in part, by the frontal lobes of the brain (Colcombe, 2006).

Levels of Exercise

There have been different levels of being healthy. One could be strong and have more

energy in small concentrated bursts, or one can be toned and sustain a higher level of energy for



a longer course. Thirty minutes of activity equated to burning between 600-1200 calories

(Myers, 2003). The Surgeon General recommended at least thirty minutes of activity almost

everyday of the week. The activity could be walking, jogging, or anything that keeps the body in

movement. Movement signified burnt calories, which is exercise.

Exercise as little as just walking an hour a day has been shown to burn an extra 1500 to

2000 calories a week, which is around a full day’s average recommended serving of calories. A

faster jog or a run could burn even more depending on the energy used and the time spent.

Jogging or running has shown to give a person more endurance at work while other employees

are starting to slow down. If the total energy expenditure of exercise was held constant, exercise

performed at a vigorous intensity appears to convey greater cardioprotective benefits than

exercise of a moderate intensity (Swain & Franklin, 2006). Therefore the more a person has put

into their exercise routine, the more benefits a person will get out of it.

One other level of exercise is weight lifting. Healthy persons of all ages, as well as many

with chronic diseases, should engage in single-set resistance exercise programs of

up to 15

repetitions at least 2 days per week. Each work-out session should consist of 8 to 10 different

exercises that train the major muscle groups (Ashe & Khan, 2004). Weight lifting has been

shown as the primary way to grow muscles in the body. Exercising by doing weights or

resistance training has been shown to be tougher on the body but the rewards are worth it.

Depending on the field a person worked in, stronger muscles has been an advantage if there is a

lot of lifting involved in the particular job.

Supplements that Aid in Exercise



Being healthy has not been just about exercise anymore to Americans. Many Americans

have wanted to see results faster and that means there has to be aids in a person’s daily exercise.

There have been many supplements that can be taken for this from creatine to just a plain multi-

vitamin. A multi-vitamin has been a pill that has about all the daily nutrients one needs in a day,

and gives the body added nutrients that might not get ingested from food during that day

(Robertson, 2006). The multi-vitamin has been a very good supplement to take even if one does

not exercise. Multi-vitamins have shown to have a high vitamin-C level, which boosts the

immune system that keeps a person from being sick often.

Creatine has been a relatively new supplement. Creatine became popular towards the mid

1990’s. Studies have shown that creatine shows better muscular results than if not used at all

(Walana, 2007). Creatine, a nitrogenous amino acid that when synthesized involves three other

amino acids: glycine, arginine, and methionine. Creatine has shown to add more mass to the

body, add more strength and more endurance to one’s particular workouts.

Glutamine is another supplement that has gained in popularity. Glutamine, an amino acid

that has promoted recovery. Glutamine’s primary function has been to heal muscle fibers

allowing the person exercising to use them in full force sooner. Glutamine has been shown to

reduce the break down of muscles (Pirisi, 2003).

Lastly, one of the supplements that have been in the market legally and illegally is

various forms of testosterone. There are supplements that mimic testosterone or just raise it.

Many supplements like steroids and pro-hormones have been banned from the United States but

there are some people still finding ways to get them in the country. Some legal ways of boosting



testosterone levels have been supplements like Tribulus and DHEA. These obviously have been

toned down and won’t give a person the same results that steroids or pro-hormones deliver

however do boost testosterone levels slightly. Higher testosterone levels have raised exercise

levels for endurance and strength training.

Conclusion

There was substantial evidence that considerable medical advantage was derived from

even regular moderate exercise and fitness, such as improvement in aerobic power and maximum

oxygen uptake, blood lipid levels and glucose tolerance, as well as

enhanced self-assurance, a

sense of psychological and physical well-being, and improved overall quality of life (Maron,

2004). Being healthy has had great advantages for people that everyone should take advantage

of. Just making one’s job easier was worth exercising in itself. However exercising has also

promoted a state of well being. Weight loss and looks were not the only benefits of exercise.

Exercise has affected all aspects of life from mood to preventing harmful problems like cancer

and diabetes. For employers and managers, exercise has been a major key to lower absentee rates

and higher energy levels. Exercise has enabled a company to produce more products and raise

profit levels. Finally, exercise has made people happier, which has to be at the top. Happier

employees work for the greater good of themselves and their company.

METHODS

Hypothesis

The key question in this study is if exercise truly does benefit employees in the manual

labor workplace. There have been many studies showing how exercise benefits people, and there



have been many businesses, mainly larger corporations, that keep exercise facilities on site.

RHC, the business for this particular study, wanted to know if there was a difference in

production levels between employees who exercise on a regular basis and employees who do not

exercise on a regular basis. The null hypothesis in this research study is that there was no

difference between those employees who exercise and those who do not. The expected outcome,

the alternate hypothesis, is that employees that exercise regularly were conditioned to produce

more in eight to twelve hour days than the employees who are not conditioned as well based on

an exercise program.

Design

The design of this study was created to be as fair as possible with each employee tested

having the exact duty with the same amount of time as the opposite employee. This experimental

study had dependent and independent variables. The dependent variable was the benefit from

exercise in the manual labor workplace. The independent variable in the research study was the

exercise. Nobody in the study knew about the study. This was done this way so there would not

be any outside influences to change how the testing would take place. Keeping the participants

unaware prevented any bias to the results gathered among the employees at RHC.

Participants

There were ten participants in the RHC exercise study. At the time of the study, there

were only five employees that exercised that were employed at RHC. The other five employees

chosen for the study were picked randomly out of eight employees who did not participate in an

exercise program. All the candidates chosen for the study were males because there were no



female employees that worked in the field at the time of the study. Age can play a part in this

study because it is a physical manual labor study. The average age of the employees who did not

exercise was thirty-seven, and the average age of the employees who exercised was thirty-nine.

The employees who did not exercise actually had youth on their sides. Skill level was also not an

issue because the study was on an entry level job, and all participants studied have had more than

two years experience.

Instrumentation

Benefits, of exercise in the workplace, were the dependent variable in the study. The

primary benefit of exercise is a higher production level. The dependent variable was measured

by how many interior doors could be set and cased in a ten hour day. Since RHC primarily works

eight to twelve hour days then owner wanted to take the average of RHC’s normal work day. The

higher the number of doors set the higher the production level. One point was given for setting

the door and two points for casing the door, one point for each side cased. A total of three points

per door completed. The study had to be over a two-week period due to that there were not

enough doors in the houses worked on to allow all the participants to set doors at the same exact

time.

Procedure

The procedure starts off by setting the pre-jambed interior doors. The second step was

putting the door moldings called case around the door. The third step was to do step two on the

other side of the door. So the participants could not pick up their speed by doing an inferior job

the doors were inspected by both the owner and general manager of the company. If there were



any errors points would be deducted from the three steps mentioned above. After the data were

collected from the study they were put into an independent t-test.

Data Analysis

Descriptive analysis. In the descriptive analysis of the study the mean and the standard

deviation were found from the production numbers. The data was then entered into the

WebSTATISTICA program (StatSoft, 1992-2009) provided by the university to calculate the

results.

Inferential analysis. There would be a difference in production levels of those employees

who exercise and those who did not exercise. That was my hypothesis in the study (Ha: µ

exercise ≤ µ no exercise). The null hypothesis was that there was no difference in production

levels among those employees who exercised and those who did not exercise (Ho: µ exercise ≥ µ

no exercise). The level of significance used in the study was .05 and the hypothesis was tested

with an independent t-test.

Limitations

There were not any limitations on the study because everybody that participated had the

exact amount of time and all had the knowledge of setting and casing interior doors. As stated

above, all the doors were pre-jambed and the sizes of the door moldings were all the same. The

judging was done by two people instead of one for stricter regulations on the project.

SUMMARY OF RESULTS

Descriptive Data Analysis



There were ten participant cases in the project. In each case all the participants were

timed doing the same amount of work. Of the ten participants, five participants exercised

regularly and five participants did not exercise at all. The sample size was ten. The mean total

minutes of the exercise group was 416.60, and the mean total minutes of the non-exercise group

was 469.80. The standard deviation of the project (s) exercise group was 27.47, and the non-

exercise group was 24.75. Table 1 shows descriptive data and the t-test table of information.

Figure 1 is a histogram of times for exercise and no exercise, and Figure 2 is mean plot with

confidence intervals.

Table 1_____________________________________________________________

Descriptive Statistical Information



Figure 1. Histogram of times

As shown in Figure 2 the times in total minutes are substantially less for the yes group

than the no group.

Figure 2. Mean plot.

The confidence levels are overlapping but not by much. The overall mean of the yes is

lower than the no group.

Inferential Data Analysis



My hypothesis stated there would be a difference in production levels favoring those

employees who exercised over those who did not exercise (Ha: µ exercise ≤ µ no exercise). The

null hypothesis stated that that there was no difference in production levels among those

employees who exercised and those who did not exercise (Ho: µ exercise ≥ µ no exercise). The

level of significance used in this two sample independent t-test was .05. The critical value was

-1.860, with 8 degrees of freedom. The t-value equaled -3.21. Therefore, the null hypothesis was

rejected. The conclusion of test meant that those who exercised likely had significantly lower

production times than those who did not exercise. Figure 3 shows a box and whisker plot of the

median time at task.



Figure 3. Box & Whisker Plot.

The Box & Whisker Plot shows the overall median for the yes group of time at task is

lower than the no group.

Exploratory Statistical Analysis

Extra data mining was done to find the importance of some independent variables and

how they might have affected the exercise, in a feature selection and root cause analysis. In

Figure 4, exercise was still the dominant variable. However, it could be found that other

variables such as number of types of exercises, weight, smoking status, and height had a minimal



affect on the project. One other independent variable had almost no predictive value on the

exercise and that was age of the participants.

Figure 4. Importance Plot.

GENERAL DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

The data acquired from the study reflects the hypothesis in that people that worked a

construction-style of job who exercised regularly would be able to produce more in the same

amount of time than people who do not exercise. Other variables could have posed an affect on

the outcome. With some data mining and more exploratory analysis, factors such as smoking,



age, height, and weight seemed unlikely to have had an impact on the study times. One reason it

could have had a minimal impact is that out of the ten participants the age, height, weight, and

smoking status were about equal on both sides. Therefore, the results seemed to have come from

the main independent variable at hand, which was exercise. Maybe a larger study would reveal

effects of some of the other variables.

Strengths and Weaknesses

There were various strengths and weaknesses in this study. Some primary strengths were

that there was an equal amount of work for everybody involved in the project. Another strength

was time is a consistent constant. A fair time was given and it could not be manipulated. A final

strength that keep the study fair was a leader from both groups evaluated all work that was done

and it was found that both groups had to stay within normal quality standards.

Weaknesses of the project were few but still a relevant factor. The first weakness was the

sample size and constitution. I had no way of knowing if those participants truly represented the

population of all construction workers so my conclusions were limited to RHC. There was only

enough equal amount of work for ten participants. Even if there was more work, there were only

twelve possible participants during the study. The other weakness, which is uncontrollable, was

the effort put forth by each participant. Since everybody involved in the study participated

because it was mandatory, it is a possibility that some participants did not give their duties one-

hundred percent of their effort. Only the participants could change this uncontrollable factor.

Recommendations



This study has given a new insight to the management team at RHC. Some

recommendations that are suggested would be possibly getting a company-wide health club

membership, and giving bonuses for good health and or high production rates. This study does

not prove that exercise can benefit all workplaces. However, it has shown in this study’s

literature review to have a great affect on a manual labor workforce. Therefore, for companies in

the construction industry it might prove quite valuable for them to have exercise programs and

benefits that would in turn provide better production levels and that might increase profits within

the company.

Suggestions for Future Research

There are some suggestions if someone were to redo this study. The first would be to

produce a larger sample size that might be more representative of other construction sites.

Another recommendation would be to allow for more time for the project. A final

recommendation, which I believe could be crucial, would be to give bonuses for the participants

on exceptional times. The reason behind this it would give a goal for the participants to shoot for

which would then force them to put forth their maximum effort. That would in part remove one

of the weaknesses mentioned earlier.

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