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Woman practising yoga plank pose
Yoga is one of the best workouts to improve posture, core strength and muscle tone. Photograph: Alamy
Yoga is one of the best workouts to improve posture, core strength and muscle tone. Photograph: Alamy

Could working out solve your workplace woes?

This article is more than 8 years old

A growing body of evidence suggests that regular exercise can have a direct impact on our career success. Get the most from your workout by choosing the method best suited to your specific work issue

Working out might usually fall under the category of leisure, but scientists are increasingly presenting research to prove exercise can boost performance, increase intelligence and make us more productive. So, should we be sweating our way to career success?

According to Stephen Stott, CEO of executive recruitment agency Stott and May, even headhunters and employers are making the link between fitness and work. “We hold an employee’s fitness in high regard because the attributes demonstrated – determination, commitment, hard work – are those we look for in the business world,” he explains.

Increase your chances of a 2016 promotion and make the best use of your time by opting for the right training method.

Creative block

What works? Cycling

Your local Fitness First might not seem like a hub of inspiration, but with every bead of sweat comes a better chance of finishing The Work Project That Never Dies. Research published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience asked participants to hit the pedals and tested them with questions during and after their cycling stints.

The conclusion? Regular exercisers experienced an improved capacity for convergent thinking (read: creativity) during and immediately after intense physical activity. Working out directly affects the levels of oxygenation and glucose in the frontal brain regions, which is responsible for problem solving and imagination. With career experts agreeing that generating killer idea is one of the most tangible ways to prove your worth in the workplace, perhaps it’s time to put spin class a little higher on your list of priorities.

Low energy

What works? Aerobics

Feeling like a Duracell bunny without a battery pack? Clocking up 14-hour days and writing business proposals in your sleep will do that. Ironically, exercising as often as you can will actually increase energy levels. Researchers from the University of Georgia found that individuals who struggled with constant fatigue could boost their energy by 20%, and lower fatigue by as much as 65%, with regular, low-intensity exercise.

Aerobics is a good choice, says Louisa Drake, fitness expert and founder of the Louisa Drake Method: “Exercising at a low to moderate level means maximum energising effects without depleting any of your body’s existing energy stores. A group aerobics class set to music is great for this; the dance movements accelerate your breathing and increase heart rate. Plus, a group of people moving completely in sync builds a cumulative force of energy, so you can feed each other.”

Soaring stress

What works? Weight training

Bigger muscles aren’t the only gains to be garnered from strength training. In fact, resistance sessions have been shown to increase levels of norepinephrine, a neurotransmitter that helps the brain cope better with stress and anxiety, by 36%.

Drake is in agreement with this – she incorporates weights into the programmes of her most frazzled clients. “Resistance training at any level can help reduce stress and anxiety because it demands both physical effort and mental focus to perform reps effectively and build enough strength to progress to heavier loads – all those business concerns buzzing around your head are forced to take a time out. Plus, the emotional and physical release we get after expending this kind of energy is scientifically proven to cause a massive hormonal high, for de-stressing benefits long after your workout.”

Procrastination

What works? A lunchtime run

So behind on your to-do list that you couldn’t possibly fit in a workout? Wrong. According to Jim McKenna, professor of physical activity and health at Leeds Metropolitan University, scheduling in exercise at lunchtime can improve your time management and productivity so much that 60 minutes out of the office technically comes for free.

“We studied 200 workers on days when they spent 30 to 60 minutes of their lunch break engaging in physical activity and days when they stayed at their desks. Our research team saw a 17% improvement in the individuals’ performance on the days they exercised, which is the equivalent of doing in seven hours what it would normally take eight to achieve,” he explains. The boost is down to the stimulating effect of exercise on the pre-frontal cortex of the brain, which syphons out exhausted cells and generates new ones in their place. “It means rather than focusing on bums on seats come lunchtime, we should look at sweat sessions as an integral part of the working day.”

Low confidence

What works? Yoga

Nothing boosts self-esteem like seeing the results of your hard work and perseverance pay off in a tangible way. Enter yoga. “It’s one of the best ways to chart your own fitness progress because it’s made up of specific postures and moves that you learn to master through practice. The very nature of the exercise is that we’re all beginners at some point, so nailing each and every pose is a mark of achievement, which in turn builds confidence and empowers individuals to take on challenges in other areas of life,” says Drake. Then there’s the fact that yoga is one of the best workouts to improve posture, core strength and muscle tone – so you’ll get a kick from walking taller and looking leaner too.

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