Labor Gymnastics: history, origin, types and main benefits

THE labor gymnastics is a set of sports practices practiced in order to avoid pathologies and health problems related to the work environment and work activities, motivating workers to exercise and reducing the stress. Gymnastics at work is often practiced in the workplace itself, and has a short duration, at most one hour.

These practices can be. performed daily and their frequency varies with the availability of. professionals and the location provided by the company.

With the popularization of this gym, managers and entrepreneurs realized that the improvement in the quality of life and of job satisfaction increased the productivity of employees, and consequently, of the company as a whole. There was, then, a change in the priorities of the companies, which began to be more concerned with the work environment they provided to their employees.

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History of Labor Gymnastics

This set of physical activities emerged in Europe in the 1920s, after the Industrial Revolution, with the consolidation of a new scale production system.

When the work was created, it was called “Break Gymnastics”, and it started to become popular in Polish and Russian factories.

In the late 1920s, Japanese industries. assimilated these practices and their managers perceived their benefits, such as a. reduction of physical and mental strain on employees, increasing a. productivity of them.

In 1968, this practice was implemented in the States. States, gaining great visibility.

This practice arrived in Brazil in 1901. THE. first Brazilian institution to provide labor gymnastics sessions to. its workers was the Bangu Fabric Factory.

Currently, practicing gymnastics at work has become one. common and popular practice in many companies, which are concerned with promoting the. well-being of its employees, as well as promoting interaction among employees. themselves, becoming part of the administrative guidelines of many companies.

The implementation of one. Workplace gymnastics program is also related to the valorization of. employees, the company's interest in the health of its employees, a. valuing quality work, disease prevention and. building a good working environment.

Thus, labor gymnastics. it is also related to quality of life, health maintenance and health. decreased wear and tear caused by work.

Types of work gymnastics

Workplace gymnastics can be classified according to the objectives of the exercises and according to the needs of workers:

You can sort them out. modalities of labor gymnastics according to the time of performance of the. Exercises:

• Preparatory work gymnastics, whose function is to prepare the employee's body for the execution of physical work, promoting oxygenation of body tissues, increased heart rate, increased disposition and concentration in the work. This type of gymnastics is composed of exercises with an average duration of 10 to 12 minutes, in which they are performed exercises that promote motor coordination, balance, concentration, flexibility and strength muscle.
• Compensatory, whose function is to reduce muscle tension resulting from the excessive use of body structures due to poor posture or excessive efforts; this type of modality is practiced throughout the working day. This type of exercise promotes detoxification of the body, correction of body posture and reduction of mental and muscular fatigue. The series of exercises practiced seeks to specifically work on movements to correct posture, increase flexibility, promote stretching and breathing exercises.
• Relaxation work gymnastics, whose function is to relieve tension accumulated during the day and reduce stress. Relaxation at work gymnastics is practiced after the workday, through sessions of self-massage, breathing control exercises, stretching and meditation of various types.
• It can also be classified according to the purpose of the exercises performed:
• Workplace gymnastics for postural correction, whose purpose is to balance the body's musculature, through stretching and strengthening of underused muscles. These exercises are performed every ten minutes, and can be done daily or up to three times a week.
• Compensatory labor gymnastics, whose purpose is to prevent and compensate for postural adaptations and deformities. These exercises are performed using symmetrical movements and have a maximum duration of ten minutes.
• Therapeutic labor gymnastics, whose purpose is to treat disorders, diseases and postural changes, according to the employee's complaints, with an average duration of thirty minutes.
• Conservative work gymnastics, whose purpose is to maintain physical fitness, as well as muscle balance and postural corrections. The average duration of these exercises is forty to ninety minutes.

Main. benefits of gymnastics at work:

• Decrease in mental and bodily fatigue;
• Decrease in stress;
• Decrease in sedentary lifestyle;
• Prevention of pathologies related to repetitive movements, such as Repetitive Strain Injuries and Osteomuscular Disorders Related to work activity;
• Improvement of the postural aspect and correction of spinal problems;
• Increased worker productivity at work;
• Increased quality of relationships between co-workers and managers;
• Increased concentration of workers in their daily functions;
• Decrease in the company's expenses with workers' medical leaves;
• Prevention of osteomuscular diseases;
• Promotion of integration between high-performance teams;
• Improvement of the work environment, with a consequent increase in productivity;
• Increased worker satisfaction with their job;
• Reduction of risks and the number of accidents at work, also reducing costs related to them;
• Optimization of the employees' routine and improvement of time management;
• Decrease in absence from work due to physical and mental problems;
• Improving the company's image with its employees and increasing their self-esteem;
• Decrease in company employee turnover rates, also reducing company expenses and increasing retention of good employees;
• Decrease in accidents related to motor imbalance, repetitive efforts focused on specific joints and the chronic concentration of heavy loads on a single side of the body.

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