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AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT
Does Fitness and Exercises Increase Productivity? Assessing Health,
Fitness and Productivity Relationship
Author(s): Mansour Sharifzadeh
Citation: Mansour Sharifzadeh, (2013) "Does Fitness and Exercises Increase Productivity? Assessing Health, Fitness and Productivity Relationship," American Journal of Management, Vol. 13, Iss. 1, pp. 32 - 52
Article Type: Research paper
Publisher: North American Business Press
Abstract:
As the American workforce increases, so does its waistline. It is estimated that 64% of the adults in the
United States are obese, with nearly 9 million children age six and older becoming obese. With obesity
come serious health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension and high blood pressure.
Americans are faced with the challenge of trying to manage a higher cost of living that requires them to
work more hours. They have to deal with the fact that an increase in the hours they work takes time away
from their time to cook, which leads to unhealthy fast food choices and even less time to exercise.
Employers are investing large amounts in employee fitness programs, but the value of physical exercise
and lifestyle has yet to be established. This paper provides a critique of the applied and experimental
research related to the impact of the employee fitness programs on work-related variables and discusses
future research directions. More and more companies either are planning or have developed physical
fitness programs for their employees. In the United States approximately 55,000 companies are involved
in employee fitness and promote physical activities.
