You can get software to help you in just about anything these days, but a new program has been released which may see workers in office space all over the country doing aerobics in front of their computers.
RedBeep is designed to counteract the long hours which office workers spend sat at their desk and force them to do exercise.
It comes after a study from Loughborough University found that many office workers forget to stand and move around throughout the day, with the average employee sitting at their desks for five hours and 41 minutes uninterrupted.
Since many people have the best will in the world to get up, stretch and move around, sometimes they can be so busy that their schedules make it difficult or they simply forget.
The new program is designed to stop office workers from making excuses and remind them to make a move.
Set up in advance the program sends out reminders to exercise and uses persuasive emails to get staff to undertake what it terms ‘deskercise’.
For those who are the least inclined to move it can actually be programmed to shut off the internet until exercise is performed.
It does that with the use of a webcam, which senses movement and means that the employee must carry out their physical activity in front of their computer in order to reactive their internet connection.
Don Wen, founder of RedBeep, said: “I first came up with the idea for RedBeep to make myself get up and exercise. The thing with me was discipline. I had good intentions, but they would get lost in the workday’s hustle and bustle. And when I did get free time, I’d surf the web. So I needed something that would make me get up and move.”
Having healthy staff is not just important for their wellbeing and morale, but they will be more efficient and less likely to take time off through illness.
