Biochemical Evaluations
The Next Step in the Corporate Wellness Movement
Over the past ten years, we have been driving home the importance of “knowing your numbers” to our employees. Biometrics, the core of information that almost all wellness programs are built on, provide employees with information about their blood pressure, cholesterol, and BMI. We continue to use wellness screenings in part because employees are not seeing their primary care physicians as often as they should. These screenings are provided to educate those that are not in tune with their numbers to hopefully take the next step. But what is that next step? Once we know our numbers, should that continue to be our focus year after year, or should we take it a step further? Are we truly focusing on the right information to make a change?
Now, I want you to consider the human body and what it was designed to do: move! There is so much concern about how we move; are we moving correctly? Are we moving enough? Despite all of our talk about exercise and fitness, we live in a sedentary society. We even have devices that tell us to move more and count our steps to make sure that we are moving enough! The impact of a sedentary lifestyle can lead to obesity, heart disease, arthritis, diabetes, musculoskeletal issues, depression, as well as other chronic conditions. I hear more and more in my industry that “sitting is the new smoking.”
In order to combat this epidemic, biomechanical evaluations are the next step in the corporate wellness movement. These evaluations are ten-step assessments conducted by a physical therapist that identify any joint and musculoskeletal issues and provide a full comprehensive assessment of nutritional and wellness knowledge. Biomechanical evaluations support results from biometric screenings and take the employee to the next step. Biometrics alone might tell an employee that they need to change something; biomechanical evaluations give them the knowledge to know where they need to make the changes. The employer will be provided with an initial aggregate report on the biomechanical and nutritional evaluations as well as quarterly participation metrics. The biomechanical evaluation we use was designed by Greg Georgis at FitMe Wellness and has been very successful in complementing biometrics and creating actionable goals for employees.
It should be no surprise that increasing your ability to move and adding exercise into your lifestyle will help combat obesity, high blood pressure, and reduce cholesterol levels. But giving employees the tools to effect change in their lives can also be empowering and improve their morale and health. To learn more about the biomechanical evaluation and the impact it will have on your employees, please email our corporate partners at FitMe Wellness: corporate@fitmewellness.com.
