Laughter is Key

Laughing Your Way to Organizational Health:
A Lighter Approach to Workplace Wellness

by David Granirer MA, North America's Psychotherapist/Stand-up Comic

In today’s workplace, wellness is a serious issue. With terms like "stress-related-illness" and "burnout" becoming household words, organizations look increasingly for ways to keep their workforce happy, healthy and productive.

Up to now, many organizations have devalued the idea of laughter at work, seeing it as a distraction from getting the "real" job done. The work ethic many of us were raised with also reinforces this attitude. "No pain, no gain," "Work isn’t supposed to be fun," and "It’s only worthwhile if you have to suffer for it."
However, we’re starting to realize that all this suffering is killing us. Not only that, but we’re finding that it’s actually counter-productive to the bottom-line results so sought after in this era of technological change, budget slashing, and downsizing.

Scientific research points to a better way of living and working.
A recent study conducted at financial institutions found that managers who facilitated the highest level of employee performance used humor the most often.

Scientific data also proves laughter to be an integral part of physical wellness. Dr. William Fry of Stanford University has demonstrated that laughing 200 times burns off the same amount of calories as 10 minutes on the rowing machine.

Another study reveals that after a bout of laughter, blood pressure drops to a lower healthier level than before the laughter began.

Laughter also oxygenates your blood (and thus increases your energy level), relaxes your muscles, and works out all major internal systems like the cardiovascular and respiratory systems.

Furthermore, researchers report that laughter also affects the immune system. According to Dr. Lee Berk of the Loma Linda School of Public Health in California, laughing makes it grow stronger, with the body’s T-cells, natural killer cells and antibodies all showing signs of increased activity.

Workplace Humor Indicators

So what specific indicators that tell us we need to incorporate humor into our workplace? According to Thomas Kuhlman, a psychologist at the University of St. Thomas, in Minnesota, two major factors exist.

The first is being placed in no-win situations. These include being expected to do a job but not having the necessary resources in terms of time, money, policies or people power. It can also include having to serve a difficult or overly demanding client base or boss, or having to enforce unpopular rules or regulations.

The second is the presence of unpredictable or uncontrollable stressors. These can take the form of regularly arising but unpredictable situations that adversely affect stress, workloads, or scheduling. They can also include decisions made at other levels of the organization or government that affect your job but into which you have little or no input.

Sound familiar? In order to illustrate this scenario, Kuhlman uses the example of the TV series "MASH." Here we have medical personnel caught in a classic no-win situation. Their job is to heal wounded soldiers, whom when healed, go back to the front lines to be wounded again. The stressors are also uncontrollable and unpredictable in that the protagonists never know when or how many casualties will arrive. Furthermore, decisions about the war in which they have no say affect their jobs and lives.

In situations where we have little or no control over our external circumstances, our only control lies in how we react to them. We can either choose to laugh or despair, and in "MASH," Alan Alda’s character leads us to laugh.

In some ways, laughter can be the only rational response since in order to survive, we need to find a life-affirming way to cope. Being able to laugh about ourselves and our situation helps us to release the tension, regain our perspective, and accept that which we cannot change. Not only that, but as already stated, it also gives us the physical energy and resilience needed to survive.

As more and more groups realize the benefits of laughter, they incorporate it into their wellness programs and day-to-day work. I’ve found from working with hundreds of organizations that they often have a lot of very funny and resourceful people who just need to be given permission and encouragement to use their sense of humor on the job.

Workplace Humor Guidelines

Of course, when it comes to using humor at work, it helps to have some guidelines, since the term humor is a vague one. People say things like "Just lighten up," "See the funny side," "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade," but it’s difficult to turn these wishy-washy platitudes into specific behaviors. How do you lighten up? By seeing the funny side! But how do you see the funny side? By making lemonade?
As a consultant, I’ve found that in order to create change, people need specifics. Telling Bill to resolve a conflict with a coworker is a start, but the term "resolving a conflict" is unclear and means different things to different people. To achieve success, Bill needs to be able to define exactly what he’s doing and what the steps are to doing it.

And it’s the same with humor. Telling Sheila to use more humor on the job is a start, but in order to be successful, she needs to know exactly what humor is, and what the specific behaviors are that constitute it.

My definition of humor in the workplace is: Acts involving some sort of surprise and/or exaggeration that make people feel good. Certainly this can take the form of joke telling, but it can also take many others. Leaving a cookie on a coworker’s desk, giving an unexpected compliment, and sending an encouraging e-mail are all acts that involve some form of surprise ("Hey, I wasn’t expecting that!") and leave people feeling good. When I worked at the Vancouver Crisis Center I used to have a gorilla mask, and when things got too stressful, I’d put it on and walk around the building. That act of surprise and exaggeration left people with a smile and sense of relief from all the tension.

In other words, humor in the workplace doesn’t need to evoke gales of laughter, just pleasant feelings – something everyone is capable of doing. So if joke-telling isn’t your style, and indeed many people find it difficult to remember and tell jokes, then bring some Groucho Marx glasses to work, or maybe a rubber chicken. I’ve taken my rubber chickens across North America, for use with bankers, loggers, accountants, health care professionals, teachers, senior executives, parole officers, etc., and they’ve never failed to get a laugh. There’s something absurd about props that overcomes our rational adult programming and brings out the desire to laugh and play. It’s as if their presence gives us permission to slip out of our grown-up personas and experience an irrational moment or two of shared joy, something I call a "wellness break."

Thus our "inner clown" can now emerge as our lifeline in these times of change and uncertainty. Giving him or her free rein not only results in healthier workplaces, but also increased morale and team spirit.
Remember, the group that plays together, stays together!

February Plan of Action

Focus on your heart this month by adding, increasing, or revamping your cardiovascular training.

Exercise your heart by working in your Target Heart Rate Zone (THRZ): 220-Age= Max heart rate (MHR). MHR - Resting heart rate (RHR) = Heart rate reserve. (HRR x .60) + RHR = Low end of THRZ. (HRR x .85) + RHR = High end of THRZ. Work within those ranges if you are not on any blood pressure medications.

ex. 220-20=200-60=(140 x .60) + 60 = 144 low end. (140 x .85) + 60 = 179 high end. This 20 year old should keep his/her heart hate between 144-179 beats per minute while doing cardiovascular training.

Burn calories and more fat by doing 45-90 minutes of cardio 5-7 days per week. Breaking up the 90 minutes into two sessions will help you utilize/burn more fat! Do 45 minutes in the morning and 45 minutes at night!

Understand that getting 30 minute of physical active most days of the week DOES NOT count as exercise. Being physically active for at least 30 minutes per day means walking to the 500 cafeteria instead of the 600 (=5 minutes). Walking to co-workers work station instead of calling (= 5 minutes). Exercise is planned and structured. You need 45-90 minutes of cardio exercise 5-7 days per week to change what your body looks like inside and out!

Advertise that you are working out. Others may catch on and start working out as well. They may ask you to be their workout buddy!

Remember that it takes time to build up endurance/stamina. If you get on a bike and can physically only complete 10 minutes stick with 10 minutes/day for a week. Then the following week try for 15 minutes, etc. Pretty soon you'll be able to complete 45 minutes!

You can do it! Be positive!

Survival Tips for a Healthier Thanksgiving Dinner

• Skipping breakfast and lunch is a sure recipe for overeating at the Thanksgiving table.

• Our bodies aren’t meant to handle 2,000-3,000 calories all at once and will store excess calories as fat.

• Better to eat smaller amounts and drink lots of water throughout the day and really enjoy a healthful dinner.

• Control your portion sizes: Draw a 12-inch dinner plate in your mind and divide it into three-inch-sized circles with each one representing one food group: proteins, vegetables and starches. The key is to stay within your circle for each food group: If you like turkey and ham, fit a little of both in one circle.

• If you’re worried about the food choices, bring your own low-calorie dish or veggie tray to family gatherings.

• Be active: Go for a bike ride, a long brisk walk, a run or spend at least one hour at your local gym to burn calories before the big Thanksgiving meal.

• Plan a family event that involves physical activity—a pick-up game of basketball, a snowball fight, a long brisk walk outdoors or a family bike ride—before, during or after the big meal.

• Be mindful of your alcohol intake: Mixed drinks tend to have high amount of concentrated sugar and quickly add empty calories. One glass of wine may be reasonable, but remember alcohol contains about 7 calories per gram, which makes it nearly twice as fattening as carbohydrates or protein.

Article from the American Council on Exercise website

Stuff the Turkey, Not Yourself on Thanksgiving

Though most Americans are likely to gain three to seven pounds during the holiday season, anyone trying to eliminate or limit such family traditions as turkey, stuffing, candied sweet potatoes, casserole and pie on Thanksgiving is bound to be banned from the dinner table.

Hence, rather than starting a revolution in the kitchen to save yourself from putting on extra pounds, why not quietly change things up a bit? Considering that the average traditional Thanksgiving meal packs approximately 3,000 calories, for good health it’s well worth introducing new flavors, substituting ingredients and replacing some dishes—say a 180-calorie slice of pumpkin pie for the calorie-rich 480-calorie slice of pecan pie. You’ll keep the family peace and weight scale happy.

To help you cook a deliciously healthy Thanksgiving feast, ACE has asked two experts—Jessie Price, food editor of EatingWell, a bimonthly magazine dedicated to healthful eating and Marjorie Geiser, a registered dietician and ACE-certified Personal Trainer—to reveal their healthful secrets.

The Bird

Slather a turkey in butter or deep-fry the bird is like waging war on your heart. That doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice gourmet dining to trim hidden fats, cholesterol and calories. “If you roast the turkey correctly and cook it to the right temperature (165 degrees according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines for cooking poultry) the bird will not be overcooked,” according to Price.

EatingWell publishes new healthy Turkey recipes every year: The Herb-roasted turkey which comes in at 155 calories and 5 grams of fat per serving (without the skin) or the Lemon-garlic roast turkey and white wine gravy which comes in at 180 calories and 6 grams of fat per serving. Both recipes make 12 servings.

Tips for cutting calories and fat: Removing visible fat, skipping the skin and dark part of the meat will save you big on calories and fat. Be mindful of portion sizes. One portion should be no bigger than a fisted hand or a deck of cards and has about 41 calories. Also, while Turkey meat is a good source of protein, iron, zinc potassium and B vitamins the other traditional meat, prime rib, is mostly rich in calories—330 calories for a moderately sliced piece.

Stuffing

Substitute traditional stuffing made with butter and fatty sausage for a healthier choice using chopped vegetables, sliced apples and broth or lean veal, chicken or turkey sausage. Use wild rice, brown rice, mashed potatoes or whole-wheat bread as the main ingredient and leave the white bread on the grocery shelf. EatingWell’s cornbread and sausage stuffing recipe made with sweet Italian sausage, onion, celery, cornbread and chicken broth packs 237 calories and 9 grams (81 calories) of fat per serving. According to an online recipe by Betty Crocker, traditional white bread stuffing using ¾ cup of butter or margarine has 250 calories, including a whopping 15 grams (135 calories) of fat, per serving.

Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are naturally creamy so little fat needs to be added. EatingWell’s sweet potato recipe melds layers of white potatoes and sweet potatoes into a vegetable cake that forms a golden crust during baking and makes for a great centerpiece (eatingwell.com/recipes/potato_swtpotato_torte.html). At 144 calories with 3 grams (27 calories) of fat per serving, this recipe makes for a festive and healthy dish.

Price’s tip for making healthier, delicious mashed potatoes: “We use non-fat butter milk as opposed to butter or crème, which gives it a tangy flavor.” Also, instead of using low-fat cheddar cheese, Price uses extra sharp cheddar cheese for its big flavor. The key is to use a smaller amount.

Salad

This year, instead of using a mayonnaise-laden Waldorf salad (1/2 cup has about 110 calories) and sugar-loaded cranberry salad (1/2 cup has about 190 calories), prepare a mixed salad with lettuce, tomatoes, sliced onions andcarrots with a non-fat or low-fat dressing. “You can eat three cups of salad with non-fat dressing for only 100 calories,” Geiser said.

Casseroles

Green bean casserole may be a staple food on Thanksgiving, but made with fried onions and a high-fat cream soup, this popular dish is loaded with calories and fat. Sautéed green beans seasoned with herbs instead of butter offer a tasty alternative plus all the benefits of a vegetable—Vitamin C, K and A and fiber—without the fat and calories, according to Geiser.

Dessert

Denying the delights of pie would be a sin on Thanksgiving. But some choices are better than others. Pecan pie, which has 480 calories a slice is one of the least healthful choices you can make. Enjoy pumpkin pie instead. At 180 calories without the crust, it’s a truly lean desert. For an extra kick, check out EatingWell’s recipe for pumpkin pie with rum, which has 193 calories and 8 grams (72 calories) of fat per serving.



Article from the American Council on Exercise website

Jokes

New medical advise regarding diet and exercise that I think we should all consider
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… as hilarious, lol.

Q: Doctor, I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life; is this true?
A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it... don't waste them on exercise. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your heart will not make you live longer; that's like saying you can extend the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap.


Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?
A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a cow eat? Hay and corn. And what are these? Vegetables. So a steak is nothing more than an efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain? Eat chicken. Beef is also a good source of field grass (green leafy vegetable). And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily allowance of vegetable products.


Q: Should I reduce my alcohol intake?
A: No, not at all. Wine is made from fruit. Brandy is distilled wine, that means they take the water out of the fruity bit so you get even more of the goodness that way. Beer is also made out of grain. Bottoms up!


Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio?
A: Well, if you have a body and you have fat, your ratio is one to one. If you have two bodies, your ratio is two to one, etc.


Q: What are some of the advantages of participating in a regular exercise program?
A: Can't think of a single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No Pain...Good!


Q: Aren't fried foods bad for you?
A: YOU'RE NOT LISTENING!!! .... Foods are fried these days in vegetable oil. In fact, they're permeated in it. How could getting more vegetables be bad for you?


Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the middle?
A: Definitely not! When you exercise a muscle, it gets bigger. You should only be doing sit-ups if you want a bigger stomach.



Q: Is chocolate bad for me?
A: Are you crazy? HELLO Cocoa beans! Another vegetable!!! It's the best feel-good food around!


Q: Is swimming good for your figure?
A: If swimming is good for your figure, explain whales to me.


Q: Is getting in-shape important for my lifestyle?
A: Hey! 'Round' is a shape!



Well, I hope this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had about food and diets.



AND.....

For those of you who watch what you eat, here's the final word on nutrition and health. It's a relief to know the truth after all those conflicting nutritional studies.

1. The Japanese eat very little fat
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

2. The Mexicans eat a lot of fat
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

3. The Chinese drink very little red wine
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

4. The Italians drink a lot of red wine
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

5. The Germans drink a lot of beers and eat lots of sausages and fats and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

CONCLUSION

Eat and drink what you like.
Speaking English is apparently what kills you.

How to eat more vegetable

Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Things You’ll Need:
* Shopping list and a pen
* The following veggies
* A little will power!

Step 1
The most important thing to do when it comes to eating healthy is to shop healthy. Put vegetables on your shopping list so you have them always on hand. Make it a habit to do a "quick trip" to the grocery store just for produce. Limiting yourself to the produce isle on the quick trip days will save you time. Your list might include: *Broccoli *Cauliflower *Baby carrots *Yellow peppers *Cucumbers *Tomatoes *Lettuce or bagged salad. In addition to fresh produce, buy frozen vegetables. Frozen vegetables have come a long way in terms of taste and retaining their healthy nutrients thanks to the process of flash freezing. They also last much longer than fresh produce. Stock up on the following frozen foods: *peas *green beans *broccoli *cauliflower *squash

Step 2
Bag up some veggies for a mid-morning snack at work. The following are easy to bring to work because they require minimal or no cutting, so they don't dry out. *Raw broccoli *Raw cauliflower *Raw baby carrots *Celery sticks. If you work has a microwave, bring in frozen veggies in a microwaveable container.

Step 3
Pack a lunch that includes veggies. If you bring a sandwich, include in it (or on the side) any of the following: *Raw broccoli *Raw cauliflower *Raw baby carrots *Raw yellow peppers *Sliced cucumbers *Sliced tomatoes *Lettuce. A salad is another obvious choice. You can make one yourself; if you need ideas making it more interesting, there are many recipes online. Or you can order one if you eat out for lunch.

Step 4
Make dinner with veggies in mind. Include vegetables as an easy side dish. Any of the veggies mentioned above can work for dinner. However, variety can be nice, as well as effective in introducing a variety of vitamins and nutrients into your diet. The following can be frozen varieties that are popped in the microwave, or fresh that are cut up and steamed on the stove top. *Peas *Green beans *Broccoli *Cauliflower *Squash. In addition to these easy side dishes, if you are feeling ambitious, you can research recipes online. Just be wary of added ingredients that add fat. Tomorrow, you could bring some of the left overs from this meal to work to substitute step 3.

Step 5
Slice up some veggies for an evening snack. The following snacks have been kept as simple as possible, so you don't even need to take time preparing anything other than some washing and cutting. *Raw broccoli *Raw cauliflower *Raw baby carrots *Raw yellow peppers *Sliced cucumbers *Sliced tomatoes *Salad Note: If you are prone to heartburn, you might want to skip the tomatoes and peppers before bed.

Step 6
Keep up these healthy habits by shopping for veggies next week.

Step 7
Remember, eating healthy and managing your weight can be difficult. A lot of times our instinct is to eat LESS. While portion control is certainly important, the ADDITION of healthy foods, i.e. vegetables, is also important. If you eat more vegetables, you will be less hungry. So happy munching!

How to Avoid Weight Gain at Your Desk

1. EAT. It is very common to forget to eat when you are busy with meetings, emails and conference calls. Make it a priority to eat 1 - 2 small snacks between your meetings and phone calls. You may have to put it in your planner to remind you, but at least you will be fueling your body throughout the day!

2. Compensate. Find time to get in a workout before or after work. Join your local fitness center or ask a work buddy
to walk with you during your lunch breaks!

3. Rework your network. Sedentary individuals tend to have friends who are also sedentary. Make new friends with more active individuals. Or start to implement more fitness activities with your sedentary buddies by adding lunch walks or taking fitness classes together.

4. Coworker cooperation. Organize healthy events or challenges with your coworkers during work hours. Every week have a new person bring in a healthy food item to taste, along with the recipe.

5. Eat for Fuel, Not Boredom. Have your healthy snacks stashed in your desk so they are handy the minute you need some “fuel.” Avoid carrying cash or change in the office so you are less likely to buy unhealthy snacks from the vending machines.

6. Lose the technology. Forget about calling or emailing someone who works on the same floor. Get up and move! Take advantage of the stairs and avoid the elevator. If you are on the 15th floor take the stairs to the 6th floor and then get on the elevator. Work your way up to eventually taking the stairs all the way to the 15th floor! Park farther from the door to increase your steps to the building.

7. Choose wisely. You can still go out go to lunch with clients and coworkers, just make sure that you are picking healthy options. Have an idea of what you will order before getting to the restaurant by either looking at the menu online or deciding you will only be choosing a specific type of dish (i.e. poultry). Have a game plan and avoid the desire to order a dessert.