21 Ways to Improve Health at Work
Want to improve health at work and help everyone feel better?
It’s about more than just reducing the unhealthy snacks on display and putting up a fruit bowl.
What really makes a difference is building a workplace where everyone genuinely feels good in their bodies, minds, and spirits.
If you’re hoping to see a boost in productivity, notice fewer sick days, or just make the office a more positive place to be, we’ve got 21 ideas to get you started on improving health at work.
Some of these are super quick and easy to get going, while others might need a bit more thought and planning.
But every single one can help your colleagues feel healthier, happier, and more switched on when they’re at work.
Contents
21 Ways to Improve Health at Work
- Improving Physical Health at Work
- Improving Mental Health at Work
- Improving the Health Culture at Work
- Improving Health at Work Policies
Why is Workplace Health Important?
21 Ways to Improve Health at Work
These 21 methods will give you a starting point for improving health in your workplace, ultimately creating a happier and healthier working environment.
Improving Physical Health at Work
1. Encourage Regular Movement Breaks
Sitting for long periods can lead to stiffness, poor posture, and reduced circulation, not to mention mental fatigue.
Encourage team members to take short movement breaks every hour, even if it’s just a quick stretch, a walk around the office, or standing/walking during a call.
You can promote this with gentle calendar reminders, team stretch sessions, or movement challenges.
Not only does this improve physical health, but it also helps to boost energy, focus, and overall mood, making people feel more refreshed and engaged throughout the day.
If you’d like a workshop to promote physical health at work, check out our “Improving Physical Health” workshop, delivered both in person and virtually.
2. Educate Employees on Health and Wellbeing
Knowledge is a powerful motivator.
Offering health and wellbeing workshops, webinars, or bite-sized learning on topics like stress, healthy habits, and exercise can empower employees to make healthier choices.
You can include this in team meetings, monthly wellbeing emails, or through expert-led sessions.
The goal isn’t to overwhelm people, it’s to raise awareness and encourage small, sustainable changes.
When employees understand how their habits impact their wellbeing, they’re more likely to take ownership of their health at work and beyond.
3. Promote Hydration
Dehydration can cause headaches, fatigue, poor concentration, and low mood, none of which support a healthy or productive workday.
To promote better hydration at work, make water easily accessible with refill stations, filtered water taps, or water coolers in communal areas.
You could also place gentle reminder posters in the kitchen or encourage team challenges like The 7 Day Wellness Challenge, which encourages hydration.
To make it more fun, companies can provide branded water bottles or prizes.
Supporting hydration helps improve energy levels, brain function, and overall health and wellbeing at work.
4. Provide Healthy Food Options
What we eat directly impacts our energy, focus, and overall health.
Offering healthy food choices at work, like fruit, nutritious snacks, or balanced options in the canteen, can encourage better eating habits.
If you don’t have catering on-site, consider partnering with local vendors to offer discounts on healthy lunches or sharing quick, nutritious recipes in team newsletters.
Even simple gestures like swapping biscuits for mixed nuts in meetings can make a difference.
When employees fuel their bodies well, they’re more alert, feel better, and are less likely to experience energy crashes during the day.
5. Organise Health Challenges
Workplace health challenges, like step competitions, fitness challenges, or healthy habit streaks, can be a fun and effective way to boost employee health.
They create a sense of friendly competition and shared purpose while encouraging positive behaviour.
You can run weekly or monthly challenges using a simple tracker or app, and offer small prizes or shout-outs to keep motivation high.
Challenges help bring health into daily routines, build team spirit, and make wellbeing feel like a shared goal rather than a personal task.
6. Offer On-site Fitness Classes
Bringing fitness into the workplace makes it easier for employees to stay active without disrupting their day.
Whether it’s yoga at lunch, a morning HIIT session, or a weekly stretch class, on-site fitness options can improve physical health, reduce stress, and boost energy.
You don’t need a gym, just a clear space and a qualified instructor.
Alternatively, virtual sessions work well for hybrid teams.
Making movement part of the workday shows employees that their health matters and helps create a more energised, engaged workforce.
7. Provide Ergonomic Furniture
Poor posture and uncomfortable work setups can lead to back pain, neck strain, and long-term musculoskeletal issues.
Investing in ergonomic furniture like adjustable chairs, sit-stand desks, and monitor risers helps employees work more comfortably and safely.
You don’t need to overhaul the whole office, but even small changes like external keyboards and height-adjustable monitors can make a big difference.
Supporting good posture reduces physical discomfort, prevents injury, and shows employees that their daily comfort and health are a priority.
Improving Mental Health at Work
8. Encourage Open Conversations about Mental Health
Creating a workplace where people feel safe to talk about mental health is key to reducing stigma and offering timely support.
Start by normalising the conversation, share resources, hosting mental health awareness webinars, or include mental health topics in team meetings.
Leaders can set the tone by being open about their own experiences or checking in with team members beyond just work tasks.
You don’t need all the answers, just a culture of listening and support.
When employees feel seen and heard, they’re more likely to seek help early and feel valued in the workplace, ultimately improving their mental health.
9. Provide Stress Management Workshops
Stress is one of the biggest contributors to poor health at work, and it often goes unnoticed until it affects performance or leads to burnout.
Offering stress management workshops gives employees practical tools to understand and handle pressure more effectively.
These sessions can cover techniques like breathing exercises, reframing thoughts, and recognising early signs of stress.
Bringing in a trained facilitator makes the experience feel structured and safe.
Workshops not only equip people with helpful strategies but also send a strong message that their wellbeing matters.
10. Train Managers to Spot Signs of Burnout
Managers are often the first line of support, so they must know how to recognise the early signs of burnout, like emotional exhaustion, disengagement, or noticeable changes in behaviour.
Providing training helps them understand what to look out for, how to start supportive conversations, and when to signpost to professional help.
It also equips them to create healthier team environments by managing workloads, encouraging breaks, and modelling healthy habits.
When managers are confident in spotting and responding to burnout, it helps protect the wellbeing of the whole team.
11. Create Quiet Spaces
Workplaces can be, hectic and noisy, and providing a quiet space, whether it’s a small room, or even a designated corner can give employees a chance to step away and reset.
These spaces can be used for short breaks, mindfulness, or simply to decompress during a busy day.
It doesn’t have to be elaborate, soft lighting, comfortable seating, and a peaceful atmosphere go a long way.
Quiet spaces support mental clarity, reduce stress, and show that wellbeing is part of the workplace culture.
12. Offer Access to Mental Health Support
Sometimes, a supportive conversation isn’t enough, and employees may need professional help.
Providing access to mental health support, such as counselling services, employee assistance programmes (EAPs), or partnerships with mental health organisations, ensures people know where to turn when they’re struggling.
Make sure this support is communicated clearly and easy to access, whether it’s through a wellbeing portal, HR, or a confidential helpline.
When support is visible and accessible, it encourages employees to seek help sooner, leading to better outcomes and a healthier, more resilient workforce.
13. Tackle Workplace Loneliness
Loneliness at work is more common than people realise, and it can seriously affect mental health, motivation, and overall job satisfaction.
To combat this, create opportunities for genuine connection.
Introduce buddy systems for new starters, encourage team collaboration through workshops, or set up informal catch-ups like virtual coffee breaks or lunch clubs.
Managers should also keep an eye out for employees who seem withdrawn or disconnected.
A culture that prioritises human connection helps people feel like they belong, making work feel less isolating and more supportive.
14. Offer Mental Health Days
Just like we take time off for physical illness, employees sometimes need space to recharge mentally.
Offering dedicated mental health days sends a powerful message that mental wellbeing is just as important.
Whether it’s a formal policy or simply encouraging the use of personal days for rest, it gives employees permission to step back when they’re feeling overwhelmed.
This helps prevent burnout, reduces long-term absence, and shows your team that it’s okay to prioritise their mental health without guilt.
Improving the Health Culture at Work
15. Celebrate Healthy Habits and Achievements
Recognising the small wins, like someone completing a step challenge, quitting smoking, or consistently taking their lunch break, can go a long way in reinforcing positive behaviour.
Whether it’s a shoutout in a team meeting, a wellbeing wall of fame, or a small reward system, celebrating healthy choices creates a snowball effect across the workplace.
It shows that health is valued, encourages others to get involved, and helps build a more supportive and uplifting team culture.
16. Encourage Kindness and Gratitude
A culture of kindness and gratitude can significantly boost morale, reduce stress, and strengthen team relationships.
Encourage employees to show regular appreciation, whether it’s a thank-you message or a simple act of kindness like making someone a coffee, these acts go a long way.
You can also introduce gratitude boards or “kindness challenges” to keep it front of mind.
When people feel appreciated and supported, it creates a more positive atmosphere, improves emotional wellbeing, and helps everyone feel more connected at work.
If you want us to deliver our “Harnessing Gratitude Workshop” to help you create this culture at work, get in touch!
17. Make Workloads Realistic
Unrealistic workloads are one of the biggest contributors to stress, burnout, and poor performance.
Regularly check in with your team to ensure tasks are manageable and priorities are clear.
Encourage open conversations about capacity and avoid the “always busy” culture by setting realistic deadlines and promoting healthy boundaries.
When workloads align with people’s actual capacity, they feel more in control, less overwhelmed, and more motivated to do their best work, without sacrificing their health and wellbeing.
18. Ensure Leaders Set an Example
Employees take cues from leadership, so if health and wellbeing isn’t modelled at the top, it’s unlikely to take root across the organisation.
Leaders should openly prioritise their own health, whether that’s taking breaks, logging off on time, or speaking honestly about stress and balance.
When managers show that it’s okay to look after your wellbeing, it gives others permission to do the same.
Setting the tone from the top builds trust, strengthens culture, and shows that health at work is more than just words, it’s a shared priority.
Improving Health at Work Policies
19. Offer Flexible Working
Flexible working allows employees to better manage their health, time, energy, and personal responsibilities, leading to improved mental and physical wellbeing.
Whether it’s remote work, adjusted hours, or compressed weeks, giving people more control over how they work reduces stress and supports a healthier work-life balance.
Flexibility shows trust, boosts morale, and can even increase productivity.
When employees feel empowered to work in a way that suits their lifestyle, they’re more likely to stay engaged, motivated, and well.
20. Provide Ongoing Wellbeing Education
Wellbeing isn’t a one-off initiative, it needs to be part of an ongoing conversation.
Share regular resources like blog posts, short videos, or internal newsletters covering topics related to employee health and wellbeing.
You could also invite guest speakers, run monthly webinars, or create a wellbeing calendar with themed focus areas.
When employees are consistently exposed to helpful, relatable content, it keeps wellbeing top of mind and encourages long-term, healthy habits both in and out of the workplace.
21. Embed Wellbeing in Performance Reviews
Performance conversations shouldn’t just be about targets and output, they’re also a valuable opportunity to check in on how employees are feeling.
By including wellbeing prompts in performance reviews (such as “How are you managing your workload?” or “What support could help you work more effectively?”), managers can open the door to honest discussions about stress, balance, and health.
It shows employees that their wellbeing is valued just as much as their performance, and encourages a more supportive, people-first workplace culture.
Why is Workplace Health Important?
Workplace health isn’t just about avoiding sick days, it’s about people.
It’s about recognising that behind every task, meeting, and deadline is a human being with a body, a mind, and a life outside of work.
When that health breaks down, everything else starts to fall apart.
1. Employees are Struggling
In 2023/24, 1.7 million people across Great Britain reported having a work-related health issue.
That’s not just a stat, it’s a staggering number of individuals trying to do their jobs while dealing with pain, stress, or burnout.
Of those, 776,000 were dealing with stress, depression, or anxiety, and another 543,000 had musculoskeletal disorders like back or neck pain.
These aren’t isolated issues, they’re warning signs and are just the reported figures.
2. The Cost of Time off Work
Ill health at work isn’t just about how people feel (though that should be reason enough to care).
It’s also about what businesses lose when people aren’t well.
In the last year alone, 33.7 million working days were lost due to illness and injury.
That includes over 16 million days lost to mental health struggles like stress and anxiety.
On average, someone with stress-related ill health took more than three weeks off, and that’s just the people who actually took time off and reported it.
3. The Economic Cost of Poor Employee Health
If the human cost doesn’t move you, the financial one might.
In 2022/23, the combined cost of work-related illness and injury hit £21.6 billion. The majority of that (£14.5 billion) was down to ill health alone.
Whether it’s lost productivity, temporary cover, or long-term absence, poor health quietly drains resources from every level of a business.
4. The Mental Health Cost
We’re seeing the same story play out again and again.
People are burning out.
Mental health issues like stress, anxiety, and depression made up 46% of all work-related ill health cases in 2023/24.
That’s nearly half the workforce facing silent battles, often without feeling safe or supported enough to speak up.
People aren’t machines.
They get tired.
They carry stress.
They have backs that ache and minds that sometimes need a break.
When employers make health a priority, not just in posters on the wall, but in everyday decisions, the results are felt everywhere.
Fewer sick days, stronger morale, better performance, and a workplace where people actually want to be.
If we want healthier businesses, we have to start with healthier people.
At Loving Life, we help companies support the health and wellbeing of their employees through our interactive, informative, and proven wellbeing workshops.
If you’d like help with your workplace, get in touch!
Author
Tyler Lowe
Workshop Facilitator and Wellbeing Speaker
