Maintaining a healthy and engaged workforce is hard enough during flu season, but managing this during a pandemic can create even more obstacles for companies. This “new normal” involves more people working from home, limiting large conferences and gatherings to maintain social distancing measures, a stronger protocol for sanitization and focus on health for both the employee and employer.

As a leader in the employee recognition space, Rymax recommends a few best practices and tips to help keep your workforce safe and healthy during the upcoming flu season:

1. Healthy Eating – To maintain a healthy body and stronger immune system, it’s essential to hydrate all day long, eat balanced meals and make clean food choices. Create a breakfast smoothie with a Vitamix mixer, keep a large HydraPeak water bottle on your desk and keep veggies fresh in your LocknLock food storage containers for easy, healthy snacking all day long.

2. Stay Active – Whether you enjoy working out in the morning on your Echelon bike, taking a walk mid-day or doing yoga with your Gaiam yoga mat and block, make sure you take time for yourself. Be physical and break away from the work day by managing stress and a healthy fitness lifestyle.

3. Journal Your Thoughts – A journalis truly one of the best self-improvement tools there is. Keeping a daily journal can help to clear your mind, stay organized, express your words in a healthy way and relieve stress. Pair a Swarovski professional notebook with a Cross luxury pen to create the ultimate at-home business journaling experience.

4. Sleep Well – Experts say quality sleep for adults is 7 to 9 hours a night. Find time to relax at night, put your phone down on your myCharge device and decompress from all the digital eye exposure from blue light rays. Sleep well in Boll & Branch bedding and let your body recharge for the next day.

5. Enjoy Laughter – Nothing feels better for the soul than finding joy in your workday. Whether it is to chat with a colleague over the phone, celebrate an employee milestone over zoom or show appreciation by saying “thank you” while recognizing a job well done. No simple gesture goes unnoticed. Laughterhas proven healthy benefits—it enhances your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases endorphins.

By promoting good health among employees, you help to keep your staff safe, prevent illness and workplace accidents.  Whether in the office or working remotely, companies need to encourage employee wellbeing and practice healthy habits all year long, not just during this viral pandemic.  Employers should emphasize these best practices to their employees and keep the importance of wellbeing top of mind!