Link between cycling and fewer days off sick

deadhead1971

I was intrigued by the latest Sustrans campaign which aims to promote cycling to work - putting pressure on employers to make it easier etc.
Part of the evidence is a claim that sickness absence rates can be halved.
I asked our HR guys for my own data, since I only started cycling 3 years ago when I hit 40.

I charted the results and blogged about it here:
http://www.scarletfire.co.uk/2013/06/cycling-to-work-means-fewer-days-off-sick-a-case-study/

Anyone else got any personal evidence that supports this?
I think it's a great way to go, in terms of providing a "carrot" to get employers to invest more seriously in cycling to work schemes.

Frank Wilson

The company I work for adopt a different system for cutting out sick days..........

They don't pay you, works very well.

If only I'd chosen to work in the public sector I could have loads of sick days to go out on my bike.

bernithebiker

Surely the temptation is to phone in sick if it's a great day for cycling?!

Bozman

I used to have days off sick to go cycling, plus it may save days off through minor illness but when the inevitable happens you'll end up having a lot more time off.

simonhead

The last company i worked for charted sick days and the correlation between that and differeing things. The staff that had the fewest sick days were by far those that walked or cycled to work. The ones that had the highest number of sick days were those that had a drive of more than 20 miles.

The company also charted sick days by location, the teams in Brazil had the highest sick days and Iraq the lowest. Of the UK offices the Glasgow team was the illest and London the healthiest.

Last one was sick days against inter team socialising and it found that teams that used to socialise together and with partners had by far the fewest sick days, by contrast it also had the highest maternity leave in the group.

deadhead1971

simonhead wrote:

The last company i worked for charted sick days and the correlation between that and differeing things. The staff that had the fewest sick days were by far those that walked or cycled to work. The ones that had the highest number of sick days were those that had a drive of more than 20 miles.

The company also charted sick days by location, the teams in Brazil had the highest sick days and Iraq the lowest. Of the UK offices the Glasgow team was the illest and London the healthiest.

Last one was sick days against inter team socialising and it found that teams that used to socialise together and with partners had by far the fewest sick days, by contrast it also had the highest maternity leave in the group.

Very interesting, and the last point was equally amusing :-)
I've always wanted them to chart the smokers against the non smokers. That'd be an interesting one.

We used to do this dumb thing whereby there'd be a draw of all the names of people who went a whole year without taking a single day off sick, and the winner would get a huge basket of fruit. It's the sicko's that needed the fruit!!

Bar Shaker

The smoking one would be interesting. I never got colds when I smoked. Now I get loads.

AchillesLeftKnee

simonhead wrote:

The last company i worked for charted sick days and the correlation between that and differeing things. The staff that had the fewest sick days were by far those that walked or cycled to work. The ones that had the highest number of sick days were those that had a drive of more than 20 miles.

Last one was sick days against inter team socialising and it found that teams that used to socialise together and with partners had by far the fewest sick days, by contrast it also had the highest maternity leave in the group.

Makes sense to me.

Staff who live in roughly the same area are more likely to socialise, and getting on well with colleagues undeniably makes work induce less vacuum around the monkey male chicken. Happier staff who don't hate the place are more likely to show up.

clickrumble

Sick days initially reduced from better fitness... but then I fell off and needed 3 months off to recover from the injuries!

cougie

I'm sure fitter people do have less days ill.

My company seems to reward smokers with fag breaks and non smokers with nothing.

ricky1980

I know i have less sick days since i have start cycling to work. reason being, i am not in the germ infested environment called "underground" on a daily basis. I used to remember i will catch cold during spring and autumn time at regular intervals and sometimes a couple of bad ones in succession.

Since being on the road, I hardly get ill due to the fact that I am not in close contact with ill people. Tho, if the guys get ill at work and they sneeze or cough in my general direction I tend to feel a bit weak straight away next day, but nothing a couple of Vitamin C and D pills and a couple of Ibuprofen can't handle.

chris_bass

ricky1980 wrote:

I know i have less sick days since i have start cycling to work. reason being, i am not in the germ infested environment called "underground" on a daily basis. I used to remember i will catch cold during spring and autumn time at regular intervals and sometimes a couple of bad ones in succession.

Since being on the road, I hardly get ill due to the fact that I am not in close contact with ill people. Tho, if the guys get ill at work and they sneeze or cough in my general direction I tend to feel a bit weak straight away next day, but nothing a couple of Vitamin C and D pills and a couple of Ibuprofen can't handle.

I think that works to a point, but travelling on public transport is good for building up your immue system too!

4 years before I started cycling to work I didnt phone in sick once, 4 years since I still havent, I guess i'm just lucky!!

fatsmoker

Bar Shaker wrote:

The smoking one would be interesting. I never got colds when I smoked. Now I get loads.

I rarely caught colds as a smoker - all the fresh air from being outiside in the cold. Or the smoke kills the germs.

deadhead1971

fatsmoker wrote:

Bar Shaker wrote:

The smoking one would be interesting. I never got colds when I smoked. Now I get loads.

I rarely caught colds as a smoker - all the fresh air from being outiside in the cold. Or the smoke kills the germs.

The smokers I know get colds and it takes them ages to shift them. They'll linger on for weeks, wheezing and coughing up lung jellies.

too slow to go

Frank Wilson wrote:

The company I work for adopt a different system for cutting out sick days..........

They don't pay you, works very well.

If only I'd chosen to work in the public sector I could have loads of sick days to go out on my bike.

Same here and any more than 3 absences from work results in a disciplinary action...

I have had 1 day off sick in the past 4 years and still got my knuckles wrapped for it, its a very effective system

Fursty Ferret

I work in the public sector and haven't taken a sick day in 10 years. I also take less holidays than nearly all my mates in the private sector.

chris_bass

Fursty Ferret wrote:

I work in the public sector and haven't taken a sick day in 10 years. I also take less holidays than nearly all my mates in the private sector.

yeah but we pay your wages!!! (just kidding!)

RiderUk

Frank Wilson wrote:

The company I work for adopt a different system for cutting out sick days..........

They don't pay you, works very well.

If only I'd chosen to work in the public sector I could have loads of sick days to go out on my bike.

The public sector covers many disciplines, who were you aiming your comment at?
Just interested....


raymondo60

I gave up the 'pleasure' of alcohol last January (2012) and honestly have not been ill in any way since then. I used to suffer regular colds/throat infections etc. It's a personal thing - we're all different of course - to me it suggests that alcohol was affecting my immune system in some way, but scientifcally I know or can prove nothing. I would have been classed as a 'heavy' drinker - I drank every day - but now feel really well, and am 10 kilos lighter.

dennisn

There's always the possibility that you'll start riding more than you can recover from. Then you'll really be off work sick.

too slow to go

Raymondo60 wrote:

I gave up the 'pleasure' of alcohol last January (2012) and honestly have not been ill in any way since then. I used to suffer regular colds/throat infections etc.

kinda similar, i have done a fair amount of weightlifting in the past 15 years on and off and every time i start back after a few months rest i get cold like symptoms on the second week of training.. its a long running joke that i`m allergic to exercise.

lotus49

cougie wrote:

I'm sure fitter people do have less days ill.

My company seems to reward smokers with fag breaks and non smokers with nothing.

They reward them by giving them the opportunity to commit suicide slowly? I'm not sure that's much of a reward.

I'll pass thanks.

iPete

Fell off my bike last week and fell ill this week, go figure

dennisn

iPete wrote:

Fell off my bike last week and fell ill this week, go figure

So much for the health aspects of exercise.