Press Article (continued)
Yoga Takes the Edge Off Stressful Duties
Achieving inner peace can be tough when your job is to help people find work during an economic slow down. Why, then, do employees at Palm Beach County's Workplace Development Board seem so ... serene?
In a word, yoga.
Twice a week, a third-floor conference room at the agency's Port Center headquarters turns into a yoga classroom. Instructor Jonathan Panks leads 12 employees through stretching and breathing exercise from 12:30 to 1:30p.m., then wishes them well as they return to their desks and the sometimes-stressful task of putting people to work.
Chrystal Mathews, community relations manager, organized the classes in February after searching for ways to lose weight and reduce on-the-job stress. She and co-workers didn't know much about yoga — "we thought you just went in a room and hummed" — but they decided to try it after discounting aerobics and other forms of exercise that cause heavy sweating.
Mathews then pitched her idea to boss Ken Montgomery, who agreed to cover the costs, at $75 a session.
"It's good for them," said Montgomery, who uses his lunch breaks to work out at the gym. "They're very happy after they go through the class."
"Mathews, who now calls herself a "yoga guru", has lost nearly 10 pounds and is less stressed at work. She's even parlayed the classes into a marketing tool: Community members are welcome."
"With shifts in the labor market, it's difficult sometimes to really focus," Mathews said. "This is a way to create balance."