Workplace gymnastics, which originated in Poland in 1925, spread in the following years to several European countries and was consolidated in Japan, where it was adopted in 1928. In Brazil it was introduced by Japanese businessmen, in Rio de Janeiro, in 1969, but its strong rise began in the 90s. Workplace gymnastics is a type of physical activity offered to employees by companies in the most varied segments and generally practiced in the workplace. It consists of a series of short daily exercises – 10 to 15 minutes –, selected according to the characteristics and needs of each group and each company.

Its adoption prevents occupational diseases that are included in the RSI (Repetitive Strain Injuries) and WMSD (Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders) groups, contributing to the reduction of injuries and consequent absenteeism and improving quality of life. As a result of this practice, improvements in interpersonal relationships and the development of teamwork are also observed; relief from accumulated stress and tension; decreased sedentary lifestyle and fatigue; increased willingness and concentration to carry out daily tasks; and increased productivity. This wide range of benefits has led more and more companies to adopt it.

With the enactment of the so-called quota law, which obliges companies, depending on the number of employees, to maintain 2% to 5% of people with disabilities on their staff, workplace gymnastics groups are now also made up of individuals who demand special care from physical educators responsible for these activities. When faced with the problem, Ricardo Lima Bastos, a graduate in physical education from Unicamp, set out to carry out master's work seeking to provide support so that professionals involved in workplace gymnastics are able to successfully carry out activities with groups in which people with disabilities participate. disabilities, without discriminating against them.

The study shows technically and didactically, through the prescription and way of performing exercises, how this activity should be understood and guided. At the same time, with a view to the feasibility and success of projects aimed at companies, the work is also concerned with contributing to the understanding of how the corporate world works. The dissertation was supervised by professor Gustavo Luis Gutierrez, from the Department of Adapted Physical Activity, at the Faculty of Physical Education (FEF) at Unicamp.

Interest

The author has been interested in the topic since graduation, when he interned at FEF and then in the physiotherapy sector maintained by the Community Health Center (Cecom) at Unicamp, where he worked in its workplace gymnastics program. Previously, he had accumulated corporate experience having worked in the administrative area of ​​companies in various segments, occasions when he even had contact with workplace gymnastics. These circumstances led him to dedicate himself to it after graduating.

In companies, he then came across a problem that he had not faced at University: the presence of disabled people in groups. This fact made him aware that the activities taught needed adjustment. He explains: “In the experiences I had in the job market and in conversations with colleagues in the same area, I realized that teachers were led to improvise solutions that allowed the inclusion of people with disabilities. We were often surprised by the presence of these people because we were not informed about the specificities of the groups we were going to work with.” For him, the participation of people who need specific care during the implementation of the exercises requires classes with new approaches, in order to guarantee an inclusive approach. To do so, the professional needs to know the specificities of each disability.

The increasing number of companies that hire workplace exercise programs in view of their proven benefits and the law of quotas accentuate the heterogeneity of the groups served and the demand for professionals, whose training can be compromised by the absence of specific literature, as Ricardo found. when carrying out your bibliographic survey.

This situation and the observation of the difficulties faced by the professionals involved in this work encouraged him to start looking for solutions. He initially tried to link his master's degree to the application of workplace gymnastics in a company in the Campinas region that already adopted the program. But his attempts were in vain. He attributes the failure not only to logistical difficulties, but also and mainly to the companies' concern about what could happen following the publication of the results, over which they would have no control. Faced with the impossibility of using experimental data, he supported the work on a broad bibliography, focusing on the critical analysis of the available literature. The study characterizes quality of life in the workplace through the lens of inclusion. He understands that disabled people, as members of society, must be guaranteed an increasingly better quality of life.

Ricardo considers that the number of publications involving workplace gymnastics, quality of life, inclusion of disabled people in society is large, which allowed him to base and consolidate his work, even without using data resulting from practical activities. Although extensive, he explains, the bibliography on workplace gymnastics addresses specific aspects such as its application in different shifts, different professions, but does not differentiate wheelchair users, blind people, deaf people, people with Down syndrome, disabilities that are most common among company employees. He then adapted the physical activities described in the literature and developed for people with these main disabilities into workplace gymnastics.

 

Approach

In the dissertation, the author addresses the main problems that visually and hearing impaired people, people with spinal cord injuries and Down syndrome face during their work activities, dealing with the strategies that can be used to face them. He explains, for example, that the intensity of some exercises can bring harm to people with Down syndrome, who have ligament laxity, reduced muscle tone and, as a result, are at greater risk of injury if subjected to greater amplitude movements.

As in workplace gymnastics the commands are predominantly visual, he explains that in the case of blind people, the professional must introduce adapted speech. Another resource is for the instructor to remain nearby to make corrective interventions when necessary.

Even deaf people, who can read lips, require certain care. He agrees that the instructor's command of Libra makes the job easier. In turn, those with spinal cord injuries, wheelchair users, require work to strengthen their arms, but the bedsores they develop require care.

The researcher emphasizes, however, that people with disabilities must be placed in the same context as their co-workers, as today what is sought is to include them in all social activities so as not to discriminate against them. In workplace gymnastics, this is achieved by making them participate in activities as part of the group. It is up to the teacher, then, to plan the activities and prepare to meet this imperative during them.

Ricardo clarifies that the work, by its very nature and scope, does not present solutions, but seeks to draw attention to problems that need to be considered and studied. Until the middle of last year, the time of the last survey in the databases consulted, there was no similar study, which makes it unprecedented in its kind. He clarifies that “the novelty lies in the fact that it is the first work that draws attention to the importance of special care for workplace gymnastics involving physically disabled people and the importance of a differentiated treatment that is inclusive, efficient and can improve the quality of life of these subjects”.

The study also aims to insert the physical education professional in the business context because the insertion of sport in the organizational culture of a company is different from what happens at school, in gyms, in recreational activities. Furthermore, it is up to the physical education teacher to show businesspeople the benefits of these programs and how they should be structured. To this end, this professional needs to be able to carry out workplace gymnastics projects, showing their importance, their effects on improving living and production conditions and their contribution to inclusion processes. But, above all, it is essential that he knows how the corporate world works. This broad knowledge will be essential in the preparation of the project, in the way it should be presented to businesspeople, how its implementation should occur and its positive impact on the business activities themselves.

As the author focused the study preferably on the awareness of physical education teachers, he studies the possibility of transforming the work into a book that can help professionals in the field. By the way, he states: “I personally felt the drama of arriving in a group and suddenly coming across someone who is visually impaired or uses a wheelchair. Perplexed, I asked myself: 'Now, what do I do? How do I include someone I can't see? Am I harming the wheelchair user's spine?'. Even if the professional resolves some things immediately, he needs security and discernment in the preparation, routing and application of projects”.

Publication

Dissertation: “Quality of life for people with disabilities – contributions to a workplace gymnastics approach”
Author Ricardo Lima Bastos
Advisor: Gustavo Luis Gutierrez
Unity: Faculty of Physical Education (FEF)