The Worker as
Athlete
What we can learn from Sports
„He who has health has hope
and he who has hope has everything“
Arab proverb
What is the use of health, or of life, if not to do
some work therewith? (Thomas Carlyle, 1836)
Using an analogy to sports gives a perspective
for approaching health and safety aspects.
Ideas about this:
Goal setting and reaching these goals are the preconditions for
satisfaction, self-actualization and fulfillment.
On the way to reach the aims one needs capacity of
performance, power of resistance and fitness.
To be powerful one has to follow the principles of performance
The structure of performance is useful for sports and for work
Striving for performance is selfexploration.
Motivation to performance has two components:
1.) hope on success
2.) fear about failure
Human performance
External performance Internal performance
Shaping factors Shaping factors
Organizational Technical Capacity of Readiness of
preconditions preconditions performance performance
Organizational Situation Physiological Physiologocal
structure factors capacity fitness
Organizational Difficulty Psychological Psychological
dynamics of task capacity willingness
Organizational Technical
preconditions preconditions
Organizational Organizational
dynamics Difficulty of task Situation factors
structure
Physiological Psychological Physiological Psychological
capacity capacity fitness willingness
Capacity of Readiness of
performance performance
Performance structure parameters
Organizational structure Difficulty of task
Hierarchies Technical (e.g.machine)
Forms of payment designing
Task contents
Opportunity for continued
education Task design
Technical realization
E.t.c.
Organizational dynamics Situation factors
Working time Work layout
Engineering Anthropometric layout
Structure of working Quality of environment
Job and task instruction
Physiological fitness Physiological capacity
Disposition Constitution
Circardian rhythm Sex
Sickness Age
Emotional stato
Condition Psychological capacity
Practice Mental aptitude
Training Level of education
Training
To become successful means to pursue an
aim consequently:
By defining and making more precise the structure of the goal
By going step by step
By being patient
By controlling the effectiveness of the results during the different
steps
By being flexible and able to modify or revise the existing or used
methods if necessary
By being always motivated
If problems arising treat them!!
Success needs:
Preparedness for learning and readiness for
performance
Willingness to work and willingness to be successful
Ambition
Ability to be disciplined and persistent
Flexibility and being full of ideas
Ability of being creative
Ability to observe the others and to learn from them
Necessity to treat complicated realities in a society
Components of perfomance in Sports
Technics in sports
coordinative capability skills of movement
Tactical-cognitive
Mental capability
capability
Performance
in
sports
Frame conditions External conditions
(talent,health,constitution) (environment,job,family,trainers)
Condition (shape)
(power,speed,endurance,agility)
Fit for work
Blue collar workers
Refers to workers doing physical or industrial labor
The load of work can cause adaptations like sporting stresses,
but it can also cause muscle imbalances
Physical and mental strain can cause burn out
White collar workers
Refers to workers who sit at desks most of the day
Permanent sitting can decay physically and cause muscle
imbalances
Mental strain can cause burn out
There are more similarities than differences between the two.
Everyone needs to work on:
Cardiovascular endurance to improve the functioning of the heart,
lungs and circulation
Muscular strength to withstand daily stresses, to compensate
dysbalances and to prevent injuries
Degree of Effectiveness of Training
100% Absolute Adaptation in
maximum reserve
capacity of Function in
function reserve
Adaptation Serial
induced by
in reserve stimulus training
60% by training
Current Naturel Naturel
maximum function in Occasional function
capacity of reserve peaks of in reserve
function loads
30%
Zone of Loads Zone of
indifference during indifference
daily life
Untrained ! Trained !
The stress (load) and strain model and human
performance
Causative stress generates an inter-individual or intra-individual
strain.
The effects and consequences are dependent on properties,
capabilities, skills and regulation of actions, individual
characteristics of the organ systems and similar factors.
Within the performance structure, the performance of the
biopsychosocial unit – human being – plays an important role, and
this element, human being, is characterized by external and internal
factors, which in turn are closely related to stress compatibility and
thus to strain.
Scientific based methods of training optimize and ensure
performance and are tools to control stress and strain with the aim of
preventing bionegative effects and facilitating and promoting
biopositive responses.
From the state of homeostasis to the state of heterostasis and
overcompensation to an higher performance level by serial
stimulus to the human body
Fatigue of the organism + impairment of function
(strain, load)
Signals for reestablishment of energy potentials
Regeneration phase + restoration of the function capacity
Regeneration + overcompensation
(precaution for expected future
stress = potential to combat
future disturbances of the
homeostatic equilibrium)
without above-threshold stimulus with above-threshold stimulus
(load to low) (load high enough)
performance drop performance increase
The working system of the human
body
Bones are the framework of the body. The skeleton provides internal
structure and in some body parts, such as the skull, external armor
Muscles control all movement in the human body
Connective tissue of various types, including tendons and ligaments,
connects muscles to bones and tethers and cushions organs and
various body parts
The brain and nervous system initiate and guide all the body‘s
activities
The digestive system changes food into energy
The heart, blood vessels and lungs provide oxygen and nutrients to
the muscle and other cells tosustain them so the can perform their
functions
The goals of physical training
Strengthen the physical resources
Endurance, strength, flexability, ability to avoid impaired
coordination, ability to relax, improvement of innervation,
expansion of energy capacity
Reducing the risk factors
High blood pressure, high blood glucose value,
disturbances of fat metabolism, muscle imbalance,
overweight, exertion of influencing the metabolism system,
the cardiovascular system and the nervous system
Overcome aches and pains
Backache, rheumatic pains, headache, insomnia, stress
perception, psychosomatic problems
The Elements of Physiological Fitness
Strength
Is the ability of a muscle to produce force (power is strength
+ speed)
Muscular endurance
Is the ability of amuscle to produce force repeatedly over a
period of time
Cardiovascular endurance
Is the capacity of the respiratory system and the circulatory
system to supply oxygen and nutrients to the muscle cells
so an activity can continue for along period of time
Flexibility
Refers to the range of motion possible in the joints. This is
controlled by muscles, tendons and ligaments
The importance of the muscular system:
muscles control all movement in the
human body
The mass of muscles is 35%-50% of the
body‘s weight
It causes 40%-90% of the energy balance
It carries out the fat metabolism
It optimizes the insulin balance
It activates the immune system
It regulates the hormonogenesis
It stimulates the metabolism of the brain
Important effects of endurance
training
Lowering blood fat caused by
atherosclerosis
Raising the angioprotecting blood fat
Improving the insulin sensivity
Strengthening the immune system
Diminishing the vegetative nervous
system
Important effects of power and
agility
Posture prophylaxis in sense of
backbone protection
Arthrosis prevention
Osteoporosis prophylaxis
Slip and fall prophylaxis
Activating the central nervous system,
brighten up the mood
Important effects of co-ordination
training
Training of reflex pattern
Optimization of the perception system
(optical,acoustic,vestibular,tactil,kinesthetic)
Mental regulation
Speed of reaction in dayly life (accident
prophylaxis)
Psychological willingness and motivation are
preconditions for human performance
Motivation is a general term treating needs, goals
and motivated behavior.
It is an individual attribute, and is a function of the
interplay between each worker‘s needs and the
incentives provided by the job and all other aspects
of his life.
Other aspects are social and non-job factors.
Motivation, in a sense, covers all psychological
aspects ( arousal, attention, monotony, fatigue )
The two parts of motivation are:
Intrinsic motivation
are internal rewards that a person feels when performing a
job and there is a direct connection between work and
rewards.
An employee in this situation is self-motivated
Extrensic motivation
are external rewards that occur apart from the nature of
work, providing no direct satisfaction at the time the work is
performed.
Examples are retirement plans, health insurance, vacations.
Detailed aspects of psychological
willingness and motivation:
Intrinsic motivation Extrensic motivation
Interest Opportunity for promotion
Work conditions
Inclination
Working climate
Social integration
Level of wage
Mood
Fear of dismissal
Level of pretention
Room for disposition
Prestress Attitudes based on
influence of family and other
outside persons or agencies
A model of motivation
Environment Opportunity
Needs and
Tension Effort Performance
drives
Goals and
Ability
incentives
Need satisfaction Rewards
Some findings:
Employees are more motivated by what they are
currently seeking than by receiving more of what
they already have
A fully satisfied need will not be a strong motivator
The most effective way to motivate workers is by
focusing on higher-order needs.
Job enrichment focuses on satisfying higher-order
needs. It encourages self-actualization and intrinsic
motivation
Because motivation is increased by job enrichment,
performance should improve
Employees are the final judges of what enriches their
jobs
The performance-satisfaction-effort loop
Performance Rewards Perception of Satisfaction or
equity in dissatisfaction
Economic
rewards
Sociological
Psychological Fair
Unfair
Greater or Greater or lesser
lesser effort commitment
Stress and response
The word stress is often considered to mean nervous tension, or
„distress“. Stress can be a positive as well a negative force.
Alarm: when the body is stressed, it puts ist defense
mechanism into gear- the „flight or fight“ syndrome of an
increased pulse rate, elevated blood sugar, redistribution of
blood flow
Adaptation: As the stress continues, many of the alarm stage
are reversed and the body begins to build up its reserve, makes
repairs and increase its capacity to perform
Exhaustion: If the stress continues too long, the body begins to
break down. According to type, intensity and duration of stress,
this can result in either exhaustion, injury or even death.
Stress and response we can influence it
1.Alarm: When 2.Adaptation: As Exhaustion: After
stress is first stress ( if not to continued
encoutered, severe ) exposure to
body‘s resistance continues, stress. Adaptation
drops at first then resistance rises energy is
rebounds above normal exhausted an
resistance drops
A model of causes, types and
consequences of stress
Causes Types Consequences
Positive Constructive
stress consequences
Job-related
stressors •Short term
Individual •Long term
Nonwork stressors Negative Destructive
stress consequences
•Short term
•Long term
Accentuate the positive
Words are pictures.
Use for your motivation always words
with a positive meaning.
This creates positive signals and
influences your behaviour in a positive
direction!
Note:
An objectively identical stress (load) will not always cause the same strain
in an individual.
Due to action regulation and the individual characteristic properties and
capabilities, differences in strain may occur.
Seemingly identical stress can cause differing strain due to the
superposition of partial stress, combinations of partial stress can lead to
compensatory differences (e.g.physiological stress can compensate
psychological stress) or accumulation effects.
Partial stress is determined by stress intensity and duration and can
therefore appear in differing dimensions and have varying effects.
For assessment of the overall stress, the composition of the partial stress
according to type, intensity and course with regard to time is decisive.
Partial stress can occur simultaneously and successively.
A case study:
Using the findings of sport sciences for the
training of bakers
The program:
One starts with light weights and high repetitions, progresses to medium
weights with medium repetitions, then to heavy weights with few repetitions.
Then one takes one or two weeks rest (activ) before starting the cycle again.
Example for bakers:
1.) Muscular endurance 6-8 weeks; 2 times/week; 1h/session; medium load
2.) Muscular endurance 3-4 weeks; 2 times/week; 1h/session; high load
3.) Muscular endurance 4-5 weeks; 1 times/week; 1.5 h/session; medium load
4.) Muscular endurance 6-8 weeks; 1 times/week; 1.5 h/session; high load
5.) Strength and power 2-3 weeks; 1 times/week; 1.5 h/session; heavy load
6.) Cardiovascular endurance: during the first 3 month of muscular
endurance training 2 times/week for 40-60 minutes, after this period
2 times/week for 30 minutes ( HF = 60%-70% of max. HF )
Change of Heart Frequency
Change of Blood Pressure
Change of Lactate Concentration
Change of muscular strength and endurance
Days in 12 Month with Lower Back Pain
Days with limited activities because of lower back pain