The city’s municipal administration in the west Japan city started test-running exercise balls as chairs in the office of mayor and deputy mayors, and other employees earlier this month. This is mainly because of the belief that they are efficient in preventing and relieving discomfort in the lower back and shoulder stiffness.
Presently, only those with interest in balls are making use of them in place of chairs. The city’s government is considering the balls’ introduction in full should they prove successful during testing, starting from January 2022.
The head of the general affairs at the city’s administration thought of the idea because many employees have lower back pain and other problems. The flexible position of the ball strengthens the core and provides comfort to alleviate back pain symptoms.
A few examples of private businesses that have launched exercise balls worked as a reference at a joint meeting about public health improvement with the Ministry of Health. In Hokkaido, the Kushiro Municipal Government has also purchased four balls and has been testing them since the beginning of June this year. Exercise balls, including those purchased privately, are being used in over 10 Kushiro government offices.
The Tanabe Government Office is testing such balls with dimensions of 65 centimeters or 75 centimeters in 12 locations. It appears that there is positive feedback all around. However, the balls aren’t utilized in divisions that have public counters. If an in-house committee decides that the balls work, the city’s government will permit their use in every department. Users purchase the balls for themselves, and the city stated this would not change when their introduction in full-scale begins.
Tanabe Mayor Mitsutoshi Manago attended a news event in November. 24 while sitting upon the exercise ball. Manago claims he’s had issues with shoulder stiffness, stated: “At first, it was a little bit tough to sit on this for a long time, but it was OK after I got used to it. Though I haven’t noticed the effect yet, I feel my posture has improved.”
Source: Mainichi.jp
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