Diet & Fitness Blog

Comment: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 9:01:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

I was a secretary for 21 years. When my kidneys began to fail due to a medication I was taking for the same amount of time, I kept a quart size themo pitcher of water in my office on my desk. We never do drink enough of that "good stuff"! We underestimate its importance. I have since had a kidney transplant thanks to the benovolence of a stroke victim.

Comment: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 10:34:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

You need to revisit job #4, florist. This position, whether an employee or store owner (which I was both), is EXTREMELY stressful. Stress due to time constraints, holidays are NOT yours, not to mention the health hazards. Back pain from standing, lifting, delivering large arrangements and the chemicals used to dress arrangements/plants are breathed in and handled constantly. Very, very misleading to have this profession listed...

Comment: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 10:14:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

A Choreographer is the best and healthiest job in the world. With all the yelling and screaming I do (in a positive way, of course)instructing, it relieves every little bit of stress you can imagine. Try it, you'll love it.
Cheryl, Burnaby, BC

Comment: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 10:47:00 PM -  springdaisy414 said...

LOL..I work in a "Health Foods Store" which should be one of the lowest stress jobs on the planet right?...all that organic produce, vitamins,supplements,vegetarian foods.actualty...it's just a glorified GROCERY STORE!!!! we have MUCH stress....no sick time, no benefits, work holidays (especially food based holidays ie: Thanksgiving)...the tools to combat stress are there...we just can't AFFORD them...we are geared towards peeople with expendable incomes.....I am the produce manager....I cannot buy MY family organic, unless it is several days old....and then since it IS organic the quality is sub-prime.Organic has NO shelf life....Not everything that glitters is gold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Comment: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 10:51:00 PM -  darleene said...

I'd have to agree that florist is not a good choice here. My mom was a florist for 20 years and developed an allergy to flowers. She was never able to take vacations because of all the prep times for weddings, plus birthdays and holidays -- even my own senior prom -- were out of the question because we were usually working.

Comment: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 10:58:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

I know all about stressful jobs...I have been in the medical field for many years and have worked in many different types of medical offices, each one more stressful then the next. I recently stopped working in this field and refuse to ever, ever go back. I was just hired with an airline as a Flight Attendant which is something I always wanted to do since I was very young. I will be in training starting next week so I will have to get back to you on the stress level of a Flight Attendant. I hope it's everything I ever imagined it would be...

Comment: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 11:15:00 PM -  ChefM said...

I'm a cook for a made to order kitchen(prepared fresh). I'm a single mother of twins. I have a lot of stress! We are trained to cook and perform as fast as possible, time manage our ticket orders(which can be 20 at a time, with more coming in on top), expediters asking for food re-made because of the wrong delivery, it's very hot and I leave at the end of a 12 hour shift with no break covered in oil and food! So, how do I de-stress? I keep reminding myself that it's just a job. It's not hard and I need the income and health insurance, I will get through the day! I try to turn a negative into a positive. On my days off, I am thankful for the day that is mine! Your brain is a powerful tool. Use it in the right manner and everything will be alright. Which reminds me, when I'm stuck in a rut at work, I sing( in my head of course)! I run around for most of my shift and lift heavy items. I use that to stay in shape, as well as getting exercise in before work or on my days off. I love exercise and how it makes me feel, which is my motivator.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 12:00:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

Personalize your space. Add a family picture, some fresh cut flowers or even a plant or two. Hang an inspirational calendar instead of the free one given to you by the bank. If you have enough room put a mini battery operated water fountain on your desk to listen to and watch while you are taking that breathing break. I have all of the above and it really helps me.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 5:21:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

The reality of most of those jobs listed is that they are low paying and thats stressfull enough...I work in a gym and spa enviroment as reception manager I see on a daily basis the stress from the therapists and the gym team dealing with late or rude clients along side the rest of thier daily resposabilities.
KB

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 5:21:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

The reality of most of those jobs listed is that they are low paying and thats stressfull enough...I work in a gym and spa enviroment as reception manager I see on a daily basis the stress from the therapists and the gym team dealing with late or rude clients along side the rest of thier daily resposabilities.
KB

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 8:30:00 AM -  penny said...

I have to agree that job #4 is a very stressful profession! Everyone things it's so nice to be able to work with flowers, and it is, but you are very under appreciated for all the hard work you put into it.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 8:38:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

What about Physical Therapists? Our jobs are about helping people return to normal activity levels and have a functional life. The majority of therapists that I work with are very healthy. We have to be in order to set a good example to our patients and to stay fit enough to do our jobs.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 9:02:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

Why isn't elementary school teacher on the list?
24 germ free, mouth covering, never sneezing children have to boost your immunity. Exposure to so many various illnesses all at once should make us almost super human.
Most of the jobs posted seem to be in the excercise profession. Be brave. List a job that really stretches the whole person.
Maybe if you say it is healthy people won't notice the salary. :)

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 10:29:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

I don't think there is a such thing as a stress free job. I believe if we love our jobs, we deal better with the stress. If we it is just a job the stress is harder to deal with. Low paying jobs are sometimes the most stressful because some people have to work two of them and people tend to look down on you. I would NEVER work in the medical field because of the stress level.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 10:34:00 AM -  CathyM said...

I was a florist for 17 years till last May, I am now a stay home mom.
Being a florist is VERY high stress with holidays, funerals (not like you have prior notice for this one) and weddings(one word "bridezilla"). Florists are also under paid for a job most people can not perform, but don't want to pay the florist to do either. Almost no flower shops can afford to give their employees benifits (ie. health insurance). The only time I have had health insurance was when I got married....and have my husband's insurance. Most the florists I have worked with have had problems with weight. We eat what we can when we can during a busy time, we tend to eat stuff that is easy to eat while working. Usually ends up being not good food. Don't forget the back and leg problems that come from standing all day. I had vericose vains when I was 23 years old from standing. Also the chemicals that come in contact with skin and are inhailed. I think we might want to rethink the florist on this list...not to mention #4.....are these in order?!?!?

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 11:08:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

I am an elementary school teacher and I think of my self as pretty healthy (not so much stress free) but I am on my feet all day long and go home with sore muscles most days. I have taken to wearing ankle weights a few days a week to boost my workouts if I can't get to the gym because of work.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 11:18:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

I'm amazed that people think being a professor is a low-stress job when it can be dangerous to your health. The politics of academia can make national politics look like child play. The administration is constantly demanding more output (getting grants, writing papers, turning out more graduate students,)while refusing to provide resources to accomplish this goal. Senior faculty often feel threatened by both the untenured faculty and the administration. When you "come up" for tenure, you are frequently evaluated by colleagues who are unqualified to evaluate your research or scholarly work and who often have axes they want to implant in the backs of colleagues or higher ups they disagree with.

It's often a 60 hour work week or even more--especially if you teach courses which require written documents or projects. On top of the "research and publication" requirements (which are rarely clearly stated); professors must teach anywhere from 25 to 400 students in each class--each class session may be 4-5 hours of prep time even if you've taught it before. Then, you have to deal with those students (and for an increasing number --with their helicopter parents)who for reasons they've created are having difficulties in your class but expect you to "save" them or give them a break even when it's patently unethical or at a minimum unfair to others in the class.

On top of that, you can spend hours worrying about cheating, the students who were not prepared for your class by high school or previous college courses, and the emotionally disturbed who more and more frequently seem to showing up--or maybe they just never learned classroom manners?

If you can handle all that, then you still have the extensive "service" requirement to your department (committees, special seminars, advising, etc.); your college, the university as a whole, and your community. Ah, yes. if you want tenure, you have to be active in the service area. Low-stress job? I don't think so--nor, I'd guess do many colleagues who are struggling with the physical impacts of their easy job.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 11:23:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

Being a florist is both a high stress and a toxic job. The stress levels at floral holidays, funerals and weddings have been compared to working in an emergency room. The flowers are flown in from South America where the regulations on the use of pesticides, herbicides and fugicides are maore lax tn in the USA. You stand on you feet for hours frequently in wet clothing and shoes. Your the skin on your hands is often broken [cuts, blisters] but you repeatedly put them in algae and bacteria filled flower buckets. Glamerous? Healthy?

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 12:53:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

I saw this exact same list over 10 years ago. I think it is time to up date your information resources. In the present state of modern society, no job is less stress free than any other. We all have to keep up with the latest technology, computer & software upgrades and all the "time saving" devices of the modern world. We are all working longer hours with longer commutes to and from work, along with getting our kids up at the crack of dawn to rush them off school or daycare before we rush off to our busy "8" hour day!

It's like putting a round peg in a square hole - IT JUST DOESN'T WORK!!

We need to revamp our way of thinking and change our old habits and ideas of work. Why is it necessary to still do an 8 hour day just to get a decent liveable wage? (that sounds like an oxymoron) Something is not right here and we need to wake up to it soon or we will bury ourselves in stressness.

I think the only job that is stress free is the one that you do without thinking about it and enjoy. The time passes so quickly when you are doing this "job" that it doesn't seem like work, but a passion. How do we get to Utopia from here? Any suggestions.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 2:24:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

I have to chime in on the Florist listing as well. As I was sitting in the back room of my Flower shop, I was very excited to see Monster.com listing of healthiest jobs. I think when I read "Florist" I laughed out loud thinking to myself all the while that maybe I would see a job on the list that would take the ulcer inducing stress out of my life. Yes, it seems like a wonderful, zen-type job, so close to beautiful flowers - which some days it is. But every other day you are dealing with huge emotional life changes, funerals, weddings, unreasonable time constraints... and like it was mentioned in an earlier blog, weekends and holidays are NEVER yours. This may seem petty to some, but Floral design is a hugely stressful job, and save for the biceps you build from hauling buckets, there are few health aspects to it.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 3:56:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

These are only helpful comments - please don't stress out and take everything so personally - Maybe the author should write about "taking every minor event and turning them into your own personal crisis." Just a thought. Have a good day - I will.

Comment: Thursday, February 28, 2008 7:06:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

What about elementary teachers?? that's strees not only the children but/AND specially the co-workers. Talk about stress!!!!!!!!

Comment: Friday, February 29, 2008 6:45:00 AM -  janief said...

Any job is stressful (certainly being a professor!!!There is also the stress when your research goes badly and you feel you have lost your ability and will be replaced by younger geniuses) and you just have to develop ways to limit the stress. But most stressful is a job you hate. I think there are different kinds of stress and feeling you are wasting your life is worse than being stressed out in a job that fulfills you.

Comment: Saturday, March 01, 2008 10:40:00 AM -  Anonymous said...

Itaught publia school for 31 years and for me it was very healthy. My mind was totally engaged with a variety of meaningful activities.( from motherly things to planning ahead interesting activities for my students. Running the soccer field, training for track events etc kept me fit and motivated. The time off is great and I always got to have holidays with my own kids- NO day care. It was not without stress, but no job is. A busy mind is the key.

Comment: Saturday, March 01, 2008 2:09:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

Yes being a professor is stressful but most of us do it b/c we love it (sure as heck not for the pay). This also probably changes with which dept you are in- as an ecologist I get to go out into the field a lot which really brings down the stress! Also makes a big difference if you are at a top research university or a medium sized university- I am loving the medium sized!

Comment: Sunday, March 02, 2008 12:18:00 PM -  tjmenke said...

I believe ALL jobs have a stress level all their own. I was a clerk in a Municipal Law Office for 5 years and had to have court files where they could be located at the drop of a hat. Screaming attornies can be VERY stressful, I was then a student, single mom with 3 under the age of 5, stressful. From there I became a Respiratory Therapist, which the most rewarding of my occupations, but VERY stressful at times. I now sit for 12 hours (I KNOW, I KNOW), for a MAJOR computer company which is currently sending American jobs to Brazil, Argentina, India and very soon will be goint to China and Vietnam. If this isn't stressful, I don't know what is. MAYBE for a writer who has people comment on their article afterwards. :- )

Everyone have a good work week and take time to hug your family (hey nothing was said about hugs) pet your animals, tell someone what a GREAT job they did and just sit back and try to forget the stress for a few moments. I know it isn't that easy, but it is worth a try

Comment: Monday, March 03, 2008 1:35:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

Hi; Let's face it. Work is work. What looks like fun and games is different when you actually doing it as a job. There is a whole lot more to many of these jobs than the outside obsever would see. The big thing is that there is always stress. It is how you manage it that is the key. I have worked (and currently working) in some of the highest stress occupations. One has to find one's own healthy stress relief and one's healthy balance to life to survive.

Comment: Monday, March 03, 2008 4:06:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

Try being an insurance agent for all lines of insurance with your biggest line being medical malpractice.....

Comment: Thursday, March 06, 2008 9:13:00 PM -  Anonymous said...

Ya know it really comes down to your values and whether you value your workout time and yourself enough to be healthy. I owned an internet support center business and would not have been able to deal with the stress without my morning runs or whenever I could fit them in.