New Study Reveals That a Four-Day Work Week Can Improve Health

Holidays improve physical activity, reduce sedentary behavior, and boost sleep, with benefits lasting up to two weeks. The study supports the health advantages of a four-day workweek.

University of South Australia’s health researchers are “all in” on the idea of a four-day work week and a long weekend, as global trials and new empirical research show that extra time off can be beneficial for one’s health.

By evaluating variations in daily activities prior to, during, and after holidays, the researchers discovered that individuals exhibit more energetic and healthy habits when they are on holiday, even if its just a brief three-day break.

Across the 13-month study period, people generally took an average two to three holidays, each being around 12 days. The most common holiday type was “outdoor recreation” (35 percent), followed by “family/social events” (31 percent), “rest and relaxation” (17 percent), and “non-leisure pursuits” such as caring for others or home renovations (17 percent).

Specifically, it showed that on holiday people:

• engaged in 13 percent more moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) each day (or five min/day more)
• were five percent less sedentary each day (or 29 min/day less)
• slept four percent more each day (or 21 min/day more).

UniSA researcher Dr. Ty Ferguson says that the research indicates that people display healthier behaviors when they are on holiday.

“When people go on holiday, they’re changing their everyday responsibilities because they’re not locked down to their normal schedule,” Dr. Ferguson says.

“In this study, we found that movement patterns changed for the better when on holiday, with increased physical activity and decreased sedentary behavior observed across the board.

“We also found that people gained an extra 21 minutes of sleep each day they were on holiday, which can have a range of positive effects on our physical and mental health. For example, getting enough sleep can help improve our mood, cognitive function, and productivity. It can also help lower our risk of developing a range of health conditions, such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and depression.

“Interestingly, the size of these changes increased in line with the length of the holiday – so the longer the holiday, the better the health benefits.”

The study used data from the Annual Rhythms in Adults’ Lifestyle and Health (ARIA) study where 308 adults (mean age 40.4 years) wore fitness trackers 24 hours a day for 13 months. Minute-by-minute

movement behavior data were aggregated into daily totals to compare movement behaviors pre-holiday, during holiday, and post-holiday.

Support for a Four-Day Work Week

Senior researcher UniSA’s Prof Carol Maher says that the study offers support for the growing movement for a four-day week.

“A shorter working week is being trialed by companies all over the world. Not surprisingly, employees reported less stress, burnout, fatigue, as well as better mental health and improved work-life balance,” Prof Maher says.

“This study provides empirical evidence that people have healthier lifestyle patterns when they have a short break, such as a three-day weekend. This increase in physical activity and sleep is expected to have positive effects on both mental and physical health, contributing to the benefits observed with a four-day workweek.

“Importantly, our study also showed that even after a short holiday, people’s increased sleep remained elevated for two weeks, showing that the health benefits of a three-day break can have lasting effects beyond the holiday itself.

“As the world adapts to a new normal, perhaps it’s time to embrace the long weekend as a way to boost our physical and mental health.”

Reference: “How do 24-h movement behaviours change during and after vacation? A cohort study” by Ty Ferguson, Rachel Curtis, Francois Fraysse, Timothy Olds, Dorothea Dumuid, Wendy Brown, Adrian Esterman and Carol Maher, 1 March 2023, International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.
DOI: 10.1186/s12966-023-01416-2

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