ASICS and Brian Cox want you to leave your desk and move more for your mental health

As more businesses pull staff back into the office, ASICS has partnered with actor Brian Cox to motivate workers to leave their desks and move more for their mental health.

The campaign was inspired by a new global study and ASICS Desk Break experiment with Dr Brendon Stubbs, that shows that our mental state starts to decline after only two hours of continuous desk-based working. 

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The campaign aims to deliver a public service announcement (PSA) to rally office workers against the silent threat to our mental health—the desk we work at every day. The PSA calls on employees to put their mental health first by taking a Desk Break, a short movement break, during the working day. 

The 75-second film features Brian Cox, the world's scariest boss, rallying employees to take a #deskbreak by stating facts on why the desk we work at every day is a threat to our mental health.

“I’ve played some pretty intimidating characters in my time but who would have thought a desk could be scarier? It’s great to see ASICS try and do something about this and encourage people to support their mental health through exercise. As I say in the film, run, jump, roller skate. I don’t care. Just move for your mind,” said actor Brian Cox.

The 360 integrated campaign by Golin, which rolls out across OOH, influencer, earned and social, follows ASICS’ global State of Mind study, involving 26,000 participants. The study revealed a strong connection between sedentary behaviour and mental wellbeing with state of mind scores declining the longer individuals remain inactive.

Further research into desk-based working found that after just two hours of continuous desk work state of mind scores begin to drop and stress levels rise.

ASICS also undertook the desk break experiment, overseen by Dr Brendon Stubbs from King’s College London, which found that when office workers added just 15 minutes of movement into their working day, their mental state improved by 22.5%.

The experiment showed that taking a daily desk break for just one-week lowered stress levels by 14.7%, boosted productivity by 33.2% and improved focus by 28.6%. Participants reported feeling 33.3% more relaxed and 28.6% more calm and resilient. 79.2% of participants said they would be more loyal to their employers if offered regular movement breaks.  

To support workers getting away from their desks, ASICS has created the desk break clause. The first employment contract clause for movement gives workers the legal right to 15-minute movement breaks in their day beyond standard breaks.

ASICS has added it to its employee contracts in the UK and shared it for other employers to use, calling on workers to ask their bosses and HR teams to support the change.

The campaign includes tactical OOH in office spaces directing workers to engage their bosses on including the #deskbreak clause in their own company policy while HR and workplace influencers encourage their followers to take a #deskbreak.

In commemoration of the upcoming World Mental Health Day on 10 October 2024, ASICS aims to inspire office workers around the world to take a regular #deskbreak and move for 15 minutes to feel the mental benefits. ASICS is asking people to post an image of their empty desk with #deskbreak. Every image shared will raise funds for mental health charities around the world.  

“In the lead-up to World Mental Health Day, we wanted to deliver a strong message that will get people moving for their minds. The hours we spend at our desks are having a real and scary impact on our minds. And it needs to change,” said Gary Raucher, EVP of ASICS EMEA.

“We already know that just 15 minutes and nine seconds of exercise can result in a meaningful improvement in people’s state of mind scores. But what surprised us was just how much it improved cognitive function and reduced stress levels for all our participants across the world. It even changed people’s perceptions of their workplace for the better,” said Dr Brendon Stubbs, a leading researcher in exercise and mental health from King’s College London.

“At ASICS we champion the power of movement, not just on the body, but also on the mind. It’s why we’re called ASICS – an acronym for the Latin ‘Anima Sana in Corpore Sano’ or ‘Sound Mind in a Sound Body’. We’re proud to be turning that purpose into action and encouraging not only our employees but the rest of the world to move their minds,” Raucher added.

“We loved the idea of ASICS stepping out of the exercise world to take on office culture in ways you wouldn’t expect from a sports brand. From putting the world’s scariest boss in shorts to using employment contract law to help people create change. A balance of entertainment and action to get workers away from their desk,” said Al Wood, chief creative officer, Golin.

This isn't ASICS' first campaign advocating for mental health.

In 2022, the ASICS FrontRunner running community launched a "before and after" transformation campaign to challenge society’s focus on working out for beauty transformations. Done in conjunction with World Mental Health Day, the campaign highlights why the most important transformation to consider isn’t physical. This was in response to society's obsession with the perfect body which can be damaging to mental health.

The campaign is backed by A&E doctor and TV personality Dr Alex George, creator and philanthropist Jada Sezer, and TV host and professional dancer Motsi Mabuse. Photographer Sophie Harris-Taylor also shot a series of images to show each celebrity before and after 15 minutes and nine seconds of working out and the period of time proven to uplift our mental states.

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