Finding a balance between work and working out is one of the great American struggles these days. We have so much going on, it's nearly impossible to fit in activity. So here's a solution I never thought I would see ... the work-while-you-workout exercise station. Really, I guess it was only a matter of time before they developed something like this, but I think it's ridiculous. How can you type and run? Or make a conference call while you're trying to catch your breath? And even if you could, why would you want to? My time on the treadmill is the precious break I get from my computer, which I seem to be on all the time now thanks for facebook. And exercise is supposed to be stress relieving, not stress inducing.

Seriously folks, if you feel like you need to work while you work out, you need a break. The office will survive without you for an hour. Working out is so important but so is taking the time off work to do something for yourself.

What do you think?

Inadequate sleep has been found to contribute to increased stress levels, which effect heart condition. Recently, a study from the University of Florida found that lack of sleep can create job dissatisfaction, especially in women.

Women frequently lose sleep because of stress, and reported a higher level of fatigue, hostility and difficulty concentrating than their male co-workers. One of the possible causes may be the difference in expectation and treatment of female workers -- as they are encouraged to express themselves emotionally, while men are conditioned to restrain their emotional reactions, researchers theorize. Employer demands, such as the rise in task requirement and time spent at work also contributes greatly to stress.

Recent studies on the effects of work stress on women have also shown that it causes coping behaviors such as eating unhealthy food and smoking, both of which contribute greatly to the development of heart disease. Perhaps if women got adequate amounts of sleep, they wouldn't stress as much at work, causing them to participate in unhealthy behaviors which lead to heart problems. For tips on how to develop better sleep patterns, click here.

In a 1949 'Conference on Life and Stress and Heart Disease', health practitioners formally recognized that stress contributes to chronic disease. They issued a definition of stress as: "A force which induces distress or strain upon both the emotional and physical makeup."

However, not all stress is negative in nature-- good stress is called 'eustress'. The difference is basically that eustress taxes the physical and emotional systems in a rewarding way, which one finds satisfying and fulfilling-- and that 'distress', or bad stress, taxes those systems in a negative way due to boredom, under-stimulation and dissatisfaction. Another way to put it is that under eustress, one feels in control and exhilarated, while under distress one feels out of control and insecure or unsafe. It is a chronic experience of unrelenting distress that triggers heart attacks in those with pre-existing heart conditions.

It is possible to master the ability of transforming the experience of bad stress into an experience of good stress. The best prevention for stress-related disease, such as those that effect the heart, is to eliminate as much bad stress in your life as possible-- and with the rest, to change your attitude or perception of those things not in your control.

A recent Canadian study documented higher blood pressure in workers with high job strain and low levels of co-worker support. High job strain is defined as work that is high in mental and emotional demand, with little independence or feeling of authority in decision making.

Researchers followed nearly 7,000 workers for 7.5 years. More men than women had high blood pressure associated with job strain, and those that did not feel encouraged or supported by their bosses or fellow workers were particularly stressed. The authors emphasize that job strain could be lessened if employers loosened up the methods of achieving results, allowing employees to be more independent in choosing how they attained success. In addition, deadline pressure need be lessened and stimulating opportunities for employee growth could counter-balance job stress.

Getting laid off late in life can double the risk of heart attack or stroke, reports researchers at Yale School of Medicine. The report covered a ten year span, during which researchers found that workers over age 50 who lost their jobs were two times more likely to suffer from these cardiovascular incidences than those who continued to work or voluntarily retired. The primary reason cited for this occurrence is actually stress related and not due to the age of the unemployed. It is often harder for people over age 50 to find new employment comparable to their former standing or income because of workplace ageism, say the researchers.

A new Finish study reports that workers who can't relax on weekends away from the daily grind have a higher risk of heart related death. Researchers followed almost 800 workers for 28 years. Those that didn't regularly recover from work related stress on their days off were three times more likely to die of heart disease than those who enjoyed their weekends.

According to the report, an inability to relax during time off work may be symptomatic of atherosclerosis, or arterial plaque build-up that leads to heart attacks and strokes. Over time, an unreleased build-up of stress taxes the cardiovascular, hormonal and immune systems, eventually creating heart problems. To remedy this inability to relax away from work, the report suggests examining the potential reasons why relaxing is difficult-- including unrelenting work stress, relationship issues, or heavy drinking.