The statistics are dismal: According to recent estimates by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 75 percent of U.S. adults will be overweight by 2015. Coupled with the fact that Americans are working increasingly longer hours, maintaining a healthy lifestyle seems like an uphill battle. However, to combat this trend, several companies are developing new ways to promote employee fitness and weight-loss.

One particular approach, incorporating exercise equipment into the office, is especially innovative. From replacing traditional cubicles with treadmill desks to utilizing fitness balls as chairs, some companies are taking extreme measures to promote employee fitness. And, according to various health experts, these efforts may be paying off.

Treadmill Desks

The brainchild of Dr. James Levine, an obesity researcher at the Mayo Clinic, treadmill desks were developed to help sedentary workers burn calories at the office. A world-renowned expert in non-exercise activity thermogenesis, or "NEAT," Levine studies how people reap fitness benefits from common activities like walking, standing, and even fidgeting. Taking this research one step further, he set out to create the "office of the future," complete with fitness equipment.

Operating at a 1 mile-per-hour-pace, treadmill desks allow workers to perform all of their requisite tasks - chatting on the phone, checking e-mail, writing memos - while burning 100 calories an hour. And, considering most employees work nine-hour days, that translates to a whopping 900 calories! What's more, since walkers travel so slowly, they don't even break into a sweat. Another bonus? Employees don't experience the back pain that often results from slouching at their desks for hours on end.

In fact, Levine says, treadmill users actually enjoy the change of pace (pun intended!). "It's great fun, and it creates a whole positivity," he says. "Partly because it's so new, but partly because it's nice to be moving." However, he's also quick to assert that companies shouldn't force their employees to work while walking. "The idea is to give people a choice [to burn extra calories at work] because they've never had it before."

Exercise Balls

Another fitness trend that's slowly gaining momentum is replacing traditional chairs with exercise balls. Health experts point to the plethora of benefits that fitness balls offer, including strengthening abdominal muscles, improving circulation, and easing back pain. Also, these balls are significantly less expensive than ergonomic chairs, retailing for as low as $15.

Certified marathon coach and fitness guru Wendy Baumgardner particularly extols the usage of exercise balls in the workplace. "The physical therapists, kinesiotherapists and personal trainers I know have all congratulated me on using the ball as a chair, and [they] say that they do so themselves," Bumgardner says. "Perhaps it's a fad, but it's one with many converts [in the] exercise and therapy [fields]."

Still, she warns those who want to jump on the exercise-ball bandwagon to start off slowly. "You should begin with a half-hour or less and build up your time each day to see how you tolerate it," she says. Most likely, as you become more comfortable with the ball, you'll be able to sit on it permanently.

Up for Discussion

So, what do you think about this workplace trend? If you were given the option to work at a treadmill desk or utilize a fitness ball, would you take it? What are some other ways your company is promoting employee fitness? Please share your stories!