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Cuckoo user study: Workday recovery is essential for smooth, sustainable work

In knowledge work, strain does not come only from having too much to do. More often, it builds up in quieter ways: long stretches of screen time, constant interruptions, back-to-back tasks, and too few moments to pause and reset.

That is why workplace wellbeing should not be seen only as something that happens outside working hours. Recovery is not just about evenings, weekends, or holidays. A big part of it is shaped by how the workday itself unfolds.

In Cuckoo’s 2026 user survey, we wanted to understand what regular microbreaks actually look like in everyday working life. We received 1,321 responses, and one thing stood out clearly: the biggest impact is felt during the workday itself, right where strain tends to build.

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Energy and focus reveal a lot about the quality of the workday

Some of the strongest results in the survey were linked to energy and concentration. 79% of respondents said their energy levels had improved during the workday, and 70% said their ability to concentrate had improved. That matters, especially for HR teams and managers thinking about how to support people in demanding knowledge work.

“In many organizations, the challenge right now is not just physical inactivity. More importantly, it is cognitive load: fragmented work, scattered attention and the feeling that the workday drains more than it restores,” says Anni Havas, Work Ability Specialist at Cuckoo.

The findings suggest that microbreaks do more than simply get people moving. They can also help restore attention and mental energy. When the day includes small but regular pauses, the strain does not build in the same way. In practice, that can mean steadier energy, less afternoon fatigue, and a better ability to move from one task to the next.

Recovery starts during the workday, not only after it

The results were also strong when it came to recovery. 66% of respondents said Cuckoo had improved their recovery during the workday. To us, that is one of the most important findings in the whole survey.

Recovery is still often talked about as something that happens after work. But in reality, a lot of strain management happens during the day itself. When strain does not keep building throughout the day, work feels more manageable.

That is what makes this especially interesting. This is not only about standing up from your desk or doing a quick movement. It is about creating small restorative moments throughout the day that help people keep going without feeling depleted.

Regular breaks show up in the outcomes employers care about

The survey also made one thing very clear: regular use matters. The more actively people used Cuckoo, the stronger the reported benefits were across nearly all measured areas. Among those using Cuckoo several times a day, energy, concentration, recovery, and strain management were all clearly stronger than among those who did not use it actively.

“This is an important message for employers as well. The value of a wellbeing solution does not come simply from purchasing it. The value comes from making it part of everyday work. That is why onboarding, communication and supporting active use are not side issues. They are at the core of impact,” Havas says.

Movement is still an important part of the picture, and it should not be overlooked. 82% of respondents said they move more during the workday, and 51% reported fewer neck, shoulder, or back issues. But from an employer’s perspective, the most interesting takeaway may not be movement alone. What matters just as much is that the impact shows up in daily working life: more energy, better focus, better recovery, and a feeling that the day is simply less draining.

The open-ended responses supported this strongly. Users described the benefits in very practical terms: remembering to take breaks, getting up from the desk more often, having a small reset moment during the day, and feeling more alert overall.

Better workdays are built from small moments

“Organizations should take workday recovery more seriously. Concentration, energy and strain management are not just individual traits. They are also shaped by how the workday itself is designed,” Havas reminds us.

If we want to support employee wellbeing and help people work more sustainably, we should ask a simple question more often: does the workday include enough small restorative moments?

Based on Cuckoo’s user survey, those moments matter more than we often realize.

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