Apparently the latest trend in relieving stress among the city slickers of London is to literally take a swipe at the opposition. Recent press reports say that hard-pressed executives are turning their backs on yoga and massage and getting into the boxing ring to hit the stuffing out of eachother.

Writing for the Guardian's workunlimited section, Judi James says that maybe those heading towards broken noses should stop and think about whether what they're doing is really a matter of life and death: "it is further proof - as if we needed it - that City types are terminally confused about the boundaries between work and real life. This is exactly why stress levels in business are so high. We think we are doing something important every day. We're not. There is very little about an office job that matters in the great scheme of life, the universe, etc."

James says that the best thing for those caught up in this latest trend (particularly the women colleagues of those affected) is to wait for it to all die out and go away.

It could however be argued that releasing stress in this way is better than keeping it all in. A report from University College London says that those employees who appear to be perfect on the outside are actually keeping it all in. The 10-20 percent of the population estimated to be "repressors" are doing themselves no favours by pretending that everything is fine and dandy when it isn't. "These people act like ostriches, sticking their heads in the sand to avoid anything threatening or unpleasant," said behavioural psychologist Dr Lynn Myers. "There is evidence suggesting that the repressive coping style may be linked with adverse physical health, such as impaired immune functioning, increased incidence of cancer, high blood cholesterol, and cardiovascular disease."