It has been six months since we started our VERY FIRST COMPANY WIDE FITNESS journey and it has been a huge success. Currently one-third of the company is participating in the movement challenges, the weight loss challenge or both. Together we have walked over 20,000 miles, that is over seven times across the USA. Some participants have increased their daily steps by over 100%. And to date we have lost a total of 255.4 pounds.
For April, we challenged our members depending on their current fitness level. For those that already had good habits to Kick-It Up a Notch and get 8,000 steps for a minimum of 25 days throughout the month. There were 21 participants with eight members meeting the goal. And for those still at the earlier stages of fitness to Just Move and get 5,000 steps a day for at least 25 days of the month. There were 22 participants in this group with five members meeting the goal. The winners were Tracy Loar for Kick-it Up a Notch and Nicole Housinger for Just Move.
April also included a 30-day Crunch Challenge. We started with 20 crunches on day one, building to 150 crunches on day 30.
In May, we skipped a movement challenge; however, we continued with muscle building of our arms. A 21-Day Arm Sculpting Challenge consisted of bicep curls, upright rows, triceps kickback, shoulder-press and bent-over reverse fly; starting at eight reps times three and finishing with fifteen reps times three for each.
For June, we are utilizing the MoveSpring Team challenge. Participants put together teams of four, came up with a team name and started stepping. Whichever team has the most steps at months end will win gift cards for the entire team. As you can see participants were creative in the team names, here is the current leaderboard:
- Chicks with Kicks
- Resumes, On-Boarding & Remote Support
- Mission Slimpossible
- Caboose Cutters
- Dream Team
- AbstractorITs
- Sole Steppers
- Step-Sisters
- Nacho Average Squad
- Data Queens
- One Step At A Time
- Walking the Walk
Throughout this journey we are providing healthy habit information. For example, drinking water and staying hydrated is important for many reasons. To help with this, all participants received a Registry Partners water bottle. Another key point of information that was shared this past quarter was SITTING IS THE NEW SMOKING, and STANDING IS A GOOD HABIT. Our positions require us to be at computer desks to work, everyone was challenged to do the following:
- Stand for at least two minutes every hour you are sitting at your desk
- Look for ways to stand longer while working, maybe try standing during a meeting or moving your laptop to a higher counter to do some work.
- Periodically roll your shoulders back and sit up straight (stop slumping over your keyboard).
- Periodically place one foot on a footrest (a pile of books will work) and alternate throughout the day; doing this will help your lower back and hips.
We look forward to new participants as all employees are eligible to participate and can join at any time.
We are incredibly proud of all participants and excited to see where our journey goes in the next quarter.