With the new fiscal year comes a new batch of Wellness Initiatives. To kick start our new year of Wellness, we will be starting a fitness challenge called “Step it Up”. This is an initiative developed by the newly formed Wellness Committee to support an attainable and beneficial fitness goal of increasing your overall daily steps. Because many of our roles require extended periods of sitting, setting a goal to increase your daily steps will not only make you feel better but it will improve your overall health. The USC Wellness Committee would like to help you get started and stay motivated.
If you already have a fitness tracker (i.e. a fitbit or a pedometer app on your phone), you have everything you need to get started. If you would like to use a pedometer to aid you in tracking your steps, we are here to help. We will purchase you a pedometer and you will only be required to pay $5-$10 to cover part of the cost. We will provide more details once we know how many people are interested.
If that wasn’t enough, the Wellness Committee it prepared to assist you further in achieving your fitness goals. First, we will be reviving the USC Walking Group in May which will be sure to get your pedometers moving (more details to come regarding the kick off in the next couple of weeks). Also, we will be forming a Couch to 5K running group who will be working up to running the Terry Fox 5k in September that will start in July. Needless to say, there will be many opportunities to get involved in some exciting fitness initiatives in the coming months. That being said, if you would like to track your steps on your own, you are fine to do it solo as well.
Now for the challenge:
Download this tracking sheet so that you can record your steps daily. After your first week of tracking your steps, you will add up your weekly total. Your goal will be to add 500 steps to this each week with a goal of 10,000 steps per day by the end of the challenge. For every week that you track your steps, you will be eligible for a ballot to enter the Step it Up Draw to win your very own FITBIT. This Cadillac of fitness trackers will be a great compliment to your new fitness regime or could be a great gift to the fitness enthusiast in your life. You can pick any make, model or colour of your choosing if you win the big prize https://www.fitbit.com/ca/store?gclid=CPHWgt3jzsUCFQwvaQod-BIA4A
All you have to do is try! The draw for the FITBIT will be held at the end of week 10 in August. All you have to do is track your steps on a weekly basis and you have the opportunity to enter 10 ballots to win the big prize. The attached log will not only assist you in tracking your steps but it gives you the formula to track other fitness activities as well so take a look.
Important Dates:
- Deadline to sign up for the Step it Up Challenge: Friday, May 22nd
(let us know if you want a pedometer) - Challenge Start Date: June 1st (start tracking your steps)
- Last day to track your steps: August 9th
- Wrap up Celebration and Draw: August 14th