Stepping forward with new walking challenge

Paths for All launches its 2020 Step Count Challenge on Monday, May 4, and wants groups of five to get together as a virtual team to encourage and support each other to move more.

Activities such as gardening, yoga, dancing, chores and workouts can all be tracked on the Step Count Challenge website as can once-a-day outdoor sessions like walking, running and cycling.

Colleagues can sync their activity trackers to the platform and will be motivated throughout the four weeks by Paths for All, who will provide blog posts, tips and a calendar of daily challenges.

The challenge is free to enter, open to homeworkers, furloughed staff and key workers, and all participants stand the chance to win a weekly prize draw worth hundreds of pounds.

Ian Findlay CBE, Chief Officer at Paths for All, said: “It really is more important than ever to look after our health and wellbeing in any way we can.

“Social distancing is tough, but staying home doesn’t have to mean staying still and being apart doesn’t mean we can’t keep connected with each other.

“Our Step Count Challenge has been running twice a year for a long time and has always been a fun way for work colleagues to motivate each other to walk more. But, in these exceptional times, we’re shifting the focus from high step counts to motivating everyone to move more either at home or during outdoor exercise once a day.

“In the past few weeks, more of us have been keeping in touch with friends and colleagues on things like WhatsApp, Zoom, Teams or even just texts and phone calls. So, although we are not face-to-face with challenge teammates, there’s lots of ways to connect with each other and keep each other going.

“We think this is a great opportunity for workplaces to keep moving, stay motivated, keep connected and help each other be happier and healthier.”

To register your team for free, visit here.