Come one, come all, to join as “One Emory” and participate in the Move More Challenge, a program that encourages employees to increase their daily physical activity. The challenge runs from March 23 through May 3 on Healthy Emory Connect.

During these difficult times, it’s more important than ever to ensure that physical activity and movement are a daily part of our lives. Engaging in physical activity and exercise releases endorphins in the brain to help create a positive feeling in the body while reducing feelings of stress.

New for 2020: All participants will work together to unlock five stages along the journey and move toward a goal of 2.4 billion steps. It’s more important than ever for employees to join the program and make every step count so we can meet that goal.

Challenge participants will either create or join a team. You can be a solo team, a team with just a few close colleagues or a full team of 10. Teams are ranked on a leaderboard to add a little fun and friendly competition. 

Plus: Participants’ steps won’t only count for their small team. Steps also will count for their school, hospital or division as Emory business units compete against each other. The business unit with the highest average steps at the end of the challenge will walk away with a trophy.

Now in its fifth year, the Move More Challenge continues to be one of the most popular programs offered by Healthy Emory. Last year nearly 6,500 Emory employees took on the challenge. 

“Employees especially enjoy the flexibility of this program to meet their individual needs,” says wellness specialist Marisa Hutchinson. “People can choose how they want to get their steps and everyone has an opportunity to earn rewards. Participants have a lot of options for devices that are compatible with Healthy Emory Connect as well as the ability to use their smartphone to track their steps through the Virgin Pulse app.”

Sheena Johnson, training specialist at The Emory Clinic, participated in last year’s Move More Challenge because she wanted to add more activity to her daily routine. Her goal was to exercise for 30 minutes each day. Once she started, she found it was easy to track her progress. 

“Using the mobile app and the notifications — along with my competitive coworker — motivated me to keep going,” Johnson says. With the increase in physical activity she noticed a difference in her daily energy level. “I was able to meet and exceed my goal and continued my daily routine after the challenge ended,” she says. 

Johnson is looking forward to this year’s program and encourages others to “keep striving and never give up on your goal.”

Other areas on campus also are ready to lace up their shoes. “We are very excited about the Move More Challenge and are encouraging all our staff to participate,” says Suzanne Onorato, assistant vice president within Campus Life.

Earn rewards

All employees who participate in the Move More Challenge will have an opportunity to win prizes and earn points toward their medical plan incentives.

• Tracking steps each day via a validated device can earn you up to 140 points per day on Healthy Emory Connect and up to 5,880 points during the six-week challenge.
• Bonus points will be awarded for those who meet step thresholds by the end of the challenge: 5,000 bonus points for those who accumulate 250,000 steps or 10,000 bonus points for those who accumulate 460,000 steps.
• Random prize drawings will be held at the end of the challenge for those who accumulate at least 250,000 steps for Virgin Pulse.
• One random “surprise” day will be selected each week during the challenge. Any participant who has at least 6,000 steps on that day will be included in a drawing for grocery store gift cards.

The six-week challenge officially kicks off on Monday, March 23, and continues through Sunday, May 3.

Registration is now open to all benefits-eligible employees of Emory University and Emory Healthcare. To join, log into Healthy Emory Connect and go to the “Challenges” tab to join the 2020 Move More Challenge. From there, you can then create or join a team. 

For more information, including FAQs, visit the Move More Challenge webpage or watch the video. See more ideas for focusing on your personal self-care and wellbeing.