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Step into Spring program a success 3:54 p.m., June 30, 2004--The recently completed “Step into Spring” walking program sponsored by UD’s Employee Wellness Center drew a record number of participants, according to Marianne Carter, director of the Wellness Center. During the eight-week program, participants received a free pedometer from the Wellness Center and were asked to record the results of each day’s efforts in a daily log. “We had 754 participants in the program,” Carter said. “This is a record high for the large-scale behavior change programs we offer.” Carter said the idea of such programs is to allow participants to “practice” a healthy behavior for at least eight weeks, a period that researchers say helps such behavior become a positive habit. “Some ‘steps’ programs start out with the goal to get participants to reach the 10,000-step level,” Carter said. “Because we respect the fact that everyone is at a different fitness level, we encourage people to get their average for three days, and to use that number to set an initial goal and to add 500 steps to their goal each week so that they could gradually make their way closer to the recommended 10,000 steps per day.” Carter also said that comments from some participants indicate that the program was successful in motivating them to resume their daily walking routines, while others noted the satisfaction of making the extra effort to meet their weekly goals. On average, 2,000 steps equals one mile. Three participants who logged more than 20,000 steps per day by the program’s end include Wanda Thompson, a custodial technician in Facilities/Custodial Services, Jean Anderson, a senior secretary in mechanical engineering, and Richard Davison, UD professor of English. To learn how to subscribe to UDaily, click here. |
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