Scotch College

Scotch staff take up a global challenge

Seven Scotch non-teaching staff have chalked up bulk kilometres as they participated enthusiastically in the 2006 Global Corporate Challenge – a worldwide event that ran from May to October which encouraged people to be more active in their lives.

Teams of people from around the world wore pedometers for six months and entered their steps totals each day into a website.

The challenge was part of a push taking place over the past decade for people to undertake regular structured activity. In addition, unstructured or incidental activity (which includes taking the stairs, walking to a meeting, going for a 10-minute walk at lunchtime and using public transport instead of driving) has gained significant recognition.

Being more incidentally active at work can result in people taking as many as 2,000 to 3,000 extra steps a day, corresponding to an extra 336 to 630kj of energy being expended and providing corresponding health and fitness benefits.

The challenge encouraged team members to maintain a healthy weight, be more active to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol levels and increase fitness, and maintain a healthy lifestyle during and after the challenge.

The team finished 62nd out of 1956 entered teams, and all Scotch participants are still walking today!