Council teams step up for walking challenge

Staff from The Highland Council recently took part in Paths 4 All’s Step Count Challenge, a team workplace walking competition to encourage people to get more active.

A total of 16 teams from the Council, each made up of 5 members, took part in the challenge, which included teams from across Scotland.

Teams were encouraged to keep track of all their steps during the four week long challenge using a pedometer or their smart phone, and to log these via the Step Count Challenge portal to help push their team closer to the top of the leader board. 

Over four weeks, Council staff logged around 21.5 million steps (9,540 miles), which is the equivalent of walking from Inverness to Cape Town, South Africa.

Keith Masson, Coordinator - Climate Change at the Council and captain of team ‘No Nessing About’, who finished 25th out of 385 teams nationwide, said: “The Step Count Challenge has been fantastic, and we’ve been delighted with the response from staff.  It’s created a friendly air of competition, and I’ve definitely seen more people out for walks along the river at lunch time, trying to fit in as many steps as possible.”

He added: “While the challenge has been a bit of fun, the message about keeping active is an important one.  Adding a short walk to daily routines should be relatively easy for most people and the health benefits it provides includes reduced levels of stress and prevention of high blood pressure, not to mention trimmer waistlines!”

For further information on the step count challenge go to: http://www.stepcount.org.uk/