Healthcare Intelligence Network � Blog Archive � 10,000 Steps a Day
Healthcare Intelligence Network � Blog Archive � 10,000 Steps a Day: "10,000 Steps a Day
This post was written by Melanie Matthews
As the obesity crisis continues to loom large (pun intended) in the United States, I am forced on an almost daily basis about the factors driving this crisis.
Each day that I drop my daughter off to school, I am amazed at the jockeying of cars that occurs as parents try to get the closest parking space to the school. Yesterday, while picking up my daughter from school, I literally could not drive down the street because parents were double-parked picking up their children.
Surely these parents (and children, too!) might benefit from a walk down the street on a lot of different levels, like having a chance to talk one-on-one without the distractions in the car.
These parents will never get to 10,000 steps in a day if they continue to seek the closest parking space at school. They are, I’m sure, the same people who jockey for the “best” parking space at the mall, the grocery store and in every other parking lot.
Maybe we need to re-define the “best” parking space. Take for instance, Wegmans’ grocery stores, which have a designated parking spot at the far end of their lots with signs that read: “This space reserved for everyone that knows that a few extra steps every day can help them be healthy.”
Wegmans’ does not just pay lip service to this walking challenge; it also motivates its employees to lead healthier lifestyles through its eat well.live well program.
Wegmans’ employees also participate in the Excellus Blue Cross Blue Shield Step Up program, which is an Internet-based program designed to help participants take small steps every day toward reaching goals like walking a little bit more and eating a little bit smarter. The program allows people to set healthy goals and shows easy ways to achieve them. The Excellus program even allows participants to challenge friends, family or entire organizations to be healthier with its Healthy Competition option. The Excellus program is one of the wellness case studies highlighted in our new report, Workplace Wellness Case Studies: Tactics To Promote Health and Reduce Risk.
Perhaps if I suggest it at the next PTA meeting, my daughter’s school might just launch a 10,000 step program…"
This post was written by Melanie Matthews
As the obesity crisis continues to loom large (pun intended) in the United States, I am forced on an almost daily basis about the factors driving this crisis.
Each day that I drop my daughter off to school, I am amazed at the jockeying of cars that occurs as parents try to get the closest parking space to the school. Yesterday, while picking up my daughter from school, I literally could not drive down the street because parents were double-parked picking up their children.
Surely these parents (and children, too!) might benefit from a walk down the street on a lot of different levels, like having a chance to talk one-on-one without the distractions in the car.
These parents will never get to 10,000 steps in a day if they continue to seek the closest parking space at school. They are, I’m sure, the same people who jockey for the “best” parking space at the mall, the grocery store and in every other parking lot.
Maybe we need to re-define the “best” parking space. Take for instance, Wegmans’ grocery stores, which have a designated parking spot at the far end of their lots with signs that read: “This space reserved for everyone that knows that a few extra steps every day can help them be healthy.”
Wegmans’ does not just pay lip service to this walking challenge; it also motivates its employees to lead healthier lifestyles through its eat well.live well program.
Wegmans’ employees also participate in the Excellus Blue Cross Blue Shield Step Up program, which is an Internet-based program designed to help participants take small steps every day toward reaching goals like walking a little bit more and eating a little bit smarter. The program allows people to set healthy goals and shows easy ways to achieve them. The Excellus program even allows participants to challenge friends, family or entire organizations to be healthier with its Healthy Competition option. The Excellus program is one of the wellness case studies highlighted in our new report, Workplace Wellness Case Studies: Tactics To Promote Health and Reduce Risk.
Perhaps if I suggest it at the next PTA meeting, my daughter’s school might just launch a 10,000 step program…"
posted by Lankadata at 4:28 AM
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