Let's Band Together and See What We Can Do as A Team!

Let’s face it, exercising and eating healthfully can be a challenge, even for people who are currently healthy.  Wouldn’t it be more fun to band together and see what we can do as a team?  This is the idea behind two government challenges, one issued by Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett in 2008 and a more recent challenge issued by Boston Mayor Tom Menino this year.

The OKC Million Program challenged metro area residents to lose one million pounds.  The effort took four years but Oklahoma City reached its goal this year.  Over 47,000 individuals participated in the challenge and lost a combined total of 8,000 inches from their waists and walked over 1.2 million miles.  The challenge is part of an effort to change Oklahoma City’s image as one of the most unhealthy cities in the country.

Earlier this year Mayor Menino promised to help Boston residents shed a million pounds.  The citywide campaign, currently titled Boston Moves for Health, will launch this spring.   A customized web site will invite residents to record their goals and workouts while tracking their weight loss.  The city plans to use the web site as a resource where residents can locate indoor and outdoor exercise activities and learn more about health and wellness.  As part of the initiative the city and its partners will host bike rides, introductory exercise classes and other health and wellness related activities throughout the year.  Educational kits will also be distributed to city businesses with information on promoting exercise and healthy food choices at work.

Boston’s program will not be aimed solely at adults.  More than 20,000 school-aged children in Boston are overweight.  The mayor will work with daycare providers, educating them on how to prepare healthy snacks and how to incorporate more physical activity into their programs. Nutritionists will also be hired to work with local restaurants to develop healthy kids’ menus.

We are excited about these two programs because they are raising awareness of obesity and its health risks and taking action to make positive changes while reaching so many people.  We congratulate Oklahoma City on its initiative and in meeting its objective!  We look forward to seeing Boston’s program in action later this year.

The Wellness Workdays team is here to help you and your employees develop and maintain a healthy lifestyle.  Our award winning corporate wellness programs can help your employees improve their health while maximizing productivity and saving your company money.  We offer some of the most exciting (and proven effective) team-based wellness challenges and walking programs available. We've analyzed our programs and seen as much as an ROI of 3.8. 

We also offer programs aimed at defeating diabetes, metabolic syndrome and stress, managing mental and emotional wellness, and vetoing vices. In addition, we provide insightful and engaging seminars and webinars on wellness, nutrition and fitness.  Our clients rave about our programs and many employees reach out to us to let us know the positive impact our programming has had on their lives.  It’s truly a rewarding experience for all.