Hosting a walkathon: 10 benefits for your employees
Workplaces are beginning to understand the benefits of encouraging employees to be more physically active. Teams are more productive, and energetic, and have better overall morale at work with group activities, such as walkathons.
With technological advancements, hosting in-person, virtual, or hybrid walkathons is easier than ever. It offers incredible flexibility to improve the physical and mental wellbeing of your staff and helps them be a more productive workforce.
In this article, we break down 10 benefits of hosting a walkathon and how these initiatives are a win-win for you and your employees.
What is a walkathon?
Walkathons are events where people walk for a specific distance or time. This is often a fundraising event for charity and to raise awareness for causes like medical research. It can be done by gathering employees physically in a group or virtually by using apps to track everyone’s steps and times.
Your staff can be left with a sense of accomplishment and the feeling of being part of a team, regardless of whether they work in offices together or virtually from different locations.
If your company has international branches or subsidiaries, a virtual walkathon can help connect these employees over geographical borders and create a more connected workforce.
Walkathon benefits: 10 reasons to enroll your workforce
There are many benefits of a walkathon for you and your employees. Here are 10 reasons to enroll your workforce in walkathons.
1. Improves physical health
You can improve your staff’s physical wellbeing by hosting walkathons. Walking is an easy and low-impact form of exercise, meaning that everyone in your team can participate. The exception to this is staff members who are physically unable to walk.
According to research from Harvard Health, walking for just 20-30 minutes a day can reduce the risk of heart disease by up to 30%. Therefore, walkathons can help your team manage their weight, improve their physical fitness, and improve their lives as a whole. This is especially true for office roles where staff may be sat down for most of the day.
2. Improves mental wellbeing
Simply walking can drastically reduce anxiety and depression. It releases endorphins which can help to put your staff in a better mood and improve their cognitive functions. Walkathons give your teams the opportunity to relieve any work-related stress and fatigue which means they can work more productively as they are less likely to be bogged down with anxiety, depression, and stress.
3. Encourages Team Building
Team building is one of the biggest benefits of a walkathon. Since it is a group activity where members walk together and set common goals, it can be an opportunity for employees to bond and build strong relationships.
This can bring different departments of your business together and connect them. Instead of seeing themselves as separate departments, they will be able to see themselves as one; all striving towards the same goal.
4. Increases employee engagement
Increased engagement among your employees means that they feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves. This can result in better focus and teamwork.
One of the significant walkathon benefits is that you provide your staff with an easy way to take part in a corporate initiative. This is especially the case when using the Teamupp app as it lets you scale this engagement across all of your teams. The app comes with leaderboards, tracking features, and even social feeds.
This makes walkathons an exciting event that your employees can look forward to. You can turn it into more than just walking in groups and have it be something that teams interact with. The result is a more engaged workforce.
5. Reduces absenteeism
Absenteeism is a major area of concern that can negatively impact your business. Poor physical and mental health can be factors for absent employees. Walkathons can improve your staff’s physical and mental wellbeing, making it less likely for them to call in sick so often.
Not to mention, some employees may be absent simply because they don’t want to be at work. The social, interactive, and exciting elements of walkathons can give them something to look forward to.
They will also be able to form better connections with their team members which can boost their morale. As a result, you may notice fewer absentees and avoid your day-to-day operations being strained.
6. Improves creativity and problem-solving
Your team will also be more creative and efficient in problem-solving with walkathons. The more you do moderate exercise, like walking, the more oxygen flows into the brain which can increase clarity and focus.
These events can also help your employees take a break from their usual activities and get some light exercise, and sometimes, this can lead to creative and innovative ideas. If there’s a task that one of your teams has been struggling with, a walkathon could be just what’s needed to help them think outside of the box.
7. Promotes corporate social responsibility
Walkathons can also show your company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility. Since walkathons are hosted for a charitable cause, they can increase the goodwill within your company and give some sense of purpose to your team.
When employees see that their effort is bringing some positive change to the company and society, they feel more motivated to complete the event. With apps, you can easily integrate fundraising into your event, making it more meaningful for everyone involved.
8. Strengthens company branding
Walkathon events show that your company truly cares about its employees. This can significantly strengthen your brand’s reputation and attract top talent.
People are more concerned with their health and working with a company that emphasises physical and mental health with walkathons is a huge plus point. It also shows potential talent that your company isn’t just concerned with corporate goals. There’s a level of work-life balance on display which can make your company more sought after.
9. Boosts workplace morale
Walkathons can also boost the workplace morale in your organisation. It gives teams the chance to take a break and still do something productive. They can then come back to work feeling refreshed, accomplished, and ready to tackle new work challenges.
They will also be able to work more effectively in teams. Since walkathons can be an effective team-building exercise, you may notice that your staff communicates better with each other and produces better quality work.
10. Promotes healthy competition
Walkathons are a great way to promote healthy competition among your employees. The walkathon challenge and other fun elements like leaderboards and team challenges in the app can create competition between teams.
This friendly competition can encourage staff to beat their personal goals and improve their ability to consistently strive to be better. It can translate into working more productively and trying to be a better part of their team overall.
What does science say about walking?
The science behind the benefits of walking is remarkably strong and clearly evident. Here’s some of the most compelling scientific evidence regarding the benefits of walking:
- According to a study conducted by Harvard Health, people who brisk walk for at least an hour a day cut down their obesity-promoting genes by 50%.
- The same study has also found that walking for at least five to six miles a week can prevent arthritis from developing. For those with arthritis, walking can reduce the pain.
- A study of over 1,000 men and women found that those who walked for at least 20 minutes a day had 43% fewer sick days than those who didn’t.
- Walking can also reduce sugar cravings. According to studies from the University of Exter, a simple 15-minute walk can reduce the need for sugar in stressful situations and can even reduce the amount people eat overall.
- The American Cancer Society has also found that women who walked for more than seven hours a week reduced their chances of developing breast cancer by 14%.
- Regular walks can prevent serious conditions including cancer, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and stroke.
How to organise a walkathon?
If you are planning to have a walkathon event for your team, it needs to be organised. Here’s how to organise a successful walkathon for your employees.
1. Using Teamupp
You can use the Teamupp app to host your walkathon events. The app is easy to use and has all the features you need to host a successful walkathon.
The app is highly customisable and can adapt to any theme that you choose – whether it’s health, fitness, CSR, or wellness, the app has all the tools you need.
You can use it for both short-term and long-term events based on the theme chosen, and the app provides an interactive interface with all the participants who can track and share their progress. Moreover, there are also fun activities such as step challenges, photo challenges, leaderboards, quizzes, and live chats to keep your teams engaged throughout the event.
2. Consider the purpose of your walkathon
You need to think about the purpose of your walkathon. Is it primarily to improve the wellness of your employees, is it for charity, or is it for both? This will factor into how you organise the walkathon.
3. Choosing a virtual, in-person, or hybrid walkathon
Next, you have to consider whether you want the walkathon to be virtual, in-person, or a combination of both. This will depend on your company and whether employees are located near each other or if they are in different locations and work remotely.
Virtual walkathons can be managed easily with apps as staff can track their progress in real-time, regardless of where they’re located. This can easily be integrated with team members who are meeting for an in-person walkathon as they can also use the app and keep track of those who aren’t physically at the event.
If you’re planning an in-person walkathon, be sure to plan a safe route that takes into account a range of fitness levels. Some employees will be able to walk faster and longer than others, so finding a terrain and length in the middle ground is best to include everyone fairly.
4. Promoting your walkathon
It’s also important to promote the walkathon throughout the company so that all teams are aware of exactly when, where, and how the event is happening. You could provide packages, gift cards, or even paid time off for the highest-performing employees.
5. Ending a walkathon
Once the walkathon is over, be sure to celebrate the achievement with a post-event gathering. Consider a photoshoot so that you can post pictures online to promote the company’s dedication to creating a healthy workforce.
It’s also a good idea to gather data about the event once it’s over. You can assess how many employees turned up, whether they enjoyed it, and what to improve on for next time. If your teams used apps, you can help you gather data and provide you with valuable insights for the future.
Putting together a walkathon event can be incredibly beneficial for both you and your employees. You can encourage better physical and mental wellbeing among your teams which can result in a happier, more productive, and engaged workforce.
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