2023 Go Move Challenge: Final Recap

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Darcy Kennedy, Regis University, still walking, no matter what the temp!

 

Published Friday, March 3, 2023

The results of the 11th annual Go Move Challenge are in! Congratulations to everyone who completed the challenge. We welcomed 3 new universities to the challenge (Seattle U, Gonzaga, and St. Louis U) which helped contribute to our overall minutes.  We accumulated over 250,000 more minutes this year than in 2022! Congratulations especially to the institutions who win bragging rights for the following:

  • Most Minutes: Santa Clara University for earning the most minutes, 589,072 minutes of physical activity and the overall winner for the 5th year in a row.
  • Average of Most Minutes: Saint Peter's University for earning the highest average number of minutes, 1545, per participant. A huge congrats for this first time winner in this category!
  • Regional Average Minutes Per Person
    • East Coast - St. Peter's University
    • Mid-West - University of Detroit Mercy
    • West Coast - Santa Clara University
    • South - n/a

February = Moving

For many AJCU institutions, the month of February has become synonymous with movement, and this year was no exception. Faculty and staff from 23 Jesuit institutions committed to tracking every minute of their intentional, physical activity for the past 28 days, and the collective numbers are impressive:

Participating AJCU institutions: 23
Total Participants: 3695
Total Minutes of Movement:   3,537,032
Avg. Monthly Minutes Per Person:   957
Avg. Daily Minutes Per Person:  34

To see what numbers your institution accumulated, visit the Go Move Challenge website. Thank you to everyone for participating and finishing strong!

Spotlight on Saint Joseph's University

In the last 2 years, SJU has really stepped up their participation and movement minutes in the Go Move Challenge. Since they started competing in the challenge in 2017, they've usually been around 12-15th place. This year and last, they moved up to 5th and 7th place for total minutes and 4th place for most average number of minutes. When a university becomes so engaged in such a short amount of time, inquiring minds want to know how this happens and what makes them tick. Below Lauren LaPointe, HR Specialist at SJU shares some of their employees stories.

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"I love to walk around SJU's Hawk Hill campus during my lunch break - a quick 30-minute power walk through campus, a few laps around the track, and a latte at Saxbys. Done. Back to work."

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"Here is a picture of me after I ran the Frostbite 5-Miler Race I ran last Saturday in Ambler, PA. I won the award for first female master (40+ category). I am a pretty serious runner in the 40+ category, currently training for this year's Boston Marathon in April. It has been fun to log my movement minutes, that include not only the ones directly related to running, but also all the walks I take with friends and family or on my own. Seeing the minutes add up has been really neat! And, I am having fun comparing my activity level to the other SJU employees'! "

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"I am an ultra endurance runner, an avid mover, and will often walk anywhere from 8-12 miles at my treadmill desk on top of my regular trail runs either in the morning or at night. I am a motivated person but also someone who likes to be challenged, for if we never challenge greatness how will we ever know how great we might be? I was very excited to do this challenge and help represent SJU together as we push ourselves to see how much we can move. I am continually inspired to do more and keep moving forward, especially as we all keep moving together. I see this challenge as a challenge against the lazier version of myself that so easily can win the day, and I use the inspiration of all the others to keep moving."

"My mantra for February has been: Make rest a necessity, not an objective."

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My mantra for February has been:

 

“Make rest a necessity, not an objective.” 

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"I went to New York City with my son this past weekend for his birthday. We decided to embark on our own walking tour of the City. I told him I had to put up some numbers toward the Go Move Challenge for SJU. Over the weekend we went from uptown, to midtown to downtown, walked the Brooklyn Bridge, through Brooklyn Heights, and Central Park. Not one cab hailed all weekend!"

bridge

Shout Outs to Many:

Many of our Institutions exercise minutes, participation and placement increased:

  • As mentioned above, Santa Clara University won the title of most active Jesuit institution for the 5th year in a row! Congrats SCU!! What's your secret?
  • Creighton has come in 2nd or 3rd place the past 4 years. They are a tough competitor.
  • A huge congrats to Saint Peter's who for the first time won the title of most average number of minutes per person. The average number of minutes per person for the month was 1545!
  • Most improved goes to Saint Louis University. They did not participate last year and tracked 211,147 minutes with 352 participants!
  • Fordham moved from 9th place last year to 6th this year and tracked more than 65,000 more minutes.
  • We had 225 teams (last year 120) created and participating which definitely helped us move more.
  • We accumulated over 700,000 more minutes this year than last!

An Inspiration: Lauren Davis, Saint Louis University

A focus on mind, body, and spirit

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Lauren Davis set to lead a sound healing session

 

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"I have been in my department (Comparative Medicine) for 15 years. One of my favorite things about my position is the flexibility it offers. I have 3 young kids so often it can be difficult to find the time or motivation to exercise once I get home. The flexibility of my job allows me to exercise during my lunch hour when I have the most energy. You can find me practicing yoga in my office or running on the track at the Med School on a sunny day, or weightlifting at the Simon Rec Center. Physical fitness has always been one of my many passions, but what is equally, if not more important to me, is mental health, and spiritual grown. I am a Reiki Master, Certified Yoga instructor, and Certified Sound Practioner. When I am not working at SLU, I provide 1:1 Reiki/sound healing sessions to private clients and group-integrated sound baths. It is extremely rewarding to guide others on their healing journey combining physical fitness, mental wellness, and spiritual development. I am fortunate to be part of the SLU family which encompasses all of these values I hold near and dear to my heart."

Participant Feedback

We've received some feedback as to why our colleagues like to compete in this challenge year after year:

  • Teams within departments are inspiring one another
  • The accountability is key
  • February is usually a slow, inactive time due to the weather but Go Move always inspires people to be more active even in winter
  • It was fun to see the other faculty and administrators collaborating.
  • It improved my running pace!
  • I have a pretty regular "active" schedule during the week, but I don't always move as much on the weekends. The Go Move Challenge has motivated me to get going on the weekends too!
  • I like facing off against other universities, even bigger ones! Lots of fun
  • It forced me to get up and move so that I could improve my rank (competition!)
  • It helped me to be creative about how to get colleagues to participate. I think it worked because we've done better than ever!
  • I wish it could be extended or offered bi annually !

To continue offering the best challenge possible, we need your feedback. Please take a moment to complete the 11th annual Go Move Challenge survey.

Group Effort

Beyond the competition and with the help of social media, the Go Move Challenge fostered camaraderie and new connections among AJCU colleagues while engaging in heart-healthy, physical exercise. Many of our participants used the Go Move Challenge Group on Facebook, Instagram and used #GoMoveChallenge to share inspiring pictures, videos, and words of encouragement with their colleagues across the nation.

Weekly Recaps

As we have been reporting each week, participants have been as excited as ever to share their feedback on how the Go Move Challenge has positively influenced their month of February and beyond. If you missed any stories from previous weeks, you can access them, along with pictures, at any time:

Stay Connected

Although the challenge is over, all participants are encouraged to share your stories and connect on social media. For information on next year’s challenge, contact the USF Senior Wellness Manager and Go Move Challenge administrator, Suzy Kisylia, at skisylia@usfca.edu.  Who's in for 2024, our 12th anniversary?