CEEK encourages you to move more, get up, and get active for May’s Organizational Wellness Challenge. Not only is May National Physical Fitness and Sports Month and National Walking Month, but it is also when the Make-A-Wish-Eastern-NC Trailblaze Challenge takes place. On May 20th, the CEEK/Insperity team will hike 26.5 miles of the Trailblaze Challenge to raise funds for children facing life-threatening circumstances. You can take the challenge with us by motivating your teams to move in May.

We often perceive physical activity as a luxury or extravagance—I don’t have time to exercise, I was in back-to-back meetings, The train was late so I missed the gym. All of these can be true; however, we make time for activities that are significant and important. When we say we don’t have time for something, we mean we don’t prioritize it. Physical activity is not just a nice-to-have, it’s a necessity. By not prioritizing physical activity, we decrease our ability to process information and make decisions, have difficulty interacting with others, and are less effective at our work.

Exercise allows us to take in more information, improve interactions with our colleagues, and make better decisions. We experience improved concentration, mental stamina, learning, memory, focus, and creativity. We also reduce levels of stress, burnout, and tension. Active employees take fewer sick days, reducing an organization’s overall sick leave and costs due to reduced productivity.

We challenge to you to encourage your team get up and get active in May!

How to Encourage Physical Activity and Move More

1. Make it available. If possible, incorporate a gym area into your workplace or subsidize gym memberships, equipment, or wearables.
2. Make it easy. Activity doesn’t have to be formal or organized. Get up from your desk and take a walk during lunch. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
3. Make it routine. Take regular movement breaks. Make walking meetings part of your day.
4. Make it social. Consider offering group fitness classes, active outings like a team hike, or join local events as a team. Socializing makes activity more fun and increases the chance that employees will engage.
5. Make it fun. Challenging employees creates incentives, motivation, and easy, fun competition. Consider offering a prize for a challenge like a team step challenge.

It’s not about taking time out of work. It’s about making the most of the time you are at work by making sure you are at your best with physical activity. CEEK a Better Way…to move more!

Want to go a step further? Every year CEEK raises awareness and funds to adopt the wish of a child facing life-threatening circumstances. Help the CEEK Team endure the Trailblaze Challenge on behalf of wish kids everywhere. Learn More.