As the heat of summer gives way to the cool of fall, October is the perfect time to go for a walk and enjoy the beauty of the changing seasons. This year, the University System of Georgia (USG)’s Walktober Well-Being Challenge invites students across the state to fall into fitness.
The program is designed to be appealing to students, with tracking tools, social features and the opportunity to participate on a team.
“Walking is especially helpful after long stressful days of classes–you can kind of just calm down, wind down, and get in a different mindset,” said Rebecca Whitten, a freshman elementary education major. “It’s peaceful, and it helps you focus.”
Participating students fill their virtual Walktober Tree with different colored leaves depending on the number of steps they reach each day. 6,000 steps are rewarded with a red leaf, recommended for beginners, 8,000 steps earn an orange leaf, ideal for those already active and 10,000 steps result in a gold leaf, for those who seek a real challenge. When students reach milestones, their accounts will reveal beautiful autumn landscapes from around the world.
Students have the opportunity to compete on teams of four to five people, with a goal of consistency over athleticism. Data from USG suggests that students competing in teams are twice as likely to achieve their step goals compared to students acting alone.
“Walking is a good way to relieve stress and just get your mind off of school sometimes,” said Alexis Walker, a sophomore exercise science major. “Being outside is going to give you vitamin D and get those endorphins moving, and you’re going to have a bunch of serotonins so you can be happier overall.”
Walker thought that the Walktober Challenge was a great opportunity for students to exercise and spend time outdoors.
“It’s good to have small goals for yourself and not say ‘I’m going to walk every single day for the rest of the year’ because you can’t expect yourself to do that, but if you take little steps and say just this month I’m going to do it, then it’s a small goal for you to keep yourself,” said Mary Smith, a sophomore psychology major.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), one of the most important things you can do for your health is regular physical activity.
The CDC recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week for healthy adults and notes that activities such as brisk walking, dancing, swimming, jogging or biking are ideal for exercise. There are numerous benefits to regular activity including improved sleep, reduced stress and a lowered risk of heart disease, stroke, some cancer and type two diabetes.
“There are a lot of different benefits to walking, mentally it releases stress–if you’re ever stressed about an exam just even going to touch grass or take a walk outside reduces stress so much, and physically if you just take a couple thousand steps a day it will benefit you so much,” Smith said.
GCSU’s Wellness and Recreation Center has a wealth of opportunities for student fitness and health, including counseling services and options for group fitness, aquatics, organized and free-play sports and outdoor activities.
The center offers group fitness classes for cardio, Pilates, dance cardio, spinning, yoga and aquatics, as well as adventure programs with opportunities such as kayaking and obstacle courses in addition to the center’s climbing wall. There are also a variety of club sports including pickleball, bass fishing, golf, men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s lacrosse, plus intramural league opportunities for a wide variety of sports including badminton, basketball, volleyball and softball.
