Off [the couch] and running

MIT beats winter blues with fitness challenge

"I am seasonally athletic, and winter is my down time, my 'sit on the couch and have a cup of tea' time. The getfit@mit challenge was a great way to bring on spring sooner-both physically and emotionally. Now that the sunshine and light have arrived, I'm ready to dive in and embrace the good weather, toned and ready to really work out!"

In early January, nearly 1,200 members of the MIT community-students, faculty, staff, affiliates, alumni, retirees, spouses, and partners-shook off the winter doldrums and got moving. And we mean moving! By the time it was all over, at the end of March, participants in the getfit@mit fitness challenge had racked up more than 4.3 million minutes of exercise in 12 short weeks!

The challenge, for teams of five to eight members, was sponsored by MIT Medical and the MIT Health Plans. Co-sponsors included MIT Medical's Center for Health Promotion & Wellness, IS&T Web Communications Services, the Lincoln Laboratory Fitness Center, and the Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center. During the challenge, teams participated in activities of their own choosing, keeping track of their individual activity minutes. Each week, team captains or co-captains logged on to the getfit@mit website to enter their teams' exercise minutes into the online database that tracked team and individual totals. Individual participants could log in to see their own and teammates' results, compare their totals to other teams and participants, and access exercise resources, such as lists of suggested exercises and maps of the MIT tunnels and Charles River walking/running paths. Participants could also use an online message board to ask questions and find out about special getfit@mit events, such as guided tunnel walks and aerobics and yoga classes.

"It's terrific that the challenge included the whole MIT community with no divisions between students, faculty, and staff. That kept us all 'on the same team,' so to speak, regardless of our age or abilities. Student teams logging minutes dancing at a party were on an equal par with staff teams shoveling snow and walking to work."

Balls to the wall?

Weekly prizes and contests helped keep interest high. Individuals whose cumulative exercise minute totals averaged at least three hours per week were automatically entered in drawings for a variety of prizes, including free classes at the Lincoln Laboratory Fitness Center and Z-Center and MIT Coop gift certificates. Team prizes were awarded in several categories, beginning with most creative team name, won by Darned Nice Abs (or "DNA"). The "Team Spirit" contest, won by the Titanes de las Pesas (or "Titans of the Weights") rewarded the team that logged the most minutes exercising together during a single week. The "Most Creative Exercise" contest was won by the Control Freaks, who tried letterboxing, a combination of hiking, snowshoeing, orienteering and puzzle-solving. Other creative teams attended a flying trapeze school, belly-danced, or, in one case, came up with a series of their own unique exercises, including two they dubbed "circle squats" and "balls to the wall."

"I specifically noticed a reduced stress level when I started exercising regularly. Being part of a team provided a healthy amount of peer pressure to get out there and do something physical. It wasn't really about competing with other teams, or even with my own team members. Rather, it was just about feeling that camaraderie and sense of community."

Survey says.

From the beginning, participants told us that getfit@mit was fun, contributed to a sense of camaraderie within departments, and helped them get to know their teammates better. But did the program also contribute to the health and fitness of the MIT community? In a survey done in April, after the program's end, participants answered that question with a resounding "yes." Of people who were non-exercisers before the program began, 37 percent say they now exercise one or two days per week, and 61 percent exercise three days or more. Of people exercising one or two days per week prior to the start of getfit, more than 80 percent are now exercising three or more days per week. And more than a third of the fairly consistent exercisers-those putting in between three and five exercise sessions per week before the program began-report that they are now exercising even more.

There were other benefits as well. Roughly one-third of survey respondents reported losing weight, increasing muscle tone, and improving general mood. About 25 percent told us their level of stress had decreased. And although we didn't ask about this specifically, a number of people told us that their participation in getfit@mit, and the frequent necessity of finding alternatives to outdoor activities during a snowy winter, had provided the impetus to take a class or try new types of activities on their own.

"I plan to continue the healthy new exercise habit I started with getfit@mit. Last year, I quit smoking (after 10 years) and started gaining weight. Thanks to getfit, I've lost the weight, put on muscle I never had before, and the cigarettes are still history!"

See you next year!

"Here at MIT Medical, we're already looking forward to next year's getfit@mit," commented MIT Medical executive director Annette Jacobs. "This program brought together a cross section of the MIT community in the best spirit of both competition and collaboration that is the essence of what makes the Institute such a special place. The weeks of exercising as part of this program helped many of us, including me, make exercise a regular part of our lives."

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