Participants of the “Moving for Miles” program will convert their everyday activities to miles to reach different destinations as a group.

Julie Benedict, a training and development specialist in the Human Resources office, said “Moving for Miles” was developed based on feedback from the “EIU Steps It Up” program.

“(EIU Steps It Up) would be where you keep track of your steps, and it was more competitive as we gave prizes to the top three walkers or teams,” Benedict said. “After we had that for a few years people said that they wanted more throughout the year.”

The program is scheduled to last five weeks beginning on Oct. 10 and ending on Nov. 13.

Benedict said they hope to combine their miles to reach four different destinations and the fifth destination will be to return to Charleston.

“Compared to the ‘EIU Steps It Up,’ it is more of a fun and collective effort instead of a competition,” Benedict said. “Everyone has a goal to reach and you keep track of your steps or movement however you can, and then you convert it to miles.”

She said they have provided links that convert everyday activities to steps and they provide a chart that converts steps into miles.

“One of the reasons we have this is because people say that if they participate in a program like this, they are more motivated to be healthier by being more mobile and walking more,” Benedict said. “It also includes collegiality with people walking together and doing things together by also being more aware of staying active during their daily routines.”

Benedict said about 40 people have registered for the “Moving for Miles” program, and in the past they have had about 150 people register for “EIU Steps It Up.”

She said a few teams have been formed such as “Kicking Asphalt,” which consists of a mix of faculty members. Staff members from the Office of Financial Aid have also formed a team.

“The more people we have the farther we can travel,” she said. “For each destination, we will also send out cultural information about the destination we are trying to reach.”

Participants can monitor their progress when they submit their miles Facilities and Planning Management because their website will show them how much farther they have to go to reach a

destination.

“Instead of thinking individually, we are thinking as a whole group and being more aware of being active,” Benedict said. “However, there is always the friendly competition that people like and it helps to keep people motivated as well.”

She said participants can measure their steps using a pedometer or by using different conversion charts. About 2,000 steps are equal to one mile.

The deadline to register is Oct. 10. Register at www.eiu.edu/humanres/training/eiusteps.php.

Rachel Rodgers can be reached at 581-2812 or rjrodgers@eiu.edu.