April 15, 2008

To the moon

Teams encouraged to participate in Silicon Valley Moon Walk Challenge

By Kymberli Brady
San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce

On the heels of a step challenge issued by Councilmember Forrest Williams in January, two Chamber members have just upped the ante.

Dr. Bill Updyke, D.C. and Dwight Johnson team up for the Silicon Valley Moon Walk challenge.

In addition to his position as a professor at Palmer College of Chiropractic, Dr. Bill Updyke, D.C., chairs the Chamber Health Care committee and is determined to motivate others to adopt healthier lifestyles. "Palmer's wellness committee decided to issue a healthy challenge to the Chamber, the business community and other organizations. The Silicon Valley Moon Walk Participating teams will agree to wear pedometers and keep a running total of the number of steps taken, with the goal of logging enough steps to (theoretically) walk to the moon. The underlying motive is to get people to add more physical activity to their daily routine and perhaps start a trend that will keep them walking long after the challenge is over.

"We have to set an example," says Updyke. "We want everyone to join us in this challenge. Our goal is to get as many businesses in the area to sign up before our official start at noon on April 16 (in conjunction with American Heart Association's National Start! Walking Day).

So how many steps does it take to walk to the moon? Data suggests that it is 238,857 miles from the earth to the moon. Since a mile equals 5,280 feet or 63,360 inches, the average person with a 28-inch stride would take nearly 540 million steps to reach the moon's surface. At a rate of 5,000 steps a day, the trip would last around 108,000 days. Using the same calculation, 65 members of the Palmer Chiropractic College team could make it to the moon in 1,662 days. As the number of participants rises, the travel time reduces significantly. 100 participants could make the journey in 1,081 days, while 1,000 could collectively reach the moon in a mere 108 days.

As the grassroots effort grows, so do the goals, and with them, the realization that there is strength in numbers.

"It may take us years, but we are going to walk to the moon," says Updyke. "With the help of others, we'll be able to get there even sooner."

According to Dwight Johnson with Nationwide Insurance and Financial Services, this is the type of campaign he loves to work with because it requires no financial investment and can include nearly every segment of the population.

"It gives you a very nice, large community platform to build on," he says. It further allows you to explore work, your community and so many other activities while working to achieve your goal. The applications are endless."

Providing pedometers to Councilmember Forrest Williams and other city hall participants eventually led Johnson to the Chamber, where this new member is already generating excitement for something he's passionate about-prevention.

Although Johnson specializes in financial services and insurance, he has historically been involved in benefit planning and alternative funding, specifically in trying to deliver affordable healthcare. After a seven-year hiatus from the healthcare side of the equation, he admits he was amazed to see how much things had changed, especially with pricing.

"Today, it's driven by a delivery of solution as opposed to a delivery of prevention," he says. "The model is upside down because there's very little on the table that emphasizes prevention as a major component, which naturally shifts the emphasis to basic and major health care."

As former president of the board of directors for the United States Tennis Association, fitness has always been an important part of Johnson's life. However, he noticed that nearly every sport came with financial hurdles. Ultimately, he credits the president of Colorado State University with a solution he says just makes sense-pedometers and walking programs.

"I thought it particularly appealing because it has no financial boundaries. It's the one program that has a place in everyone's fitness routine. It answers the questions of access, affordability and convenience without the need for a tennis court, a basketball court, a track or a soccer field to make it work. Because it's also multi-generational, parents and children can be part of the same program-something we can involve the whole household in."

Nationwide adopted this concept as their platform last year, which resulted in "Steps for Life," a program that uses pedometers and a curriculum that shows how fitness can be achieved with a goal of 10,000 steps a day. To emphasize the point, Johnson has agreed to provide pedometers for those who sign up for the Silicon Valley Moon Walk.

"This was something we could really run with," explains Johnson. "Our primary objective is to adopt a basic concept that has open access, with the intent of arriving at a global concept for a model that would impact health care cost containment and funding. We found this to be an easy way to get us back to the point of emphasizing preventive health care. We're confident that it will have not only a significant impact from a quality of life perspective, but will ultimately translate to a financial model that will simply save funds."

A growing grassroots effort
Already, the grassroots effort has spawned partnering with other programs throughout the county that will result in special community "walking" events, including Kaiser Permanente and the Santa Clara County Parks and Health Department's Healthy Trails Challenge, where 2,000 people have signed up to walk, run, wheel, or bike five county park trails by October. That challenge will start at Hellyer Park on May 19.

"What a great way to make it to "the moon" by using the Healthy Trails Challenge," says Lisa Jafferies, community and government relations manager for Kaiser Permanente. "Our mission is to improve the health of our members AND the communities we serve. Kaiser Permanente is proud to partner with the Chamber and its members for an easy, fun way to get people outside and moving."

To sign up for the Chamber's Silicon Valley Moon Walk, contact Kymberli Brady at 408-291-5265 or kymberlib@sjchamber.com. Pedometers will be distributed to participating teams to track step totals. A limited number of pedometers are available and will be provided on a first come first served basis.

Reprinted with permission from the March 2008 issue of the Chamber Advocate. © 2008, San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce