糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock library staff steps up for fitness
In Ottenheimer Library, where 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock鈥檚 students, staff, and faculty are usually found quietly studying or working, the employees of Ottenheimer Library have challenged themselves to be more fit, active, and healthy.聽Freta Rogers-Mason, an information technology coordinator at Ottenheimer Library, was inspired to challenge her co-workers to a six-week step fitness challenge.鈥淚 am on a working group in Ottenheimer Library for staff enrichment, and I wanted to see what we could do as a group to come together to concentrate on health and fitness,鈥� Rogers-Mason said. 鈥淚 thought the easiest way to motivate each other was a step challenge.鈥�The initial response, she said, was less than enthusiastic.鈥淭here was grunting, and a lot of people asking, 鈥楧o we have to?鈥� and 鈥楩or six whole weeks?鈥� Rogers-Mason laughed. 鈥淣ot everyone was receptive at first. I had a couple of people excited, but I had to push the majority. Karl Lenser (campus wellness coordinator) gave us free pedometers, and that helped get people excited. I also got some local businesses to donate prizes, and the winning team gets lunch at a healthy local restaurant.鈥�Over six weeks, the 20 participating Ottenheimer Library employees walked a total of 3,387,711 steps. The winning step team included Chelsea Guess, Amber King, Carol Macheak, Chris Stewart, and Cole Williamson.Maurine James Barnes, a collections management coordinator who has worked at the university for more than 40 years, topped out as the employee with the second most steps during the challenge, totaling more than 317,000 steps in six weeks.
Twenty employees from Ottenheimer Library have challenged themselves to be more active and healthy through a six-week step fitness challenge. Photo by Benjamin Krain.
鈥淎t first, I was reluctant to do the challenge, but it has been great fun. There has been a certain camaraderie among us as we challenged each other and have grown closer. It鈥檚 also been a great deal of fun reaming people,鈥� James Barnes said. 鈥淵ears ago, I was walking 10,000 steps a day on a regular basis, but I have fallen off in recent years. With this challenge, I have stepped up my walking, and I feel better physically.鈥�Louise Lowe, a student success coordinator, described herself as Rogers-Mason鈥檚 鈥減artner in crime鈥� in getting people motivated for the step challenge, which she said has greatly improved her health.鈥淭his challenge helped me be accountable to myself,鈥� Lowe said. 鈥淥n the weekends, I realized I wasn鈥檛 moving at all. Now I am taking walks in the neighborhood to get more steps in. After six weeks, I feel so much better. My energy levels are higher. More than anything, this challenge has helped build community within the library. It is a team-building exercise that we didn鈥檛 realize was happening at the time.鈥�With the goal to bring more wellness into Ottenheimer Library, Rogers-Mason said she was surprised at her own improved fitness levels and offered a challenge to any other 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock department or office who wants to get fit.鈥淚 started out with about 1,500 to 3,000 steps in a whole week,鈥� Rogers-Mason said. 鈥淚 doubled that in a week, and I ended up with 8,000 to 9,000 steps at the end of the challenge. I saw a significant difference. I notice that I have been more energized, and my knees have stopped hurting as much. We hope that other departments will do this step challenge, and they should let us know if they want to compete head to head in a challenge!鈥�
