We’ve been using the excellent help desk software at ZenDesk to power support and ticketing for our program administrators and we’ve really liked it (sometime I’ll write a list of all the great web software companies we use to help run Walker Tracker). As of this week support.walkertracker.com is open to all walkers in our custom […]
Good Magazine has a fantastic graphic comparing state ranking in walking / biking / public transportation / car usage versus obesity rates. It doesn’t pull any punches. Entitled: Driving Is Why You’re Fat, I think it’s pretty easy to guess the outcome of their analysis. Here’s a sample (lower numbers on cars means less driving, […]
I’m very thrilled to announce that Walker Tracker is a sponsor of: Get Going Oregon! Get Going Oregon is a 30 Day challenge and fundraiser to benefit the Harold Schnitzer Diabetes Health Center at the Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU). Participants will use Walker Tracker from July 24th through August 31st on a Highway 101 […]
Speaking of grants that have crossed our desks lately, if you have 501c3 status and operate in the Portland metro area, this is a fantastic, yearly grant. Nike and The Oregon Community Foundation are seeking proposals (deadline Nov 15th) for $500,000 in funds. The programs four funding priorities are environment, education, inclusion, and health. Within […]
Here’s a doozy: 1.5 million for “Building Evidence to Prevent Childhood Obesity” from the Robert Wood Johnson foundation. Multiple recipients will be awarded. “…call for proposals will support opportunistic, time-sensitive studies on emerging or anticipated changes in physical activity-related policies or environments. Rapid-response grants are expected to accelerate progress toward policy and environmental strategies to prevent […]
Family-oriented grants from the Coca-Cola foundation for programs in Texas, California and New York: The Coca-Cola Foundation is accepting proposals for the Active Healthy Living Program. Programs must address nutrition and physical activity for the whole family in the states of Texas, California, and New York. Grants will range from $10,000 to $25,000. Nonprofits are […]
Great article in the NY Times about the real, physiological effects of exercise on your body which, while everybody knows exercise is good for you, has been poorly understood by science. During the experiment, scientists actually saw how much being fit changes your ability to incinerate fat, moderate blood sugar and otherwise function well. They […]
This has been an oft-asked-for feature: Convert your other activities to steps. Say you rode your bike for 5 miles and your pedometer only registered 18 steps: You want credit for that! Now our custom programs can do just that. If you’re a program administrator, turn this feature on under Features in your administration panel. […]
Corporate HR Administrators often ask us about the Return on Investment (ROI) on walking programs. Here are a few great links that we send them. Calculating ROI can be challenging, since you’re measuring program participation and costs, absenteeism, improved productivity, fewer insurance claims, stress reduction and a variety of other factors, including many non-quantitative benefits […]
I recently received this email: My pedometer is HIGHLY inaccurate. Last night I walked for an hour covering about 3 miles and the pedometer recorded about 300 steps. I’ve tried positioning it different ways and it’s no good. I walked down the hall from my cube to the break room and counted 104 steps, one-way. […]
