Promote a supportive culture for physical activity in your community.
The 10,000 Steps Program is a free and interactive program for workplaces, communities, and various groups to cultivate social and physical environments that promote active living and foster healthy people and healthy places. Physical activity is a complex behaviour that can be influenced by many factors; this is why 10,000 Steps was developed as a multi-strategy program.
10,000 Steps has dedicated resources, tools, strategies, and engagement activities to support organisations to promote physical activity and active living.
Are you a workplace?
Why is physical activity important in the community?
More than half of adults are not meeting the recommended physical activity guidelines, resulting in an increased risk of chronic diseases, obesity and other health complications. When we combine busy work lives, longer commutes, and home duties that don't require us to be very active, we often do not reach the recommended level of physical activity. By embracing the 10,000 Steps Program, communities are actively working towards reversing this trend and improving health and wellbeing within the community.
Improving physical activity within the community is a complex preventive health topic. However, there are many opportunities to address this and even small changes can have a positive impact at all levels: as a community, as a society, and at a local, state, and national level. From policies, to culture, environments to social support - the ripple effects of physical activity to prevent chronic diseases and cancers as well as improving mood, concentration, and emotional health is supported by a plethora of evidence.
“Increased levels of physical inactivity have negative impacts on health systems, the environment, economic development, community well-being and quality of life.”
10,000 Steps in the community
'10,000 steps' per day puts a focus on the accumulation of physical activity across the whole day, not just during organised sport and exercise. In communities, simple actions play a pivotal role in reducing sedentary behaviour and improving overall health and wellbeing, such as:
- Encourage the community to sign up to 10,000 Steps and start tracking their step count and activity.
- Promote the benefits of increased physical activity and the 10,000 Steps Program to increase community participation in walking and physical activity as a part of people's everyday lives.
- Use social media and communication channels to showcase and highlight the places to walk and be active in your community such as local walking paths, beaches, hikes, playgrounds, and other green spaces.
- Create supportive environments to encourage the community to choose active transport such as walking or riding to work.
- Promote easy and simple ways to increase people's everyday physical activity levels such as taking the stairs, walking or riding to work, taking the dog for a walk daily, walking while children are doing sporting activities, or walking while on the phone.
By incorporating activity trackers or pedometers into daily routines, individuals can stay motivated and track improvements in their overall wellbeing and physical activity levels. Activity trackers are a tool that reminds us to get moving and achieve step count goals.
The benefits of increased physical activity in communities include:
- Boosted engagement and community connection
- Improved social support and cultural changes toward physical activity
- Increased capacity for supportive and safe walking environments
- Reduced chronic disease risk factors
- Increased community knowledge about physical activity and knowledge of government strategies and evidence
- Increased networking of stakeholders in communities to build capacity for physical activity promotion
Strategies for Communities
The 10,000 Steps Program empowers communities to drive culture change and policy transformation to foster healthier environments. There are a number of 10,000 Steps strategies that communities can utilise to increase physical activity levels as a part of people's everyday lives. This includes the fun and exciting team Tournaments and Health Challenges.
Communities can coordinate a 10,000 Steps team Tournament. A 10,000 Steps Tournament is a free and interactive tool that promotes and enhances health and wellbeing within the community. A Tournament involves forming teams, embracing a competitive spirit, wearing pedometers or activity trackers, tracking steps on the 10,000 Steps website or app, and integrating activity and movement into everyday life.
Health Challenges are also a widely used strategy in communities. A 10,000 Steps Health Challenge is designed to ignite motivation and foster camaraderie among participants. Health Challenges are special events often organised by large organisations or for community-wide use, and can have one large team or multiple teams. These challenges have a public leaderboard and open registration. Health Challenges allow participants to monitor weight and waist girth improvements throughout the challenge, in addition to step count.
Broader promotion of 10,000 Steps
By leveraging the wealth of exclusive resources provided by 10,000 Steps, communities can effectively promote healthy people and healthy places. From engaging promotional materials and informative signage, to communication graphics, and step-by-step action plans, 10,000 Steps equips communities with the necessary tools to create safe environments for physical activity and promote active living.
10,000 Steps Walkway Signage is a great way to influence a large number of people in the community, as it promotes an environment that is more conducive to physical activity and promotes walkable green spaces. The measured and marked walkways include signs that identify the length of a walking route, as well as signs at various intervals that identify directions and distances to local destinations in steps, minutes, and meters.
The Dog Walking Strategy aims to assist local councils in encouraging physical activity through the promotion of responsible dog walking in the community.
If you are looking to make a powerful impact with minimal effort, communities can promote the use of 10,000 Steps for individuals and advertise the 10,000 Steps Monthly Challenges. Individuals can join our exciting and free Monthly Challenges, and embark on a virtual adventure to different locations each month. These challenges are open to everyone, are conducted online, and can be tailored to match an individual's activity levels and preferences.
To assist you in making informed decisions, we have provided a concise overview of the recommended 10,000 Steps strategies based on the different levels of capacity required.
Get started now!
To get started, register your organisation with 10,000 Steps.
The 10,000 Steps Program has developed into one of Australia’s largest, longest running, and most recognised community health promotion projects, and has successfully been implemented by over 19,000 organisations. Regardless of the size, location, or industry of your organisation, the 10,000 Steps Program can be tailored to accommodate and cater to your organisation’s unique circumstances and requirements.
Each organisation nominates a Coordinator who is responsible for implementing 10,000 Steps strategies in the community. You may have one main Coordinator or multiple Coordinators who work together (e.g., A local council may have a representative from Parks, Sport and Recreation, Marketing, or Human Resources).
Coordinators have exclusive access to a wide range of tools and resources designed to support communities in implementing 10,000 Steps strategies and coordinating team Tournaments and Health Challenges. This includes evidence-based guides, templates, graphics, step-by-step action lists, and more!