Today’s post comes from Khushmol Dhaliwal. Khushmol’s MSc thesis focused on exploring risk factors contributing to obesity and unhealthy weight gain among children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. She is currently serving as the Vice-Chair for the 2020-21 OC-SNP National Executive. 

The OC-SNP National Pedometer/Odometer Challenge is an annual week-long event that promotes physical activity and networking with your local OC-SNP chapters and teams across Canada.

This year’s event will mark the 8th anniversary of the challenge and will be led by the OC-SNP Chapter at the University of Alberta along with the National Executive Team. The challenge will be held from March 7th to March 13th, 2021. We are hoping to have many teams sign up across the country to break last year’s record of 3, 984, 865 steps!

It can be challenging to stay active during our Canadian winters, along with the added uncertainties that this past year has brought us, and so we would really like to take this week to promote active living whether that be by heading outside to enjoy your local trails or indoors. Physical activity can take many forms and has many short and long term benefits from: building muscle strength, protecting against chronic diseases, and improving mental health and wellbeing! Our U of A hosts and the National Executive team have many plans to keep us all informed and motivated throughout the week sharing physical activity facts, videos, and tips daily. Stay Tuned!

The ‘steps’ to get involved are very simple:

-Form a team! There is no limit to how many participants can be on each team. All OC local and OC-SNP members are welcome to participate. Complete this  form to register for the event by March 6th, 2021.

-Don’t have a team? Simply register as an individual and we will assign you a team before the challenge begins!

-Each participant will wear a pedometer/odometer (or similar device) for the 7 days. Odometers can be used to convert to “step counts” for individuals who use a wheelchair. Please check out this link to learn more: https://www.10000steps.org.au/support/dashboardsupport/calculating-steps-if-you-are-wheelchair/ 

-Have one “leader” who can gather your team’s steps/meters (through screenshots, pictures) and send this over to the U of A team by March 20th, 2021: consnp@ualberta.ca

-Take 2–3 screenshots/photos of your daily steps/meters using a pedometer app/odometer, if possible. The individual winner or winning OC team will be asked to provide proof of submitted daily steps/meters.

-At the end of the week, submit your step/meter count into Google Forms at this link: 2021 OC-SNP National Pedometer Challenge Submission Form/ Formulaire de soumission OC-ENP 2021 Défi National Podomètre

-Please remember that all participants are to adhere to physical distancing and COVID-19 guidelines put in place by Public Health. 

-Please check out the 2021 challenge booklet and feel free to reach out to us if you have any questions: consnp@ualberta.ca and/or oc-snp@obesitynetwork.ca 

The winning chapter will receive $250 towards a chapter event! 

Have fun and thank you for your participation!

Pedometer Booklet