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yourlife@gwu.edu 2033 K Street, NW Suite 220 Washington, DC 20037 |
Start! Walking Challenge
Frequently Asked Questions
Why walk?
Walking is a low cost exercise that burns calories,
improves blood flow, increases bone strength, as well as providing a number of
other health benefits. And you can do it anywhere - all you need is a
good pair of shoes! Check out our Walking Fit Facts page for more info.
Do I need to walk at a certain time or following a
certain route?
No – you can walk anywhere, anytime. Just don't forget to log your miles on-line through the MyStart! Online Tool. That's the only way we know how many miles you've walked. To register for the MyStart! Online Tool, download and follow the Registration Instructions.
What if my teammates can’t walk at the same time?
That’s ok! As a team, you can choose to either
walk together, or walk separately. The primary purpose of the team is to
motivate each other to walk so that the whole team will reach the 52.5 mile per
person goal.
How can I figure out how far I walked?
There are a number of
different ways to figure out your walking distance. Here are a few quick tools and techniques:
- Use a pedometer to count your steps. On the MyStart! Online Tool you can
convert your steps into miles.
1,000 steps = 0.5 miles
- Use an on-line tool like Gmaps Pedometer. Through this site, you can plot out your
route and find out just how far you walked. You can also use this site to plan new
routes to walk.
- On average, we walk a mile in 20
minutes. So if you don’t have a
pedometer and don’t have time to plot your route on Gmaps Pedometer, you
can quickly estimate the distance you walked by how long you spent
walking. A 30 minute walk would be
approx. 1.5 miles.
Why can’t I enter half miles into the MyStart! Online
Tool?
Unfortunately, the MyStart!
system does not allow you to enter anything but whole miles on your activity
log. However, there is a way to trick
the system! If you put in the total
steps rather than the total miles, the system will calculate fractions of a
mile. A ½ mile equals 1,000 steps. So if you walked 1.5 miles, enter 3,000 steps
on your activity log. Then click
“Convert Steps to Miles”.
How can I find other people to walk with?
There are a couple options for walking with others:
1. Take advantage of all the walking tours offered
around DC. You might want to check out DC by Foot – offering free
tours around
2. Motivate your coworkers or other GW staff to
walk with you. Whether or not they are part of the program, they might
appreciate the opportunity to get some exercise and turn out to be a great
walking buddy!
Where can I walk?
You can walk anywhere!
Check out the walking routes we mapped out for you on the Foggy Bottom and Virginia campuses. We tried to include a number of different routes at increasing distances. If you have suggestions for additional routes, let us know!
In addition, if you are looking for
ideas around the Foggy Bottom and
Or, you might consider trying out this self-guided GW walking tour of the Foggy Bottom or Mount Vernon campus
Want to explore the Washington's memorials? Try out DC By Phone to enjoy a free audio through your cell phone.
I signed up through Colonial Community, but I lost the email and don't have
the official program website. What is it?
The official
program site is: http://startchallengetool.com/
Once you've signed up through Colonial Community, make sure you go to this site
to officially register. To register for the MyStart! Online Tool, download and follow the Registration Instructions. Through this site you will be able to record your
miles and calculate your total walking distance.
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Recipe of the
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