Taking "Small Steps" Towards Better Health

CSX has long been known for its dedication to employee health and well-being. In its most recent initiative called Small Steps, the CSX Health & Wellness team is providing easy access for all employees to a fitness regimen which simply includes walking. Aptly named, the Small Steps program makes high quality pedometers available to all CSX employees for use in tracking how many steps they walk each day and encourages them to increase the number of steps from their baseline measurement. Specially designed software then tallies each person's progress in steps, miles and calories burned as compared to others in their division, region and across the company as a whole.

Small Steps is an interactive program that encourages associates to achieve 10,000 total steps (about 5 miles) each day. Participants use a USB pedometer and a website to see how they match up to other associates.

No doubt, the built-in competition between associates is one powerful motivator. "I couldn't count how many times someone has said that he or she took a late evening walk just to stay one step ahead, literally, of another associate," says Ken Glover, Health & Wellness Director.

"Walking is usually the first physical activity health professionals recommend because it's a great low-impact exercise for promoting weight loss and preventing disease that's been the focus of a lot of studies. And, most of those studies point to 10,000 steps a day as the minimum amount needed to achieve the greatest benefit. For most people, that works out to about 5 miles, and that's what we want everyone working towards through a combination of exercise and the steps they normally walk on any given day. But the main focus is to improve at your own pace -- one step at a time. We encourage individualized activity progression in order to promote participation and a safe way for everyone to approach a healthy lifestyle."

By all statistical measures, the program has been a resounding success. Just about 6 months old, the program already claims 1,409 participants from 13 divisions with a total of 79,976 daily entries and 206,745 total miles logged. Participants also have burned 20,193,109 calories or the equivalent of 9,137 Outback Bloomin' Onions and 1,177,875 grams (or 40,616 McDonald's Big Macs' worth) of fat.

"The Small Steps program is just one part of a multidisciplinary approach to diet, exercise and lifestyle to help our people take control of their health," says Glover. He credits the success of the program that has attracted associates from every region, every age and every function of the company to its simplicity and its entertainment factor.

The program is the first of many to encourage associates to adopt physical activities that are engaging and that work. "Staying physically active isn't just a great strategy for staying healthy. It's also a great way to have more fun in life," says Glover. "In that sense, these are the first Small Steps in a long line of interesting programs to come."