We’ve all heard of the 10,000 steps a day target; we know the benefits of achieving it both for our physical and mental wellbeing, but just how hard is it? We caught up with a small team onboard Aurora who’ve been taking on the challenge to get more ships’ company moving.
The team made up of Richard Finan; 2nd Officer, Mark McCarthy; 1st Officer, Simon Love; Captain, Warren Payne; Safety Officer and Heather Elder; Deck Cadet, first took on the challenge adopting the infamous 10,000 step target, but quickly exceeded it walking an average of 14,000 steps a day!
“There were certainly some harsh conditions during the first few weeks and for a few days we had to walk inside but overall most of our steps were taken during the working day. This challenge was a little tricky for our two watch keepers who had less opportunity to up their steps whilst on watch but we all exceeded the target by making small changes such as taking the stairs instead of the lift and taking ourselves for a walk around the deck! A daily comment to each other was “How many steps did we do yesterday?” and we would always try and beat it the following day.”
Warren Payne, Safety Officer
Well done to team Aurora who hit their target (and then some), and also helped to inspire ships’ company to get out on the deck, for a walk or run.
Just like team Aurora we can all make small changes to boost our step counts. Try setting reminders to move, building a walk into your day or choosing to use the stairs instead of a lift when you can.