fitness

There was such a great response (and requests for a repeat) that we brought the 30 in 30 challenge back for a “Back to School” edition. This time, I teamed up with a fellow Gradpreneur Reka aka The Scholarly Sewist. I was overwhelmed by how much the challenge grew. We even had an unofficial theme song “Walk it Out” by DJ Unk and “Walk it Like I talk It” by the Migos was a close second.

I was admittedly a bit hesitant about running the challenge for a second time because I feared that some of the excitement might get lost if it was offered too regularly. The increase in participation proved me wrong. Here’s a quick comparison:

I’d love to do another challenge with you and the group. It’s really made a difference for me in my first month back to school.”

Asya Spears (Rose Data Studio)

When I took the time to quantify how many miles we collectively put on the app, I was so proud. Not everyone finished, but they all contributed to our 731.09 total. Part of our success could be attributed to the collaboration that this challenge entailed. The Scholarly Sewist and I documented our progress on Instagram Live with a Kick Off Call and a Wrap Up. I think that these went well.

As far as things to improve…One thing that I wish we could do in the future is to find a better way to communicate with each other because that’s one of the limitations of the Nike Run Club. I would also like to do something in person if possible, but we will leave that up to Aunty Rona.

Wow!! I didn’t get all 30, but I did 16 miles, which is more than the last challenge. I look forward to whenever you do this again.”

Octavia Marshall

As the GGW community continues to grow, I look forward to doing more challenges like this and also providing ways for folks to be involved even if they aren’t a fan of cardio–maybe 5 days of yoga? Maybe something related to a different dimension of wellness would be useful.

What type of future challenges would you like to see from Grad Girl Wellness?

For the month of June, the Grad Girl Wellness community put their tennis shoes on and hit the pavement. Grad Girls were challenged with walking and/or running 30 miles in 30 days. We used the Nike Run Club app to track our miles as a collective, and I must say that I am blown away with how well thing went! I received a lot of great feedback about how helpful it was and how people got in the habit of rooting for strangers each time that they increased their mile count. I love it!

This is actually the second time that GGW has hosted a fitness challenge. We did a “back to school” themed challenge in 2020, but this time around was really indicative of how much GGW has grown in the last year. Here’s a quick comparison:

I think you should do it more, even without an award. It’s a great strategy to make us move and relax from our PhDs.”

S.B.C.

The growth is amazing! I was so grateful to have so many people hold me accountable throughout the month of July. Admittedly, I started off really strong and then kind of tapered off towards the end and had to be intentional about ensuring that I finished in time. One person finished in 8 days (!) whereas others of us spread things out over the course of the month. It was great to see everyone’s progress, and I only wish that the Nike App gave you the ability to communicate more directly with people. Maybe they’ll have that update by the time we do this next year (wishful thinking).

This was a fun and motivating challenge.”

K.L.

As the GGW community continues to grow, I look forward to doing more challenges like this and also providing ways for folks to be involved even if they aren’t a fan of cardio. Maybe something related to a different dimension of wellness would be useful.

What type of future challenges would you like to see from Grad Girl Wellness?