7 Fun Workplace Wellness Challenges Your Employees Will Enjoy
To help you create a healthier and more engaged workplace, we asked CEOs, founders, and social impact managers to share their favorite wellness challenges that employees actually enjoy. From planning a spooky-themed event to allowing for autonomy in self-care, discover these top five workplace wellness challenges that have proven to be a hit among employees.
- Plan for a Spooky “HallowGreen”
- Boost Hydration With The Drink Water Challenge
- Promote Healthy Lifestyles With Physical and Mental Olympics
- Try a Camaraderie-boosting Step Challenge
- Promote an Aligned, Simple Activity
- Embrace the Movement Minute
- Allow Autonomy for Self-Care Goals
Plan for a Spooky “HallowGreen”
For the past 7 years, the Random Acts of Green annual HallowGreen Challenge is designed to help educate and activate groups with different things they can do during the month of October. Scare away eco-anxiety by taking action with this environmental challenge.
After all, not taking action for the planet is a grave mistake. The unique, fun take on Halloween themes, pun-y action prompts, and gamification inspires friendly competition leading to tangible engagement. Actions include: Plan a Monster-Mash Plant-Based Meal, Leave The World Wide Web—go outside, Don’t be a Forgetful Frankenstein—bring a reusable water bottle and stay hydrated, and many more.
Actions can be logged on a mobile app to help keep track and measure the individual and group impact of CO2 saved by choosing healthy low-carbon actions.
Alannah Hardcastle
Social Impact Manager, Random Acts of Green
Boost Hydration With The Drink Water Challenge
Our team has a lot of fun doing drink water challenges. We work fully remotely. I start off the challenge by posting a Slack thread. Throughout the day, employees should drink one glass of water per hour and hit a water drop emoji when they do. At the end of the day, employees who completed the challenge and drank throughout the day get entered into a raffle for a gift card.
Our team loves this activity because it is easy and doable in one day. Longer wellness challenges are easier to forget, but this short sprint makes it simple and fun for folks to participate. We do this exercise regularly, and many team members have kicked off better habits and started to stay hydrated all the time as a result.
Kate Duske
Editor in Cheif, Escape Room Data
Promote Healthy Lifestyles With Physical and Mental Olympics
I am delighted to share one workplace wellness challenge that our employees truly enjoy: The Total Shape Olympics. Our team members eagerly look forward to this annual event, which brings together fitness, fun, and healthy competition.
The Total Shape Olympics is a week-long challenge that encourages employees to participate in various physical activities and wellness-related tasks. The goal is to promote a healthy lifestyle while fostering team spirit and camaraderie among our staff. This event has become a highlight of our company culture and has proven to be a highly effective way to engage employees in their well-being.
The challenge consists of a range of activities that cater to different interests and fitness levels. We have activities such as relay races, obstacle courses, yoga classes, and even mental wellness workshops. By offering a diverse set of options, we ensure that everyone can find something that resonates with them and feels accessible.
Isaac Robertson
Co-Founder, Total Shape
Try a Camaraderie-boosting Step Challenge
There are a few reasons why the step challenge has been successful in my experience. First, it is a relatively easy challenge to participate in. Many employees already track their steps using a fitness tracker or smartphone app, so it requires minimal effort to participate.
Second, it is a challenge that can be done individually or in teams, which creates a sense of camaraderie and encourages friendly competition. Finally, it is a challenge that is easy to measure and track, which makes it easy to see progress and celebrate accomplishments.
In addition to being enjoyable, a step challenge also has many health benefits. Encouraging employees to increase their daily activity can help reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. It can also improve mental health by reducing stress and increasing energy levels.
Matthew Ramirez
CEO, Rephrase
Promote an Aligned, Simple Activity
The challenge is simple yet impactful: encourage employees to track their daily water intake and aim for a specific goal. By implementing this challenge, not only do we promote the importance of hydration, but this challenge also aligns perfectly with our beauty and wellness values.
Diane Howard
Founder, Esthetic Finesse
Embrace the Movement Minute
One workplace wellness challenge that employees may enjoy is the “Movement Minute” challenge. This challenge involves encouraging employees to engage in physical activity or movement for one minute every hour.
The “Movement Minute” challenge not only promotes physical health but also helps break up sedentary behavior, which is a common issue in many office environments. Employees can choose from a variety of activities, such as stretching, walking, or doing simple exercises.
Previously, employees have chosen a one-minute wall sit or completing 10 pushups. It allows them to incorporate bursts of movement throughout their workday, promoting blood circulation, reducing muscle tension, and increasing energy levels.
This challenge can be made more enjoyable by incorporating friendly competition or team participation, where employees can track their movement minutes and celebrate achievements together.
Trey Ferro
CEO, Spot Pet Insurance
Allow Autonomy for Self-Care Goals
As a productivity-focused workplace, challenges are a great way to keep up the motivation. One of our more popular and well-received challenges has been self-care, with the employees having the autonomy to decide their own goals.
For one person, self-care can mean a little journaling time; for another person, it might mean a skin or hair care routine—whatever works! The key is to let them take control and encourage each other to meet their self-care targets.
Manasvini Krishna
Founder, Boss as a Service
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