(Lincoln, Neb.) Gov. Dave Heineman today congratulated state employees who have reached the goal in the Walk This Way wellness program. Participants were challenged to meet or exceed 360,000 steps by March 31, 2010. To date, approximately 40 percent of enrolled employees have met or exceeded their distance goal, including Gov. Heineman. More than 200 state employees have reached one million steps. 

The program began on July 6. Currently, participating employees are averaging over 525,000 steps with the total of all participant logged steps at approximately 342,000 miles or approximately 14 times around world.

The Walk This Way is a program designed to help boost employee activity level and enhance overall health by increasing physical activity. Outcomes as a result of Walk This Way program include increased physical activity, weight loss, reduced stress, lowered cholesterol, lowered blood pressure, and more energy.

Twenty-six percent of state workers are enrolled in the wellness plan. Nebraska is believed to be the first state offering state workers a comprehensive plan for health insurance designed to encourage wellness and healthy lifestyles. A total of 3,594 workers initially enrolled in the Wellness PPO plan and 2,732 employees enrolled in the Walk This Way program.

In addition to the Walk This Way program, there are two additional programs in the wellness plan. There is a Health Coaching program which currently has 2,685 employees enrolled and focuses on lifestyle choices such as physical activity, healthy eating, smoking cessation, and stress management.  The final program is a Condition Management coaching program which focuses on seven chronic areas associated with heart and respiratory conditions, depression, diabetes, and back pain and has 108 employees enrolled.