8-week Employee Health Challenge At A University Setting To Promote Healthy Habits And Well-being

PURPOSE: To evaluate the impact of an 8-week “Whole Health Challenge” (WHC) on physical activity (PA), dietary habits, sleep, well-being, and biomarkers of university employees. METHODS: The 8-week WHC focuses on promoting PA, fruit/vegetable (F/V) intake, water intake, sleep, and mindfulness of employees. PA and F/V intake goals were the same for all participants, set to meet the PA Guidelines and Dietary Guidelines. Personal goals were set for water intake, sleep, and mindfulness. Goal achievement was self-recorded daily on a spreadsheet. Seventy individuals completed the WHC but only 61 (49 females/12 males; 33 staff/28 faculty; BMI = 28.4 ± 0.7 kg/m2) completed all post-assessments. Measures obtained at pre- and post-testing included fasting blood pressure (BP), lipemia, glycemia, anthropometrics, PA Vital Signs, PA Enjoyment Scale (PACES), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), health and dietary questionnaires. RESULTS: Mean goal compliance for the WHC was 71.7 ± 2.6%. Weight, BP, and lipemia did not change significantly over 8-weeks. However, improvements were observed for aerobic PA (pre = 127.41 ± 11.43, post = 163.84 ± 11.56 min/wk, p < 0.001), F/V intake (pre = 4.18 ± 0.21, post = 4.98 ± 0.22 servings/day, p = 0.002), water intake (pre = 48.67 ± 3.14, post = 59.04 ± 3.29 ounces/day, p < 0.001), and PSQI (pre = 5.58 ± 0.37, post = 4.73 ± 0.33, p < 0.001). Significant correlations were observed for changes in aerobic PA (min/wk) with changes in days of resistance PA (r = 0.335, p = 0.010) and PACES scores (r = 0.358, p = 0.007). Changes in F/V intake was inversely correlated with changes in weight (r = -0.420, p < 0.001), systolic BP (r = -0.429, p < 0.001), and glucose (r = -0.279,p = 0.036). Self-ratings on a 5-point scale of physical health status improved significantly after the WHC, as did the self-ratings for mental health and wellness (both Z = -2.837, p = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Participation in the 8-week WHC did not result in changes in cardiometabolic parameters but did translate to significant improvements in lifestyle behaviors that support the overall well-being of university employees.