Become a healthier version of yourself — while connecting with friends and colleagues — by taking part in the School of Public Health and Health Professions’ (SPHHP) ninth annual Step Challenge.

Registration is now open for the challenge, taking place April 1-30. It is free and open to the public.

Participants in the challenge are asked to log their individual step counts during the month of April. All participants actively stepping, regardless of distance, will qualify to win various prizes each week throughout the challenge. Prizes among the prizes are smart water bottles; UB merchandise, including a UB Columbia quarter-zip sports pullover; and a heated shiatsu foot massager.

Challenge participants will be using a new app, StepSense, to record their steps this year. Selected for the challenge in consultation with the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, StepSense meets all of UB’s accessibility standards. It can be downloaded from the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, Huawei App Gallery or Desktop.

Last year, nearly 1,900 members of the UB community logged more than 432 million steps.

A social media contest will also take place throughout the challenge. Social media users are encouraged to post pictures and videos of themselves actively participating in the challenge. Participants who choose to officially enter the social media contest must follow and tag @UBSPHHP, while using the hashtag #UBSteps24 on Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn and Tik Tok.

The challenge is part of SPHHP’s celebration of National Public Health Week April 1-7, an annual campaign organized by the American Public Health Association to recognize and celebrate public health and highlight issues that are important to improving our nation’s health. The full list of NPHW events, which are open to the community, can be found on the SPHHP website.

To register and learn more about the 2024 Step Challenge, visit the challenge’s website.