2023 CLA Wellness Walking Challenge

• The challenge will formally begin on Sunday, July 30, 2023 at 12:00 a.m. (Pacific)
• The deadline to register and form your teams is Tuesday, August 1, 2023.
  • After this date, no additional registrants will be accepted.  Anyone who has not formed or joined a team by August 1 at 11:59 pm will be assigned to a team by challenge administrators.
• The challenge will end on Saturday, September 9, 2023 at 11:59 p.m.

To participate in the challenge, you must utilize the BigTeamChallenge platform which can be accessed via your web browser or through the iOS or Android mobile apps.  If using one of the mobile apps, you will be prompted to enter our challenge domain which is calawyers – the full domain address is calawyers.bigteamchallenge.com.

• Web browser access (calawyers.bigteamchallenge.com) 
• Download the iOS app for Apple devices 
• Download the Android app for Android devices 

Check out these helpful and quick resources from the app provider, Big Team Challenge.  Tutorial videos provided address both the desktop and mobile apps.  

Information and Tutorials for New Users

• How to Register
• Creating a Team 
• Accepting an Invite
• Connecting Your FitBit Device 
• Connecting to Google Fit
• Connecting to Apple Health
• Connecting Your Garmin Device

Frequently Asked Questions

Once the challenge has begun all features of the app platform will become accessible.  You will be able to monitor your personal activities, your team’s activities, and keep tabs on the team leader board.  There are also challenge and distance achievements to keep you motivated.  The challenge administrator will intermittently send communications to participants – these messages will be visible via email and on the app platform under “Challenge Updates”. 

It is important that your step activity be logged by the BigTeamChallenge platform in a timely manner because all achievements which identify winners of prizes and final rankings will be based on the information captured by the challenge platform.  

Challenge participants will be able to log their step activities via FitBit, Garmin Connect, Apple Health, Google Fit, or manually via the challenge app (manual tracking may be eased with the use of a pedometer).  If you have synced your fitness device/app with the challenge app (see “Using the Challenge App” above), your activity will be automatically updated each time you visit the challenge app.  

Tips from past challenge participants: 

• Keep the BigTeamChallenge mobile app running at all times to ease communication between your fitness tracker and the challenge app.
• Being in an area without service may impede or delay the flow of information to the BigTeamChallenge application.  

Please note that once the challenge has begun on July 30th, you must join a team in order to begin logging your step activity – see the “Teams” section below for more details.

We are introducing three tiers of participation in the interest of engaging folks at a variety of fitness levels and to inform the team formation process.  The participation tiers are: 

1. Standard – for individuals who intend to walk 5,000 steps or 2.3 miles six days per week
2. Medium – for individuals who intend to walk 7,000 steps or 3.5 miles six days per week 
3. High – for individuals who intend to walk 10,000 steps or 4.7 miles six days per week

At the time of registration, individuals will select a participation tier (standard, medium, or low) – this selection will not be public but will be visible to challenge administrators.  When an individual establishes a new team, there will be a dropdown menu to designate which tier the team identifies with.  We ask you to please include the team’s tier at the end of the team name (e.g., “Team CLA (Medium)”).  This will help individuals join teams with similar intentions and will assist challenge administrators to make appropriate matches when finalizing teams (i.e., matching incomplete teams with unassigned participants) on August 2nd. 

This challenge is designed to be completed by teams of five in six weeks.  Smaller teams are technically permitted, but strongly discouraged.  The parameters to win will not vary based on team size.  This challenge offers incentives for individual performance in addition to team performance.  See the Challenge Rules for more details. 

Anyone of or over the age of 18 years may participate in this challenge. Challenge participants do not need to be members of CLA nor the legal community to be eligible – family and friends are welcome.

You can watch this two-minute video for some guidance on how to join or form a team.  You are encouraged to use the CLA Health and Wellness Facebook group to connect with others and form a team.  

New in 2023: When an individual establishes a new team, there will be a dropdown menu to designate which tier the team identifies with (see more details within the “Participation Tiers” section).  We ask you to please include the team’s tier at the end of the team name (e.g., “Team CLA (Medium)”).  There will be leaderboards for each participation tier in addition to the all team leaderboard.  

If you have not joined a team by August 1st at 11:59 p.m. (Pacific), you will be assigned to a team by the challenge administrator by August 4th. Please note participants will not be able to begin logging their daily activity until they have joined a team.  If you find yourself without a team by the 08/01 deadline, you can retroactively log your activity from 07/30 – 08/04 (if any) using the manual entry tool on the app platform if your steps do not automatically sync from your fitness tracker.  

• Tip: If you are without a team, but want to begin logging your steps from the outset of the challenge, you can establish your own team and wait to be consolidated by the challenge administrators at the end of the first week.  If you do, your activity will automatically transfer with you once assigned to your new team.  

If a member of your team has not logged any steps, consider reaching out to them directly to check in.  If your team member has not logged any steps by the close of the first week of the challenge (i.e., August 5th) you may contact the challenge administrator.  Depending on the state of other teams and activities of individuals, there may be an opportunity to replace inactive team members.  Challenge administrators will do their best to consolidate and finalize teams, but cannot guarantee complete teams of five nor 100% alignment of individual participation tiers.  The challenge administrator will connect all team members via email as the BigTeamChallenge platform does not currently include any direct communication features.  The CLA Health and Wellness Facebook group is a great outlet to connect with other challenge participants.

In the registration process, all challenge participants are asked to provide their name, email and full mailing address – challenge administrators will use this information to distribute any and all prizes.  To view or update your contact information on file… 

• From the mobile app…
  • Navigate to the “Profile” tab from the main menu
  • Tap “Edit” in the top right corner
  • View and/or make changes to the address in the fifth field
  • Tap “Save” in the top right corner if appropriate
• From the web browser…
  • Navigate to the “Dashboard” from calawyers.bigteamchallenge.com 
  • Click “My Account” in the top right corner
  • Select “Settings” from the drop down menu
  • Click “Additional Information”
  • View and/or make changes 
  • Click the green “Save and Continue” button on the lower right

New in 2023: At the conclusion of the challenge, all active participants will receive a custom digital certificate acknowledging their accomplishments.  

New in 2023: All participants who accomplish the weekly exertion goal of the participation tier they selected at the time of registration for all six weeks of the challenge will be entered into a drawing to win an exclusive CLA swag box.  Two individuals from each participation tier will be drawn for a total of six drawing winners.  The weekly exertion goal for each participation tier is noted below – see the “Distance Estimates & Intentions” section for more detail.

• Standard – 30,000 steps or 13.8 miles
• Medium – 45,000 steps or 21 miles
• High – 60,000 steps or 28.2 miles 

The first three teams which reach the milestone of York (846 miles into our virtual route) will receive the prizes noted below; all members of these three teams will receive one of each item listed.  Please note that if a winner has already purchased registration to attend the 2023 CLA Annual Meeting, they will be eligible to receive a partial refund.  Please see the Challenge Rules for more details about all prizes.  

• 1st Place Team
  • Exclusive CLA swag box
  • $50 gift card to CLA’s online course catalog on InReach
  • Discounted registration to attend the 2023 CLA Annual Meeting (~50% savings) 
• 2nd Place Team
  • $50 gift card to CLA’s online course catalog on InReach
  • Discounted registration to attend the 2023 CLA Annual Meeting (~50% savings) 
• 3rd Place Team
  • $25 gift card to CLA’s online course catalog on InReach
  • Discounted registration to attend the 2023 CLA Annual Meeting (~50% savings) 

The individual who walks the furthest distance by the end of the six week challenge will win a FitBit Charge 5™.

The individual who walks the furthest distance each week of the challenge will win a one-year subscription to the Calm App.  There will be one winner each of the six weeks and an individual may only win once during the 2023 challenge.  

New in 2023: The individual who walks the second furthest distance each week of the challenge will win a pair of trekking poles.  There will be one winner each of the six weeks and an individual may only win once during the 2023 challenge.  This weekly prize is made possible by our generous sponsor, Law Office of Paul J. Cambio.  

The number of steps it takes to walk any distance varies per person.  For example, taller individuals tend to have longer legs and therefore cover more distance with each step, depending on their stride and pace.  The steps/mile ratio used to inform the goals and metrics of this challenge is 2,100 steps per mile.  

One intention of this challenge is to encourage participants to be more consistently active or try routines which incorporate wellness practices.  A crucial element of wellness is rest.  The goals of this challenge are structured to incorporate a rest day each week for all three levels of intended participation.  When it comes to incentives or prizes, we will look at our accomplishments on a weekly basis.  

The virtual route for this year is Going to Extremes, a journey north, south, east and west to the extreme points of Great Britain enjoying some of the island’s many attractions along the way. This route is 1455 miles long, a distance which far exceeds the goals of any participation tier.  The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place teams will be those which reach the York milestone (see the Challenge Rules for more details) – after that, there are ten more milestones to discover.  Will any teams make it to the final milestone at Lizard Point by September 9th?  

Here are some ideas from the Mayo Clinic to conveniently incorporate more steps into your day: 

• Take the dog for a walk. If you don’t have a dog, volunteer to walk dogs at an animal shelter. Or combine your activity with social time by joining a friend to walk his or her dog.
• Try music. A bouncy tune or something with a strong beat can make activity more enjoyable and help motivate you to walk farther or faster.
• Include the family. Instead of an afternoon movie, go for a walk or hike together.
• Walk while waiting. Take a walk instead of sitting when you’re early for an appointment or waiting for a flight.
• Schedule workday walks. Put reminders in your calendar for short walking breaks to ramp up your energy throughout the day. Have a one-on-one meeting? Plan to walk and talk.
• Park farther away. Choose parking spots farther away from the entrance. If you take the bus, get off a stop early and walk the rest of the way.
• Take the stairs. Even going down the stairs counts as steps and burns calories.

California summers can be hot and depending on your location you may be affected by wildfires resulting in poor air quality.  We want everyone to be safe.  Here are a few ideas to get in steps when the outdoor environment is not favorable: 

• Visit an indoor mall, a large department store, or convention center to walk some laps. 
• Shift your routine to walk early in the morning before the sun rises or in the evening as the sun sets.
• Visit the gym and/or do a trial membership.  
• Get out of town for a hike in an area less affected by the heat or air quality.  

All challenge participants will need to register online.  The final phase of the registration process will be to accept both the rules of the challenge and a waiver and release of liability.  The full text of each are provided to you at the time of acknowledgement, but are also available here for reference. 

Challenge Rules 

CLA Waiver and Release of Liability, Assumption of Risk, and Indemnity Agreement

If you have any questions about the app platform, please reach out to the app provider, Big Team Challenge, directly.  To contact Big Team Challenge, visit the challenge app and click the blue and white circular icon in the lower right corner of your screen.  Please note the BTC team operates in the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) zone, M – F from 9:30 am – 5:30 pm.  

If you have questions about the challenge rules, logistics, prizes, or seek accessibility accommodations, you can contact CLA’s Health and Wellness Committee at Wellness@calawyers.org.