Walk in to Work Out

The goal of Walk in to Work Out is to increase daily physical activity among employees at three different worksites in Glasgow, Scotland.

The Walk in to Work Out program was advertised to employees electronically, through internal mail, and via paychecks. Interested employees completed a screening questionnaire to determine their eligibility for the program.

Program participants received a packet that contained a booklet with written interactive materials based on the transtheoretical model of behavior change, and educational and practical information about choosing routes, maintaining personal safety, showers, and safe cycle storage. In addition, the packets included an activity diary, a workplace map, lists of local bicycle retailers and outdoor shops, local maps, and reflective safety accessories.

The goal of Walk in to Work Out is to increase daily physical activity.

Those employees who were either thinking about or preparing to actively commute were invited to participate in the program. Of those employees, half received the packets right away (intervention group) and the other half received the packets six months later (control group). Over six months, a significantly greater percentage of the intervention group (50 participants; 49%) progressed to a higher stage of active commuting behavior change when compared with the control group (29 participants; 31%).

In addition, among those who were not walking to work at the beginning of the study, participants in the intervention group spent more time per week walking to work (125 minutes for 14 people in the intervention group, 61 minutes for 12 people in the control group).