Employee Health & Fitness Month (EHFM) is an international and national observance of health and fitness in the workplace, createdby two non-profit organizations, the National Association for Health and Fitness and ACTIVE Life. The goal of EHFM is to promote the benefits of a healthy lifestyle to employers and their employees through worksite health promotion activities and environments. Formerly National Employee Health & Fitness Day,Employee Health & Fitness Month has been extended to a month-long initiativein an effort to generate sustainability for a healthy lifestyle and initiate healthy activities on an ongoing basis.

Employers everywhere are invited to participate in EHFM.Throughout EHFM employers will challenge their employees to create Healthy Moments, form Healthy Groups, and develop a Culminating Project. Participants will be able to log these activities on the EHFM website throughout the month, allowing employers and employees to track, share, and promote their individual and group activities.

• Healthy Moments are occasions of healthy eating, physical activity, or personal/environmental health.Examples include: going for a walk; cooking a healthy meal; participating in an exercise class; quitting smoking; scheduling a health assessment and going to the doctor
• Healthy Groups are formed to create a sustainable activity continuing even beyond the month.Examples include: walking, jogging or cycling interest groups; healthy recipe or healthy lunch groups; sports team
• The Culminating Project is an event or project that promotes health throughout the whole company or community.Examples include: planning a company 5K; planting a community garden; creating a company or family fitness event; adopting a company-wide physical activity standard or policy

EMHF is held during the month of May every year. Healthy Moments occur daily, even multiple times a day and are created by individuals and groups. Healthy Groups implement activities to be performed several times throughout the month. Finally, the Culminating Project is developed during EHFM and executed at the end of May.

Employers and employees all over the world implement and participate in healthy activities conveniently at the workplace and within their communities.

EHFM is a great way to kickoff wellness and fitness programs, and bring excitement and compliment existing programs. Worksite wellness programs have been shown to benefit the employer through enhanced employee productivity, improved health care costs, reduced employee absenteeism, and decreased rates of illness and injuries.These programs benefit employees by lowering stress levels, increasing well-being, self-image, and self-esteem, improving physical fitness, increasing stamina, increasing job satisfaction, and potentially reducing weight.

EHFM provides fun andinnovativeways to incorporate wellness at the workplace. Benefits of EHMF include

• Free tool kit provided to wellness coordinators to help guide activities and events
• Promotional items advertising EHFM to employees
• Ability to log and track moments, groups, and projects
• Option to implement friendly competitions and challenges to increase motivation and build teamwork
• Simple and adaptable to any wellness and fitness program
• Create sustainable healthy programs, environments, and policies

EHFM is presented by the National Association for Health & Fitness (NAHF) and ACTIVE Life. For more information visit : www.healthandfitnessmonth.org or contact

NAHF is a non-profit organization that improves the quality of life for individuals in the United States through the promotion of physical fitness, sports and healthy lifestyles. NAHF accomplishes this work by fostering and supporting Governor's and State Councils and coalitions that promote and encourages regular physical activity. For more information visit : http://www.physicalfitness.org/

ACTIVE Life is an Austin-based, 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization.Our mission is to make healthy the norm by enlisting and equipping people and places to build and sustain healthy communities. For more information visit : http://www.activelifehq.org/