The 5 Most Popular YuMuuv Challenges (and How to Choose Yours)

YuMuuv offers more than 40 challenge activities, but across the more than 1,300 companies that have used the platform, five keep coming out on top: steps, exercise minutes, distance, water drinking and wellness points. They're easy to join, simple to track and work for people at every fitness level. Here's why each one works, when to use it and how to set it up well.

The 5 most popular challenges at a glance

Challenge	Tracking	Why teams choose it	Best for
Steps	Automatic	Anyone can join with a phone	First challenges, whole-company events
Exercise minutes	Automatic	Every type of workout counts	Mixed fitness levels
Distance	Automatic	A clear finish line and a journey to follow	Team goals and virtual routes
Water drinking	Manual	A simple habit with no fitness barrier	Including people who skip fitness challenges
Wellness points	Automatic and manual	Many ways to earn points	Whole-person wellbeing programs

1. Step challenge

The step challenge is the classic for a reason. Almost everyone walks, almost everyone carries a phone that counts steps, and the numbers are easy to understand. Steps sync automatically from Apple Health, Google Fit and Health Connect, Garmin, Fitbit and other wearables, so nobody has to log anything.

• Why it works: no equipment, no skill, and an obvious daily action: take a walk.
• Set it up well: pick a realistic target (many teams start around 7,000 to 8,000 steps a day), consider a consistency goal so people are rewarded for regular days rather than one huge one, and set a daily step limit per user to keep the leaderboard fair.
• Make it social: teams, a collective target such as walking from Berlin to Tokyo, and photo threads in the challenge chat. Windrose did exactly that during its summer well-being weeks (read the Windrose case study).

Step-by-step guidance: how to create a step challenge.

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2. Exercise minutes challenge

An exercise minutes challenge counts the time people spend being active, whatever the activity: a yoga class, a bike ride, a football match or a brisk walk. Because time is the measure, a gentle 30-minute session counts the same as an intense one, which makes it one of the fairest formats for mixed groups.

• Why it works: people move the way they enjoy, and beginners can compete alongside regular gym-goers.
• Set it up well: anchor the goal to the WHO recommendation of 150 to 300 minutes of moderate activity a week, or start lower for a beginner-friendly challenge. You can count all exercise or focus on one activity type.
• Good to know: learn how active minutes are measured in what are active minutes.

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3. Distance challenge

A distance challenge adds up the kilometers or miles people cover by walking, running, cycling and other distance sports. It gives the challenge a clear finish line and a story: the team is going somewhere together.

• Why it works: people choose how to contribute (someone with sore knees can cycle instead of run) and everyone can follow progress along a route.
• Set it up well: link the target to a real journey, such as the distance between two offices or a famous route, and use a collective goal so every kilometer counts toward the team result.
• Real example: Schnabel's 47 participants walked "from Virginia to Paris" and beat their 8-million-step goal by 464% (read the Schnabel case study).

More ideas: distance-based challenges.

4. Water drinking challenge

Not every wellness challenge has to involve exercise. In a water drinking challenge, participants log the water they drink each day in the app. There's no fitness barrier, so it brings in people who would never sign up for a step contest.

• Why it works: it's a small, visible habit that anyone can do at their desk, and it shows the program is about overall wellbeing, not just sport.
• Set it up well: use a daily consistency goal rather than "most liters wins". More isn't better beyond a person's needs, which vary with body size, activity and climate.
• Pair it: water works well alongside a walking challenge. UPL OpenAg's first phase combined steps and water (read the UPL OpenAg story).

Background reading: hydration and workplace wellness.

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5. Wellness points challenge

A wellness points challenge combines several activities into one challenge with a points system. Steps, workouts, sleep, mindfulness and water can all earn points, so every participant can play to their strengths.

• Why it works: it rewards a balanced lifestyle and gives non-athletes many ways to contribute.
• Set it up well: keep the points table short and easy to understand, cap points per activity per day so no single activity dominates, and balance movement with recovery habits like sleep.
• Go further: see the wellness points system guide and the year-long Total Wellness Points Challenge.

How to choose the right challenge

• Running your first challenge? Start with steps. It has the lowest barrier and the clearest results.
• Worried about the same people winning every time? Use exercise minutes or a consistency goal.
• Want a strong team story? Choose distance with a collective target and a virtual route.
• Want to include people who don't like fitness challenges? Add a water drinking challenge.
• Building a year-round program? Use wellness points to combine movement and habits.

Many companies rotate between these formats over the year. For more ideas, see our wellness challenge ideas.

Frequently asked questions

1. What is the most popular YuMuuv challenge?

The step challenge. It works with just a phone, syncs automatically and is easy for everyone to understand.

2. Can we run two challenges at the same time?

Yes. Pairing a movement challenge (steps or distance) with a habit challenge (water or sleep) is a common way to reach more people.

3. How long should a challenge last?

Two to six weeks is a good range for most teams: long enough to build a habit, short enough to keep the energy up.

Ready to launch one of these challenges? Book a YuMuuv demo and we'll help you set it up.