Every September AMSG team members lace up their sneakers and log their miles in our annual Steps Challenge, a tradition now three years strong.
How It Works
The challenge is simple: almost any kind of movement counts. Walking, running, biking, workouts, if you’re moving, it’s in! Team members from across the country (and beyond) are split up in teams for some friendly contract-to-contract competition. To keep spirits high there’s a group chat buzzing with updates, encouragement, and a little playful trash talk.
More Than Just Numbers
This year, 53 participants took part, making it one of our biggest Challenges yet. Some hit the treadmill or the pavement bright and early, while others joined with coworkers for lunchtime walks. Many outstepped their totals from last year. From start to finish, it was inspiring.
The Results Are In
Together, we logged:
- 15,118,813 steps
- About 7,559 miles, the equivalent of walking from DC to Los Angeles and back, and then starting the return trip again!
- Or 288 marathons stacked end to end.
The competition was tight, with only a few hundred steps separating several spots on the leaderboard and some exciting mini-battles between teams along the way!
A Stepper’s Perspective
Our 2025 Steps Challenge winner, Penieli Vaisagote, shared a powerful reflection on what the challenge meant to him:
“The path to exceeding your limits is paved with choices. Each step taken in pursuit of a goal demands a reckoning with what isn’t done. Sleep sacrificed, leisure postponed… these are the visible costs. But the true measure isn’t simply what you give up, but whether the challenge sharpens you, strengthens you, and ultimately reveals a version of yourself worth the trade. Just ensure the summit reached doesn’t come at the expense of the base camp, family and duty, for a victory truly won requires everything still standing when you return.”
He also shared some key takeaways that resonate with the spirit of this event:
- Opportunity: The competition offers the chance to push personal boundaries, improve fitness, and practice the discipline of sustained effort.
- Opportunity Cost: It comes with trade-offs, less sleep, less leisure, when you dedicate yourself fully.
- Balancing Priorities: True success means not losing sight of what matters most; family and work commitments.
- Self-Improvement: At its heart, the challenge is about growth and becoming stronger through effort.
This challenge is about more than steps. It’s about community, respect, and lifting each other up.