Running from 1 to 21 September, the challenge was designed to get Australians moving and collectively complete 1 million moves across the country. 

Murdoch Active joined the challenge with the aim of completing one million moves as a university team and managed to complete over 550,000 moves as the largest team of 250 staff, students and local community members. 

Alex Iles, Chief Experience Officer at Murdoch University, said the challenge was an accessible and inclusive experience, providing a great opportunity for friends, colleagues, and peers to participate by doing whatever movement they prefer.

“For us, the Million Moves Challenge reflects everything that we stand for when it comes to sports and recreation at Murdoch University,” he said.

“Whilst performance forms an important aspect of our education and research, there can be a tendency for it to be the focal point of the conversation. That’s why, for me, this is a great initiative - it places just as much emphasis on the other fundamentals: inclusivity, participation, and togetherness.”

Associate Professor Brendan Scott, from Murdoch University’s School of Allied Health, is evaluating the challenge to research exercise habit formation and how people engage with the challenge.

“We know that lots of Australians aren't doing as much physical activity as they should. 75% of Australians don't meet the physical activity guidelines. We need to improve that,” he said. 

“Million Moves is an accessible challenge that's engaging, hopefully with these populations who typically don't do as much exercise as they should, to start forming those habits and make them more physically active.”

Associate Professor Scott says the project is monitoring and collecting data from participants at key stages before, during, and after the challenge to understand how people interact with exercise. 

“Our research project aims to understand what motivates people to exercise and what barriers might be in place that prohibit them from doing exercise,” he said. 

“We're also looking to understand how that factors into their commencement and participation in the challenge, and if that changes over the three weeks.”