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CORVALLIS - The health promotion department at Oregon State University's Student Health Services is sponsoring a new program to encourage physical activity among OSU students, faculty and staff. The four-week program will offer an introduction to fitness concepts and suggestions for integrating more activity into individuals' lifestyles.

The program, "Beaver Strides," is designed to encourage less physically active people on campus to analyze their behaviors and seek ways to become more active. The health promotion department will make pedometers available to 100 people on campus to help them measure their progress.

"There is a percentage of people on campus - students and employees - who are not active at all," said Melissa Blanchard, a master's student in public health administration. "It may be that they are reluctant to join a gym, or it may be for some other reason. Our goal is to offer a low intensity program as a first step toward helping people think about becoming more active on the way to lifelong fitness."

The program will offer kickoff sessions at noon and 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 15, at Student Health Services (Plageman Building Room 322). The program is free to OSU students, staff and faculty.

The first week will focus on helping participants understand basic fitness concepts and evaluate their own habits. The tiny pedometers will measure the number of steps the students and employees take each day. In succeeding weeks, the focus will shift to increasing the number of steps.

"We hope to help people make conscious decisions to create more opportunities for activity," said Malinda Shell, a health educator with Student Health Services. "Parking a bit farther away from campus is one possibility. Taking the stairs instead of the elevator is another. This program isn't aimed at people who work out on a regular basis - it's for those who do little or nothing at all, but would like to explore the possibility of getting fit. It's the first step."

Participants in the program will be able to go on group walks, learn more about easy hikes in the Corvallis area, attend motivational meetings, and have an option to buy the pedometers once the initial four weeks of the program are over, according to Celine Hollombe, a graduate assistant with the program.

In addition to offering weekly events, the program sponsors plan to launch several fitness campaigns, including a "Walk to Work Week" and "Avoid E-Mail Week."

For more information on the program call 541-737-2775, or send e-mail to Beaver.Strides@oregonstate.edu