Live Life Well Challenges - Healthcare & Benefits Division
Live Life Well Challenges
The new Step into Autumn Challenge is designed to be a fun way for you to reset and enjoy the transitional nature of the season while keeping active. The Challenge is open to all State Plan members and it’s free. Participants will also be eligible for weekly and grand prize drawings.
This 4-week Challenge runs from September 15 - October 12 and is designed to help you renew your movement goals by providing inspiration, ideas, recipes, and prizes. Whether you’re just starting out, have been exercising consistently for years, or are an all-star athlete, the Step into Autumn Challenge will work for you.
Goal
You will set your own activity goal and track your progress using the MediKeeper Wellness Portal. The MediKeeper Wellness Portal will track your steps, and you will track how that meets your goal. MediKeeper replaced Sonic Boom as the Wellness Portal you will use for participating in Challenges, Live Life Well Incentive reporting, and more.
Registration
Registration is open now
The Challenge began September 15, 2025, but you can still register and join!
Visit the MediKeeper portal.
Please make sure your email is correct on the MediKeeper Wellness Portal and that you are allowing MediKeeper to send you notifications. This is the primary way we will involve you in the Challenge. If you do not have an updated email, you will not receive emails during the Challenge with updates, motivation, ideas, and prize winners.
To update your email preferences, log into MediKeeper then click on “My Account.”
Click here for detailed registration and step entry instructions.
How to Record Activity
Starting September 15, enter your steps daily or weekly. You can decide if you want to self-report your activity or sync a supported device – or both- with the MediKeeper Wellness Platform.
Depending on the goal you choose, you may need to manually add steps even if you sync a device. Examples of goals that are not well-counted by a step counter (and estimated step equivalent):
- Doing your physical therapy every day (+2,500 extra steps since many weight/PT exercises are not well counted by a step counter)
- A pack weight goal (+8,000 extra steps to reflect extra weight, 3 days per week)
- Attending a class of your choice (+8,000 extra steps if it’s a class like weight-lifting that isn’t well counted by a step counter)
For example: I wear a FitBit each day, and my regular activity averages about 8,000 steps each day. For the Challenge, I decided I want to start attending at least 2 yoga classes per week in addition to my regular activity. I estimate that a yoga class is equivalent to 5,000 steps. Since my regular activity is 8,000 steps per day, my goal for two days of each week would be to get to 13,000 steps (8,000+5,000). Since I know yoga isn’t well-tracked by a step tracker, I’ll need to log into MediKeeper and add an additional 5,000 steps for each day I attend a yoga class.
Click here for detailed registration and step entry instructions.
Prizes
When you enter steps each week, you’ll be entered in the weekly and grand prize drawings. Entering steps more frequently = a better chance to win prizes!
Choose from prizes like a Kindle Fire, $50 credit towards membership at a gym of your choice, belt bags, Bluetooth speakers and more.
Are you in? Sign up anytime between now and the end of the challenge!
Important Dates:
- Sign-ups: September 8-14
- Contest starts: September 15
- Contest ends: October 12
- Log data by: October 15
- Results posted: October 20
Coming in 2026: The Extra Mile Challenge
The Extra Mile Challenge starts April 27, 2026.
The Extra Mile Challenge is a 5-week physical activity program that encourages participants to start and/or increase their physical activity. The Extra Mile Challenge is designed to create healthy competition between State Agencies by awarding recognition for agencies that 1) have the highest percentage of employees participating, 2) take the most combined steps.
Individual participants will also have the opportunity to win prizes and be recognized.
- Participants will track their “steps” during the challenge; any kind of activity can be converted to steps.
- Each person who actively participates in the program will be eligible for individual prizes. Members can use any step tracking mechanism that works best for them: activity trackers (like FitBits, Garmin, etc.), apps, or entering steps directly into the portal.
- Members participate as individuals but will also be counted towards their agency’s total. Retirees, dependents and spouses will also be welcome to participate.
- An in-person health fair is planned in Helena as a kick-off event for the Challenge; a virtual health fair will also be offered starting on the first day of the Challenge and available throughout the Challenge. HCBD plans to collaborate with the Historical Society by having the health fair at the newly completed Montana Heritage Center.
Challenge Benefits:
- Free and open to all State Plan members
- Lots of great prizes
- Bragging rights for agencies
- Weekly resources and recipes
- Improved health
2026 Challenge Schedule
Stay Active Health Fair:
- In-Person: Helena, April 27, 2026
- Virtual: Coming May 7, 2026
Registration Opens: TBA
Start and End Dates: April 27 - May 31, 2026
Still have questions?
Contact HCBD at (800) 287-8266, (406) 444-7462, TTY (406) 444-1421, or benefitsquestions@mt.gov.
The Holiday Challenge this year encourages personal well-being by motivating you to indulge in healthy self-care. There is motivation as you go along and prizes at the end too!
The challenge is open to all members of the State Plan.
To Join the Contest
TBA
Contest FAQs - TBA
Contest Details
During the holiday season, don’t forget the most important person on your gift list — you! This is the good kind of selfishness — it’s a gift to yourself and those who depend on you to be healthy. For four weeks, you’ll choose from various self-care activities to help you stay connected, practice gratitude, sleep better, and find time for activity. With each day, you’ll be more energized and productive.
- The contest is open to all State Plan members.
- You are only responsible for tracking your own activities as an individual; but are encouraged to ask others on the State Plan to join the challenge as well.
- Each of the four weeks you will focus on a self-care technique (see below under “Self-Care Techniques”), logging one activity a day by clicking the "thumbs up" button under ‘Did you practice self-care today?’
- Use the Contest Chat to share ideas, get ideas, and encourage yourself and others.
- All participants will be entered for prizes!
Important dates:
- TBA
Self-Care Techniques
(You can also choose your own!)
Social Connections (Week 1)
Connect with a friend, family member, or loved one in some meaningful manner once each day this week. Ideas for how to do this are below.
- Use a virtual hangout platform! Check out Zoom, Google Hangouts, or FaceTime to catch up with friends/family
- Activity with a Boomin’ Buddy — walks/bike rides/general fresh air activities
- Teach each other a new skill (cooking, crafting, gardening, etc.)
- Start a virtual book club
- Make time for play — give yourself permission to have some much-deserved FUN (house jam session, board games, group cooking, dance party)
Gratitude (Week 2)
Find ways to be grateful for the blessings in your life. Ideas for how to do this are below.
- Appreciate yourself – use that journal tucked away, write a daily compliment to yourself on a post-it, learn to play that dusty guitar in the corner, practice meditation. You might want to check out Calm, Headspace, Breathe2Relax, or Happify for free guided meditation or other relaxation techniques.
- Get thankful with your community — find someone on your social media feed to give a heartfelt thanks to, write a thank you note or sign to, thank an essential employee in the community, or slip a note into a loved one’s bag.
- Before bed, write down 10 things you’re grateful for.
- Have a local business you appreciate? The next time you visit, mention how grateful you are for them and what they do.
- Inspire others to be thankful — donate to a local volunteer group, farm, or food bank
Sleep (Week 3)
Focus on improving your sleep this week. Ideas for how to do this are below.
- Be consistent! 7-9 hours of sleep are recommended, and going to sleep/waking up around the same time allows your body to know what to expect
- Create a relaxing sleep routine — take a bath, read a book, meditate (no electronics!) to help your mind and body wind down
- Keep it cool, dark, and quiet — your bedroom should be cave-like for the best sleep (no TV, music, light)
- Expose yourself to sunlight before 11 am (or if you are an alternate schedule, within the first 4 hours of waking) for 15 minutes or so.
- Consider your mattress and/or pillow. Is it time to replace them?
- Avoid caffeine, energy drinks, tobacco and alcohol within 4 hours of your bedtime.
Physical Activity (Week 4)
This week, find ways to add a little activity to each day. Ideas for how to do this are below.
- Go on walks with your dog or kids after dinner or during your lunch break with a colleague
- Start a new fitness routine
- Follow online exercise classes and work out from home.
- Grab a friend and head to the gym.
- Walk up the stairs
- Park further away in the parking lot.
- Dance while you make dinner
Have other ideas? Post it in the Contest Chat for everyone to use.
Prizes
The best prize is better health, but all active participants will be automatically entered to win other super cool prizes as well. Winners will choose from a variety of prize choices including: kindle fire, yeti cups, coolers, wireless ear buds, and much more.
Winners will be selected from a random drawing from all participants who reported they had indulged in some self-care consistently during the contest. Prize winners will be announced within two weeks of the end of the Challenge.
Still have questions?
Contact HCBD at (800) 287-8266, (406) 444-7462, TTY (406) 444-1421, or benefitsquestions@mt.gov.