A January walking challenge in four short rounds

Short answer

A January walking challenge works best as four short rounds, not 31 days in a row. Walk & Water rounds start Tuesday, January 5, 2027, and run Tuesday to Thursday each week with a team of two to four. Your first two rounds are free, and you can walk it with friends or coworkers.

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First two rounds free · teams of 2–4 · a new round every Tuesday

By Coach Josh · Get Your BMR

1 source · Reviewed October 29, 2026

The short version

  • Four 3-day rounds instead of a 31-day streak
  • Starts Tuesday, January 5, 2027
  • Your first two rounds are free
Illustration: a wall calendar with three days highlighted beside sneakers by the door.

Why short rounds beat a 31-day streak

In a month-long streak, one missed day can feel like starting over. With weekly rounds, every Tuesday is a fresh start, and every Friday is a finish line you can see.

Your step goal is sized to you, and teams rank on their average, so a beginner and a daily walker can be on the same team.

The January 2027 calendar

All four rounds run Tuesday to Thursday:

  • Round 1: Tuesday, January 5 to Thursday, January 7
  • Round 2: Tuesday, January 12 to Thursday, January 14
  • Round 3: Tuesday, January 19 to Thursday, January 21
  • Round 4: Tuesday, January 26 to Thursday, January 28

How much to walk

U.S. guidelines advise adults to get at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, and brisk walking counts. That works out to about 30 minutes on five days. In January, a little above your normal day is a better start than a big number.

When it’s cold, dark or snowing

Indoor steps count the same. A treadmill, a walking pad, the mall or laps of the house all reach the board, as long as your phone or watch records them.

Running it at work

January is when many companies start a wellness challenge. To run this one, announce it the week of December 28, share one link or QR code, and let coworkers form teams of two to four. There is no employee list to upload and no organizer dashboard of employee data. Celebrate the Friday winners each week.

Walk it with a team this week

Join a team of 2–4, walk & drink your water Tuesday to Thursday, and see the winners Friday.

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First two rounds free · teams of 2–4 · a new round every Tuesday

The 3-Day Walk & Water Challenge

How a round works

  1. 1. Join a team

    Two to four of you on one team: a friend’s, your own, or one you join in the app. Your team gets a name, a crest & a spot on the live leaderboard.

  2. 2. Walk + water, 3 days

    Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday. A step goal & a water goal sized to where you are today. The board updates as you walk & closes Thursday at midnight, Arizona time.

  3. 3. Friday winners

    Friday morning the results go up. The winning team’s card glows gold, badges land beside names on the board, and a new round starts Tuesday.

Bigger isn’t better. Teams rank on their AVERAGE.

A team’s score is its average per woman, not its total. So two friends can beat a team of four, and every walker’s day counts the same. When one of you goes quiet, the others notice & send a nudge in team chat.

The Walk & Water team card: team name and crest, team level, the average steps per woman, and each teammate’s steps and glasses of water.
Your team card. The big number is the average per woman.
The Walk & Water leaderboard: your rank this week, steps, glasses of water, day streak, and the 3-day challenge rankings.
The live leaderboard. Solo, team & global ranks for this round.

Your January 2027 dates

Each round runs Tuesday to Thursday. The board closes Thursday at midnight, Arizona time, and winners go up Friday.

  1. Round 1: January 5–7

    Start from the steps you walk now. Showing up three days is the whole goal.

  2. Round 2: January 12–14

    Same team, same goal, or a little more if round one felt easy.

  3. Rounds 3 and 4: January 19–21 and 26–28

    Keep the team together through Thursday, January 28, then celebrate the results on Friday, January 29.

Questions

When does the January walking challenge start?

Round 1 starts Tuesday, January 5, 2027. Rounds run Tuesday to Thursday each week, and winners go up on Friday.

Is the January walking challenge free?

Your first two 3-day rounds are free. You can also follow the four-week plan on your own.

Can we do it as a work challenge?

Yes. Coworkers join teams of two to four with their own phones. Each person has a personal step goal, and teams rank on their average score rather than their total.

What if it’s too cold to walk outside?

Walk indoors. Treadmill, walking-pad and indoor steps count as long as your phone or watch records them.

Do iPhone and Android friends walk together?

Yes. Steps come from Apple Health on iPhone and Health Connect on Android, so both can be on one team.

For your company

Tell us about your team

Running this for coworkers? Coach Josh replies personally and helps you set up your first round.

We only use this to reply to you.

Sources

Written by Coach Josh and checked against these sources on October 29, 2026. General information, not medical advice.

Show all 1 source
  1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services — Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition
Coach Josh

Who writes these guides

Coach Josh

Professional trainer since 2018 · ISSA & NCCPT certified · Creator of Get Your BMR & the Walk & Water Challenge (BodyByReason)

I’m Josh. I built Get Your BMR so you could see what your body burns at rest, & I built Walk & Water so you’d have somewhere to use it with people who notice when you show up.

I walk every round too: same board, same three days, on my own team. I don’t always win. Tap Chat with Coach in the app & it’s me who answers.

About 7 in 10 women who finish a round come back & play the next one.

Walk & Water app data, 73 finishers, snapshot October 19, 2026.

Start this week’s round

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First two rounds free · teams of 2–4 · a new round every Tuesday

Not sure where to start? Get your number first

Related guides

Get Your BMR is Coach Josh’s free calculator. The 3-Day Walk & Water Challenge is where you put the number to work, and it runs inside the APEX: Walk & Water app on iPhone and Android.