Alyssa Caduada, a senior from the Philippines studying psychology with an emphasis on mental health and human performance, said participants can walk, run or bike the designated trails with 1 mile, 1.5 mile and 3 mile routes to choose from.
“Whether people are exercising daily or weekly, weekly is still better than no exercise at all,” said Caduada. “Everyone in the community can participate. You have to find what time of the day works best for you. Just get out there and exercise. The more the better.”
Eckes Anitok Jr., an exercise and sports science major from Waipahu, said, “The whole point of this is for everyone in the community to get out and be physically active and fit time into their schedules to use these routes.”
The group said there are four ways participants can connect with the exercise program and record their progress: Through the Facebook group LongLiveLaie, through Instagram at #RunLaie, through the Strava app at LaieRunningRoutes and through flyers posted around campus.
Anitok said in order to provide proof and record the effectiveness of the group’s ability to promote the routes, participants are asked to do a photo scavenger hunt during their exercise. “We do these routes ourselves beforehand, so we post pictures of what they are supposed to find. The objects they are supposed to snap pictures of are common things like road signs and trees, and then they have to post the pictures.”
Participants using the Strava app can look at trail statistics before they go out and exercise, such as elevation and percent grade.
Samantha Sessions, an exercise and sports science freshman from Utah, said every week the trail routes change so participants can get a change of scenery. “We also purposely try to create routes that avoid Kamehameha Highway so that people can stay safe as they exercise.”
She said all of the groups in the EXS 420 class use the same trails, but the way they promote them varies.
According to Caduada, the group’s aim is to study how often students and community members are using the trails. “Our original plan was to have drop boxes for participants to use along the way, but that would be difficult because they would have to be in people’s yards and on streets, so we are sticking to social media.”
As a reward for completing the ongoing trails, Caduada said, “You get a happier and healthier lifestyle that you will notice as you get out and become physically active.”
Other members of the group’s team, Brandon Kahaiali’i and Krayce Tufuga, also help manage the trail selections.
Writer: Kevin Brown