FAQ
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active challenge is a fun, sporty, team-based experience available on the AppStore and Google Play. Practically speaking, active challenge tracks your physical activities (walking, running, cycling), with or without the help of a third-party application, and transforms them into points that will help your team rank higher. There are regular missions and quizzes to add fun to the experience and help you and your teammates earn even more points, always in a good spirit. So… Ready? 🙂
active challenge promotes physical activity, team spirit and the well-being of everyone. Your reward: doing good for your body and mind, as well as sharing a unique and inspiring experience with your colleagues. Incidentally, your company may decide to set up incentives, both individual and collective.
active challenge is available on:
- iOS – from iOS 15
- Android – from version 8
Unfortunately, active challenge is not available on Windows Phone.
Of course! We are very careful to protect your data and we only use it for the experience you are participating in. Furthermore, Squadeasy (the technology used by active challenge) is registered with the French Data Protection Authority (CNIL) in order to comply with the 1978 data protection act. You can view our privacy policy here: https://www.activechallenge.ch/confidentialite.
How does the ranking work?
Teams are ranked according to the points they have earned. The goal is simple: earn as many points as possible! The team’s points are the sum of each team member’s points. The team’s ranking progress can be followed in real time in the application. For seasonal challenges (which last several months), the teams get medals according to their rank at the end of each month. At the beginning of the following month, the points are reset to 0, and your team has a new opportunity to win a medal!
A boost is a magical power which gives a teammate a 10% bonus on the points they earn that day. Whether or not you are physically active yourself, you can boost your colleagues! A single user can accumulate up to 3 boosts, giving them a 30% bonus. So you can really rack up the points. It’s up to you to be as strategic as possible! But be careful, each participant can only send one boost each day!
To boost a teammate, it’s very simple! Go to the “Team” page then click on “Boost” for the teammate you want to boost. You can also directly boost the teammate you want from their profile (on the same page). Important: if you boost a teammate, this boost will only be valid for 24 hours. Similarly, if you get a boost from a teammate, it will also count for 24 hours. So be strategic 😉
Missions pop frequently to challenge you to surpass yourself and earn bonus points. For example, you may be offered to complete a certain number of steps or distance in a limited amount of time. These bonus points are an additional motivation to move and improve the rankings!
Nothing could be simpler; you almost don't have to do anything... You can check the available missions in the red “Upcoming Missions” tab on the homepage. All the current missions will be available underneath each activity.
active challenge is not just about physical activity! You will regularly be asked to answer questions on different topics (diet, ergonomics, hygiene, health, etc.) If the answer is correct, you will receive bonus points. If you have any doubts about the answer, don’t hesitate to exchange with your team members via the application’s chat feature 😉
Go to the bottom of the homepage, then click on the quiz to answer it. The question and the suggested answers will then appear. Whether your answer is right or not, there will always be a little explanatory text to give you more details and, we hope, teach you new things!
Cheating is certainly not one of the many activities promoted on active challenge 😉 This experience should be approached in a spirit of fair play and joy. We count on you and your teammates to preserve this spirit! As in any game, cheating is still technically possible. We detect suspicious activity (analysing speed, pace, etc.) and we can adjust points accordingly. If needed, we will contact the participant to ask them for more details. If someone is found to be cheating, their points will be removed, and they will be excluded from the experience altogether.
I have just created my account, what should I do before I get cracking?
Whatever phone you have, make sure you allow access to movement and GPS in the active challenge app and in the phone’s settings (Google Fit for Android, and Apple Health for iOS), otherwise no activity will be recorded.
Start an activity directly from the app’s home page. Just click on the red circle with a black arrow at the bottom of the screen, then choose your activity (running, cycling, electric bike, hiking). Once the GPS is available, click on "Start". To finish the activity, press "Finish". A summary of your performance will appear. The points scored after a ride are added to your personal counter and to the team counter. Step counting is automatic. It syncs with your Google Fit app (for Android) and Apple Health (for iOS) for more accurate tracking. You can also use Garmin, Fitbit or Strava to sync your activities. (See below for more explanation)
Each app has its own algorithm and differences from one app to the other are to be expected. Remember that no method is 100% reliable! However, if the difference is too big (more than 30%), feel free to write to steppy@squadeasy.com so we can correct this.
Did you walk from home this morning but noticed that the count was still showing zero when you checked your step count after arriving at the office? Check that you have downloaded the latest version of the app on your phone and, if you're on Android, that Google Fit is installed - then check whether steps are recorded on that app. Finally, we invite you to check that you have accepted access to your phone's movements in the app's settings. If the problem persists, try restarting your phone. As a last resort, don't hesitate to write to steppy@squadeasy.com
Provided you track them with your phone (or a connected tracking device), all the steps taken while you run are counted and add extra points for you and your team! As of now, the easiest way to count steps on top of a running activity is to go running with your smartphone 🙂
To synchronize your activities from an app other than Health, Google Fit or Strava, you need to sync your activities with one of these apps first and then sync to active challenge. More third-party apps will gradually be supported in active challenge.
Each app has its own algorithm and differences from one app to another are to be expected. Remember that no calculation is 100% reliable! However, if the difference is too great (above 30%), feel free to write to steppy@squadeasy.com so we can correct this.
You have been using active challenge and noticed an error in the distance, time or GPS route? Your phone probably lost the GPS signal at some point during your session, or you might have made wrong manipulation inadvertently. If you need help, please write to steppy@squadeasy.com
It can happen that points aren’t added as soon as you finish an activity. If you still haven’t been allocated your points after several synchronisation attempts, try restarting your active challenge app. If the problem persists on the day following your activity, feel free to write to steppy@squadeasy.com
We are well aware that activities performed in the gym or at home are just as physical as outdoor efforts. Unfortunately, we don't currently count these types of activities. Maybe soon? 😉
It is currently not possible to connect a GPS watch directly to the active challenge app. But we are working on it! However, you can still connect your watch to a third party application (Strava for example) to transfer your data to active challenge. For your step count via your Garmin watch, Steppy recommends you sync Garmin and your health app (Google fit or Apple Health) and then sync it to active challenge.
The points for walking are counted according to the following rule: 10,000 steps = 60 points.
Points for running sessions are calculated according to a formula that takes into account the distance, speed, as well as elevation gain and boosts. Only runs above 5 km/h and over 1 km in distance will be taken into account. The maximum accepted pace is 18 km/h.
- Distance points: 5 pts for 1 km covered
- Speed points: 3% of the distance x speed points
- Ride points: Distance points + Speed points
- Vertical elevation: 10 pts every 100m
- Boost Bonus: 1 boost = + 10%.
For example, for a 10.8 km ride at a speed of 11 km/h, and with a elevation, we get:
- Distance points: 10.8 x 5 = 54
- Speed points: 0.03 x 54 x11 = 17.82
- Elevation points: 10 points
- Running points: 54 + 17.82 + 10 = 81.82 rounded up to 82 points
Points for bike rides are calculated according to a formula that takes into account the distance, speed, as well as elevation gain and boosts. Only rides above 8 km/h and more than 1 km in distance will be taken into account. The maximum accepted speed is 36 km/h.
- Distance points: 3 pts for 1 km
- Speed points: 1.5% x pts distance x speed
- Ride points: Distance points + Speed points
- Elevation: 5 pts every 100m
- Boost Bonus: 1 boost = + 10%.
For example, for a 25.3 km ride at 15 km/h, with 100m of elevation, we get:
- Distance points: 25.3 km x 3 = 75.9
- Speed points: 0.015×75.9×15 = 17.08
- Elevation points: 5 pts per 100m
- Ridepoints: 75.9 + 17.08 + 5 = 97.98 points rounded up to 98 points
What is the social wall?
The social wall is a great way to brag about your sports activities! You can share messages, photos, react to other participants' posts and even earn points! To access it, you just have to click on the "Social" button at the bottom of your screen.
The photo challenges allow you to earn points by posting a themed photo on the social wall. To do this, take a photo and post it. That's it, you've earned points
I've got the wrong team/I want to change teams. What can I do?
If you want to change teams, open your profile from the app's homepage, then click on "option" → "leave the team" → confirm your choice and create or join a new team.
If you no longer wish to be captain of your team, go to the "team" page from the bottom menu of the homepage, click on "option" and then "change captain". You can then give the armband to whomever you want.
When you change teams, the points you have earned so far in the challenge stay with the team you were on.
active challenge has an instant messaging service (chat) which offers the possibility to exchange with your colleagues in private or as a team, in order to congratulate, encourage or organise the next group activity.
I am in km or miles, how do I change the unit?
active challenge is available in imperial or metric. To change the unit, go to the preferences and select the desired unit.
active challenge is available in French and Canadian French (oui, oui !), English (yes yes!), Spanish (¡Si! ¡Si!), Italian (ovviamente!), German (ja ja!), Portuguese (Sim Sim!), Japanese (はい), simplified Chinese (是的) and Russian (да). To change languages, go to the preferences in the app and pick your the irght one.
If you have changed your phone, don't panic, your points are still there! You just have to download the active challenge application again and log in with the login and password you chose when you registered. Your points, your team, your progress: you will find everything!
If you have deleted the application, don't panic, your points will be kept! You just have to download the active challenge application again and log in with the credentials you chose when you registered. Your points, your team, your progress: you will find everything!
Really? No idea what it could be? Now worries… Forgetting your password can happen! In that case, you can reset your password by clicking on "forgot password" from the login page.