The final results from Hennepin County’s Step to It Challenge are in, and Plymouth has laid claim to its first title in the annual challenge. Plymouth took top honors in the category for most overall steps.

Plymouth finished the four-week challenge with more than 96.5 million steps, besting the next closest city by nearly 10 million steps, according to Plymouth’s Step to It Challenge Coordinator Regina Michaud. Golden Valley came in second in the category with 87.8 million steps. Brooklyn Park followed with 86.4 million steps.

This is the second year that Plymouth has participated in the fun, light hearted fitness competition among area cities. Cities were awarded bragging rights for the top scores in a variety of categories, including most steps and highest number of average steps. The City of Hopkins took the top honors in the highest number of average steps with Plymouth coming in fourth in that category.

This is the second year that Plymouth has participated in the challenge. This year, 18 cities competed, up from 12 cities in 2009.

Michaud said Plymouth’s standing improved over last year’s due to greater community awareness. “The key factor this year was participation. Last year it was a new program in Plymouth, but through word of mouth, people recruited friends and family. More people got on board this year,” she said.

Michaud is hopeful that the popularity of the Step To It Challenge will grow among people who live and work in Plymouth in future years.

The challenge had participants track their daily activity using a pedometer or conversion chart on the Step To It website. Virtually every action counted -- walking, biking, running, cleaning, gardening or playing with the kids.

Michaud points out that the “Step to It Challenge” is just one of many health and fitness programs supported by the City of Plymouth, rated one of the governor’s “Fit Cities.”

As many as 30 fitness programs are offered by Plymouth Parks and Recreation. That is in addition to eight to 15 health and wellness programs. The city also sponsors an annual Healthy Living Fair each spring, where the public is invited to talk with local health businesses and to try different health and fitness sessions. Michaud said the city has made building health awareness and offering a wide variety of fitness opportunities a top priority.

The Step to It Challenge started on May 17 and ran through June 13. The “Step to It Challenge” is coordinated and administered by the Hennepin County Human Services and Public Health Department.