Sprint Employees Respond to the Challenge for Health and Wellness

Friendly 12-week team competition inspires workforce wellness: participants log a collective 41,000-pound weight loss, 22 million exercise minutes and 4.8 billion steps

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (BUSINESS WIRE), November 15, 2011 – Earlier this year, Sprint (NYSE:S, news, filings) launched its first-ever nationwide employee-fitness competition, the Sprint Get Fit Challenge. The voluntary challenge provided more than 14,000 employee participants the opportunity to team up, lose weight, exercise more and ultimately become healthier.

The Sprint Get Fit Challenge allowed teams of up to 11 employees to enter into a friendly competition with other Sprint Get Fit Challenge teams in the areas of exercise minutes, weight loss and number of steps logged. Employees were provided free pedometers, regular health tips, and access to random drawings and awards based on continued participation. The results were amazing – during the 12-week challenge, participants collectively lost more than 41,000 pounds, took almost 4.8 billion steps and logged nearly 22 million exercise minutes. To see Sprint employees in action and to hear from a few Sprint Get Fit Challenge participants, watch this video.

Sprint places an ongoing emphasis on employee health and wellness, which benefits both employees and the company. The personal benefits for employees are evident, with healthier minds and bodies and 24/7 access to free wellness resources through Sprint’s partnership with health services leader OptumHealth. In addition, employees who work to improve their health often have lower absentee rates and are happier, which leads to increased productivity and commitment.

The long-term benefits of the Sprint Get Fit Challenge are expected to save Sprint more than $1.1 million per year as a result of healthier lifestyles and improved behaviors that ultimately lead to fewer medical claims.

The Sprint Get Fit Challenge, conducted in partnership with OptumHealth and ShapeUp, the leading provider of social-networking powered employee wellness solutions, was well received by employees – not only for its focus on employee health and wellness but also because of the sense of fun and camaraderie between the teams. One team even conducted a 24-hour walk-a-thon to boost their step count. Due to the program’s overwhelming success, Sprint plans to offer another health and wellness challenge over the holidays – typically a time when people gain weight and cut back on exercise. The new program will run from Thanksgiving through New Year’s and will reward employees for maintaining weight levels and engaging in healthy holiday activities, such as relaxing and exercising.

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 53 million customers at the end of 3Q 2011 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 3 in its 2011 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.