11 Mar 2015
Thousands get active with Workplace Challenge
BY Kath Hudson
Far from being a barrier to activity, the workplace can be an excellent place to promote active lifestyles, according to impressive statistics from My Team 2015 – a national eight week, workplace-based activity challenge.
Almost 12,000 people, at 2,300 workplaces, took part in the challenge between 5 January and 2 March. Participants won points for their workplace by logging involvement in both organised sport, informal activity and active travel.
Participants could track progress and compare performance via an online leaderboard to see stats such as distance travelled, calories burned, CO2 saved and progress against the recommended 150 minutes of physical activity a week.
Those taking part reported improved communication, team spirit and a healthier workforce.
More than 300,000 activities were recorded during the challenge, with walking, cycling and running being the most popular activities. The County Sports Partnerships delivered the challenge and offered advice and information about local opportunities.
Sport England supports Workplace Challenge through its Get Healthy, Get Active fund. Director of community sport, Mike Diaper, said it was encouraging to see so many people overcoming barriers to fitting physical activity into their working day.
“Whether it’s just walking to the office instead of driving, going for a run at lunchtime or playing a bit of sport with colleagues after work, this shows there are practical things we can all do to be more active,” he says.
Although the challenge is over, workplaces can still ride off the enthusiasm and sign up to http://www.workplacechallenge.org.uk/ to log their activity.
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