Yay – the Great British Week of Sport is here and the team at the Mintridge Foundation are VERY excited. 

We want YOU to run, cycle, scoot, wheel or walk ANY distance to celebrate National Fitness Day on Wednesday 23rd September!

That’s not all…

To add the fun to your fitness, we want you to attempt some STRAVA ART linked to sport.

How Do I Get Involved?

1) Register for the virtual challenge via the link in the top right hand side of the page.

2) Download a GPS app (we recommend Strava with the Strava Route Planner).

3) Create a route on your computer / browser in the shape of a sporting link (e.g. a cricket bat, bike, hockey stick, goal post). If you would like some help, why not visit AndroidAndyUK’s YouTube page (04:02 minutes in) to help?

4) GO, GO, GO - Turn on the chosen app on your phone and follow your route plan whether you have chosen to run, cycle, scoot, wheel or walk. Enjoy your exercise and complete your route.

5) Share your Strava Art on social media and encourage your friends to take part too! Don’t forget to tag: @MintridgeFDN, @FitnessDayUK, @_ukactive and use the hashtags; #BeACTIVE and #TeamMintridge. After all, FITNESS UNITES US.

There will be prizes for the most creative sporting artwork!

Please ensure that you have planned a safe route and members of your household are aware of this route too.

What is National Fitness Day?

National Fitness Day is the most active day of the year and the day to celebrate the role that physical activity plays across the UK. It is a day when people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities come together to celebrate the fun of fitness.

This year National Fitness Day will take place on Wednesday 23rd September – where we will encourage providers from across the UK to offer the general public free opportunities to be active in their local community.

The day brings the nation together to remind us why it’s good to move, highlighting the role that physical activity plays in helping us lead healthier, happier lives both physically and mentally. Why is this important? The UK faces a physical inactivity crisis, with evidence from ukactive showing that the average adult spends more time on the toilet every week than exercising. Physical inactivity leads to more than 20 long-term health conditions such as type-2 diabetes, some cancers and osteoporosis.

This is why National Fitness Day is so important – to inspire the nation to move a bit more and better understand the benefits of an active lifestyle. It is not only proven to improve our physical health, it also has an incredible effect on our mental health, our confidence, our social connections and helps us build better communities.

In 2020 we want to demonstrate the inclusive power physical activity can have by celebrating how ‘Fitness Unites Us’.

Coming together to be active is a great way to overcome the myriad of challenges we face across society. We want to champion the role that individuals and organisations play in supporting better community cohesion.

Of course, National Fitness Day isn’t just about one day, it’s about committing to change your routine for a lifetime of benefits, which is why we want people to share what they love about fitness throughout the year.

Use #Fitness2Me on social media – Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. To show us what Fitness means to you and how it’s helping you unite with others!

National Fitness Day is facilitated by ukactive and previously, the énergie Group, who are the largest and fastest growing fitness franchise company in the UK, and who founded National Fitness Day back in 2011. Realising that this is an event that would benefit with participation from the whole sector, énergie graciously ‘gifted’ National Fitness Day to ukactive in 2014. We would like to publicly thank énergie for this and are proud to now be growing the event year on year.

What is the Great British Week of Sport?

Saturday 19 – Sunday 27 September 2020

The inaugural Great British Week of Sport will inspire the nation to celebrate the power that sport and activity has on our mental, physical and social well-being.

The Great British Week of Sport runs in partnership with the European Week of Sport, showcasing the benefits of an active lifestyle across the continent. During the week we will align each day to a specific theme, to ensure a wide reach of the #BeActive message and the opportunity for a greater variety of people to take part – the week is for everyone, regardless of age, background or fitness level.

Through a mixture of virtual and physical initiatives from grassroots to elite level we hope to unite and empower towards improving the health of Britain, following the Coronavirus pandemic and play a crucial role in the nation’s recovery.

The week will see us work with a few key partners dedicated to improving the health of the nation, we will engage with existing campaigns already committed to the cause with a view to reach a variety of audiences and offer a collection of ways for people to #BeActive and continue to do so beyond the week itself.

The Great British Week of Sport will offer all a great chance to promote and celebrate physical activity and sport and the power it has to bring us all together.

To learn more about what’s on and how to get involved click on the button below.

****

The Mintridge Foundation is a registered charity dedicated to enhancing life skills in young people through sport. We provide a support network for young people by harnessing the power of positive sporting role models. The Mintridge Foundation assists young people of all ages, abilities and physical capabilities to develop confidence and resilience, and creates awareness of the importance of mental and physical wellbeing through sport.

Our team of Ambassadors - Olympians, Paralympians and other professional sports stars from over 20 sports, both team and individual - work with young people in schools, clubs and academies across the UK. Starting with visits including assemblies, coaching clinics and classroom sessions tailored to each organisation’s requirements, our ambassadors can then provide one- on- one remote mentoring in a safeguarded environment, delivered via technology such as Fitswarm and Playwaze to build a lasting legacy for individuals.

The Mintridge Foundation’s successes demonstrate the incredible power of sport; from a mentee’s selection to represent Great Britain in their chosen field to enabling disabled children to find confidence and happiness just through participation. Understanding life after sport, we also support our Ambassadors in their transition from active sport to the next stage of their careers.