Are they Fit for Office? ukactive and Technogym throw down the gauntlet to MPs

Politicians from all parties have been challenged to prove they are Fit for Office this month, in a competition that will really make them sweat.

Hundreds of staff, MPs and Peers from across Westminster have signed up for the Fit for Office parliamentary physical activity challenge, which takes place throughout June and is hosted by ukactive and Technogym.

The aim of the challenge is to encourage Parliamentarians and their staff to move more and recognise the importance of physical activity for the nation’s health, wellbeing, and growth.

The winning office will be crowned Westminster’s Physical Activity Champions and the annual competition has been fiercely contested over the past three years.

So far this year, 262 entrants have signed up to take part, representing 70 Parliamentary offices. Last year’s challenge saw 207 participants take up the challenge from 50 Parliamentary offices.

Fit for Office works by tracking participants’ physical activity levels on Technogym’s app, using ‘MOVES’ points which are based on the intensity of activity over a period of time.

The app can be synchronized with a wearable fitness device, and the individual scores are tallied to establish a league table showing the position of each office.

Last year’s challenge saw the office of Steve Witherden MP (Labour) named winners and Bob Blackman MP (Conservatives) was the highest-scoring MP.

The backdrop of this year’s challenge is declining physical and mental health across the population, with workplace sickness costing £138bn and poor mental health among employees costing businesses £51bn a year, with about 9.2 million people classed as economically inactive.

Studies show physical activity helps to prevent 20 chronic conditions, including type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease, many types of cancer, MSK conditions, depression and anxiety, and dementia.

The physical activity sector generates more than £10.5bn in savings every year by reducing cases of disease and relieving the demands on health and social care.

Cameron Saunders, CEO of ukactive, said: “This challenge is a great way to help show our politicians why physical activity is crucial for their health and productivity and for the nation’s too.

“The competing demands of work and technology today force many people to sacrifice time for exercise, including those in Westminster.

“This is a chance for our political leaders to go beyond a quick jog for the cameras and commit to getting fit.

“Supported by Technogym and our nation’s gyms, pools and leisure centres, we want to see Parliamentarians celebrate the essential role of physical activity in the lives of their constituents.”

Ben Sandham, Country Manager of Technogym UK, said: “We believe movement is one of the most powerful drivers of health, performance, and overall wellbeing – not only for individuals, but for society as a whole. In a world where time is increasingly compressed and sedentary behaviours are rising, it’s essential to re‑engineer how and where people move.

“At Technogym, our vision is to seamlessly integrate physical activity into everyday life, transforming environments into active, engaging ecosystems that support both body and mind.

“Initiatives like Fit for Office perfectly illustrate this approach – demonstrating how intelligent technology, smart design, and personalised experiences can bring movement into even the busiest working environments without disrupting productivity.

“By embedding wellness into the daily routine, we don’t just encourage activity – we enable sustainable behavioural change, improve energy levels, and enhance both individual performance and organisational outcomes. Because for us, movement is not an add‑on – it’s an essential foundation for a better quality of life.”

To find out more or to join the challenge, email: publicaffairs@ukactive.org.uk