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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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\u2019s health, wellbeing, and growth.<\/p>\n
The winning office will be crowned Westminster\u2019s Physical Activity Champions and the annual competition has been fiercely contested over the past three years.<\/p>\n
So far this year, 262 entrants have signed up to take part, representing 70 Parliamentary offices. Last year\u2019s challenge saw 207 participants take up the challenge from 50 Parliamentary offices.<\/p>\n
Fit for Office works by tracking participants\u2019 physical activity levels on Technogym\u2019s app, using \u2018MOVES\u2019 points which are based on the intensity of activity over a period of time.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Last year\u2019s challenge saw the office of Steve Witherden MP (Labour) named winners and Bob Blackman MP (Conservatives) was the highest-scoring MP.<\/p>\n
The backdrop of this year\u2019s challenge is declining physical and mental health across the population, with workplace sickness costing \u00a3138bn and poor mental health among employees costing businesses \u00a351bn a year, with about 9.2 million people classed as economically inactive.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
The physical activity sector generates more than \u00a310.5bn in savings every year by reducing cases of disease and relieving the demands on health and social care.<\/p>\n
Cameron Saunders, CEO of ukactive, said<\/strong>: \u201cThis challenge is a great way to help show our politicians why physical activity is crucial for their health and productivity and for the nation\u2019s too.<\/p>\n \u201cThe competing demands of work and technology today force many people to sacrifice time for exercise, including those in Westminster.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a chance for our political leaders to go beyond a quick jog for the cameras and commit to getting fit.<\/p>\n \u201cSupported by Technogym and our nation\u2019s gyms, pools and leisure centres, we want to see Parliamentarians celebrate the essential role of physical activity in the lives of their constituents.\u201d<\/p>\n