September 9th is National Fitness Day. Mark the occasion, and set a new fitness pledge, with your own ‘power half-hour’. Here’s how.
WHAT IS NATIONAL FITNESS DAY?
ukactive is the pioneering not-for-profit organisation which engages with individuals, charities, schools, business and even Members of Parliament, to drive Britain’s physical activity forward and make a difference. National Fitness Day is one of ukactive’s biggest campaigns. This year ukactive hopes to make this day the most active day of the entire year. The hope, of course, is that the trend continues and we’ll get a little bit more active every day, day in and day out.
POWER HALF-HOUR
At the heart of National Fitness Day is the concept of power half-hours; 30 minute sessions where we can all move, exercise and workout at dedicated venues across the country. Last year, nearly 2,000 venues took part, offering free power half-hours and reaching 27 million people in the process. Even more venues will be taking part this year.
WHERE TO TAKE PART
Check the National Fitness Day website to find a venue near you and see what kind of 30 minute sessions they’re hosting. Go along and do something you know you love, or try something completely new and different. Who knows, you might find a brand-new favourite form of exercise.
3 WAYS TO CREATE YOUR OWN POWER HALF-HOUR
If you can’t get along to any of the National Fitness Day venues, do your own power half-hour at home, in the garden, in the park or even on your lunch hour. Here are a few ideas for a 30 minute fitness session you could do by yourself, with your kids, friends and family or even colleagues. Get motivated and inspire yourself and others, then take it beyond this one day. Have fun.
Power Half-Hour Running Session
Got access to a hill, playing field or running track?
0-5 minutes
- Warm up for 5 minutes with walking and jogging
5-20 minutes
- Sprint for 20 seconds (up the hill, or on the flat) going as fast as you can
- Walk or jog for 40 seconds
- Repeat the sprint/recovery for a total of 15 minutes (that’s 15 sprint efforts)
20-22 minutes
- Recover for an additional 2 minutes
22-27 minutes
- Run at a fast but sustainable pace (think 10km-race pace) for 5 minutes
27-30 minutes
- Cool down by jogging and walking
Power Half-Hour Bodyweight Circuit
- Warm up for 5 minutes by jogging.
Complete this circuit
- 6 shuttle runs with a jog back to the start point
- 20 walking lunges
- 10 bodyweight squats
- 10 squat jumps
- 10 press ups
- 10 bear-crawls forward, then 10 backwards
- 10 burpee jumps
- 10 sit ups
- 10 leg raises
- 1 minute recovery (walk or jog gently)
Repeat the circuit a total of 3 times
Power Half-Hour Social Activity
Grab a group of friends, family, colleagues plus kids and maybe even dogs and walk for half an hour. The health benefits of walking are well-known, plus you’ll get outside in the fresh air and lift your mood, by spending time in natural surroundings and daylight.
Feel like you want to make a new fitness pledge this National Fitness Day? Why not sign up to a PT course with The Training Room to get started?