Leeds Rhinos Foundation’s Health team has remained committed to helping people get active and improve their fitness throughout the lockdown period with a series of innovative changes made to the programmes they deliver in the community.
In light of government guidelines, the team worked hard to move programming of their ongoing programmes such as Try Club and Active Beyond Cancer online. Participants received a number of helpful digital resources, such as presentations, booklets, videos, quizzes and challenges to encourage them to continue making positive lifestyle changes and to keep working towards their goals.
Last month also marked the launch of Marching On Together, a new initiative delivered in partnership with Leeds United Foundation which saw more than 250 people take up the challenge of completing between 6,000 to 10,000 steps daily, depending on their individual fitness levels.
The scheme has helped participants to enjoy the benefits of completing regular exercise and gradually increase their fitness as the weeks progressed. In total, participants completed over 15 million steps as part of the Marching On Together challenge and Health Improvement Officer Amy Livingstone was delighted with the outcome.
“It has been great to see so many people get involved with the Marching On Together challenge and to complete over 15 million steps is an incredible achievement,” said Livingstone.
“We are working hard to achieve our aim of helping Leeds to become a more active city and this was another example of how small changes and some extra motivation can create a hugely positive effect on people’s wellbeing.” Well done to everyone who took part in the challenge for the hard work they put in to achieve their goals – the contributions we’ve witnessed have been amazing to see!”
Plans are now in place for the charity’s popular Try Club and Back Onside programmes- run in partnership with Rugby League Cares- to return in the near future, providing the opportunity for more men from across the city to get active and rediscover the benefits of exercise in a safe and familiar environment.
Livingstone added: “We had to move away from face-to-face delivery and adapt by finding engaging ways of delivering our sessions and sharing our content digitally. As well as this we’ve had regular contact with participants to ensure they’re able to follow along and get the most from the information provided by the programme.
“However, we certainly hope that within the coming months we can bring back some normality to the delivery of our health programmes by sourcing COVID secure venues where we can resume some of our popular activities, so watch this space!”
For more information on any of Leeds Rhinos Foundation’s Health programmes, please contact health@leedsrhinosfoundation.org.
Watch our interview with Health Improvement Officer Amy Livingstone below to discover some top tips on looking after your physical and mental wellbeing during this difficult period: