The activity epidemic

It’s no secret that as a species we are not as active as we once were.

It is often thrown in our face that activity is crucial for our health. We now have wearables that allow us to track how active we are and a large number of adults (particularly in Australia) make a conscious effort to be more active but it appears that this is where it ends.

This study published in the Lancet has shown some alarming results with regards to the next generation and their physical activity. Here’s a brief breakdown:

• The article discusses the prevalence of activity in adolescents between the ages of 11-17 years.

• Data was collected from 296 schools over 146 countries with a total of 1.6 million students included in the study.

• 81% of students were found to be insufficiently physically active.

  • 77.6% of males were insufficiently active.

  • 84.7% of females were insufficiently active.

So what does this all mean and what do we do about it?

There is no doubt that we need more people to be more active and we need to provide more environments for young people to do so. Being physically active is crucial for your health, think:

• Fat mass

• Cardiovascular health

• Mental health

• Self worth

• Social interaction

• Proprioception

For us we take it as our personal responsibility to make the people that come and see us more active. We pride ourselves on providing an enjoyable environment for people from all walks of life to learn how to move and be active safely and effectively and this is our suggestion to everybody around Australia and the world.

There are thousands of incredible exercise professionals out there with a wealth of knowledge that would love to teach you how to move better and be more active - so go and find them.

After all, it is your responsibility to look after your body.

#teamSOF