How do you like to keep active? What activities do you enjoy the most?

I like to go on walks/hikes mainly. I have a cavalier king Charles spaniel, two children, one fiancé and two step-children. Since moving to a more rural area just over a year ago I don’t have access to a gym locally. So, I have found myself walking more and enjoying the beautiful countryside that we live in, finding other ways to exercise such as joining in with the children playing basketball, doing YouTube workouts, dancing, gentle weight lifting. I have found thinking more outside of the box and finding activities that I enjoy doing that makes it not even seem like a workout. They’re the best!

Why do you feel it is important to lead a physically active lifestyle?

It is important to give me some alone time sometimes but also, when the family are involved such as my children and step-children it is quality time spent together, exploring nature and having meaningful conversations whilst doing cardiovascular exercise – win win in my opinion!

Getting the whole family involved – my partner, his children, my children, even our wider families – encouraging everyone to be outside in nature, enjoying an activity such as a hike or even a gentle walk to enable everyone to participate – that is what is important to me – that I make sure everyone can take part and feel the benefits of exercise.

In terms of singular physical activities – I try to do this at least twice a week as by walking/hiking or gentle jogging in nature allows my brain time to process the day or if I have something to think about or work through – by doing a physical activity alone allows me that space to do that – I often return in a much clearer headspace by doing this.

How does the Active Hub platform support your physical movement?

I particularly enjoy the notifications received when completing an activity and my Fitbit has synched. It’s a real motivator and it is so easy to track manual activities as well such as swimming when I don’t wear an activity device.

How has participating in team events helped increase your engagement with other colleagues?

This has made me step up and move more, knowing that my colleagues are in it with me and made me determined not to let the side down. Seeing the dashboard and event leaderboards as well as photos shared by others has been really inspiring too and a great motivational feature.

Has having the Active Hub in place via your employer enabled you to lead a more active lifestyle?

I would definitely say it’s made me more conscious of the importance of activity and it has also made me not skip any days that I may have done previously. The feeling and endorphins released through exercise have also increased for me during this challenge as it became a talking point within the work environment, spurring each other on and helping improve relationships.

What is your current active goal?

My current active goal is to get back to regular running. Having run 5k, 10k and half marathon in the past I have found that my go to is walking or hiking whereas I would like to push my fitness levels and return to running.

“Living a healthy life is all about balance – this journey has showed me that a healthy body helps keep a healthy mind. Consistency is key as they say – I will keep trying to maintain that balance to enjoy a fulfilled life that is a healthy one