Just some of the usual arrogant comments, probably from the ssme people that laugh at unfit people in the gym or on a bike for the first time in 30 years.
No wonder people don’t bother.
Excellent. My walk to the pub comes with a reward.
Just some of the usual arrogant comments, probably from the ssme people that laugh at unfit people in the gym or on a bike for the first time in 30 years.
No wonder people don’t bother.
By unfit do you mean appropriate body mass, just not trained? Or overweight? Because the two are very different.
If you need an extrinsic motivator to move more because you're not particularly healthy, rather than an intrinsic one (like not dying) then it's not unreasonable to observe that it won't stick and once the novelty wears off.
But if it helps a few people then it's not a bad thing. Also makes for a catchy headline I suppose and NHSE feel like they're doing something from their ivory tower.
To be honest, the government should be doing more of this. An ounce of prevention and all that.
Health spending is unsustainable given both an ageing and unfit population. It needs to go further, removing VAT on sport equipment is a good suggestion. Subsidise coucncil gyms or leisure centres, for example everyone is entitled to one free visit a week, whether its a swim or an hour of badminton. Pay people to cycle to work.
The man thing I think is it needs to be carrot rather than stick
Just some of the usual arrogant comments, probably from the ssme people that laugh at unfit people in the gym or on a bike for the first time in 30 years.
No wonder people don’t bother.
You'd probably be less angsty if you went for a short walk.
😀
Health spending is unsustainable given both an ageing and unfit population. It needs to go further, removing VAT on sport equipment is a good suggestion. Subsidise coucncil gyms or leisure centres, for example everyone is entitled to one free visit a week, whether its a swim or an hour of badminton. Pay people to cycle to work.
While in principle I agree, you can already buy a tennis racket for £15, making it £12 isn't going to change anyone's mind. Gyms are already subsidised but the owners don't pass it on and membership could be subsidised by salary sacrifice but most employers won't do it. People don't ride to work because it's expensive, they drive because commuting by bike is terrifying.
Cost isn't really a barrier, attitude is.
While in principle I agree, you can already buy a tennis racket for £15, making it £12 isn't going to change anyone's mind. Gyms are already subsidised but the owners don't pass it on and membership could be subsidised by salary sacrifice but most employers won't do it. People don't ride to work because it's expensive, they drive because commuting by bike is terrifying.
But for most people the biggest benefits from being active isn't from doing sport, it would be if they used their car less and their legs a bit more. Don't drive the 500m to the shop. If you need to drive, don't park so close to the destination that you get a parking ticket. Don't drive your kids to the local school and then home.
The habit is of not being active at all, not of not doing enough exercise.
But for most people the biggest benefits from being active isn't from doing sport, it would be if they used their car less and their legs a bit more.
That picks up on the point that I made (and which was then further noted by @ratherbeintobago ) about designing out car journeys and designing in walking and cycling:
This is why Low Traffic Neighbourhoods improve health - by making driving slightly less convenient than walking/cycling you reduce the number of very short car journeys as people walk instead when they realise it'll take the same time. The best way of making people more active is redesigning streets to enable people to fit in 'incidental activity'.
Active Travel England are really pushing the health benefits and moving away from things like "Low Traffic Neighbourhoods" mostly because of the sheer amount of culture war bollocks it generates. On the other hand, if you can frame it as healthy, saving money on the NHS, cutting pollution and improving road safety, even the most hardened Reform councillor finds it difficult to argue against that.
Screaming about "rights of drivers" etc when talking about LTNs is easy. Screaming about "rights of drivers" when the alternative is a dead child outside a school is a considerably harder thing to protest about!
