Meet the people getting Britain moving

Lucozade Sport’s Made to Move campaign is celebrating those helping us put our best feet forward

In recent years international research on Sedentary Behaviour has increased dramatically, and there is growing evidence that a multitude of serious health risks may be connected to “prolonged” and “excessive” sitting. Some studies warn that sedentary lifestyles are likely to be causing as many deaths as smoking.

British people sit for an average 8.9 hours each day. Research shows that sitting for more than four hours each day leads to enzymes responsible for burning harmful blood fats shutting down, reduced calorie burning and disrupted blood sugar levels, which can lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, weight gain and back pain, as well as mental health issues.

In a bid to combat this growing epidemic, people and brands across the UK are setting up innovative and exciting ways to get people exercising. Lucozade Sport’s ‘Made to Move’ campaign pledges to get one million people moving more by 2020, and this autumn they will reveal their ‘Movers List’, celebrating inspiring people who encourage people to live more active lives.

These include athlete Dan Edwardes who has helped bring parkour to the masses, and Lauren Gregory, founder of Run Like a Girl, a women’s only running group that she set up in Leamington. Run Like a Girl now has branches in Warwick, Coventry and Stratford Upon Avon. In 2016 Lauren was awarded ‘Amateur Sportswoman of the Year, Coventry & Warwickshire’, and Run Like a Girl is now a 1200-strong running community.

According to the NHS, 58% of women and 65% of men are overweight or obese, an increase from 15% in 1993 to 26% in 2014. This is also reflected in the fact that in 2015, only 36% of adults said they played sport at least once a week and 57% did not play any sport in the 28 days prior to being surveyed. It doesn’t come as a surprise therefore, that more people, brands and governing bodies are coming together to help to reverse this trend. Encouraging people to get moving – and continue to move – is a step towards progressing the UK’s overall physical, mental and economic health.

Lucozade Sport’s Movers List will be released this autumn. For more information visit www.lucozadesport.com/madetomove/