240km activity challenge aims to instil habits

The time of year to get active will soon be upon Timaruvians again, who will make their way from sea to sea.

Sea 2 Sea is an annual six-week physical activity challenge, which encourages every workplace, community group, school staffroom and medical practice in South Canterbury to take action and get fit.

The challenge aimed to get people exercising and challenged those who were already active, Sea 2 Sea co-ordinator Rebecca Brookland said.

"Sea 2 Sea is to self-motivate people who are already active, and for those that aren't, to provide them with an opportunity to complete the 240km with the support of others."

The 40-day, 240km event symbolises the distance from the West Coast to the East Coast.

The distance is a benchmark for the amount of exercise involved in completing the challenge.

People will be encouraged to do 30 minutes of exercise daily, which can involve anything that keeps them moving; such as walking, biking, gardening or mowing the lawns.

Every 30 minutes is equivalent to a distance of 3km, and worth one point.

A maximum of two points can be earned daily.

"If people still want to do more exercise anyway, go for it," Mrs Brook-land said.

When the challenge was finished, participants would hopefully continue to exercise every day.

"It's about creating a physical activity habit and hoping they'll maintain it."

People can participate in a team or as individuals.

Every participant will receive a wall chart to mark their progress and to keep track of their daily activity.

Mrs Brookland did the challenge herself at her previous workplace.

She said it was a good experience.

"We were forever looking at the chart. It gets people talking about physical activity and reminding each other to exercise."

It boosted team morale to do the challenge as a group, she said.

"You can plot each other's progress. It turns into a competitive thing. Some workplaces will offer their own incentives."

This year will be the fifth time the challenge has been run.

A record 2923 people from 170 groups participated in South Canterbury last year, but Mrs Brookland hoped to get even more people involved this year.

"We hope to crack at least 3000," she said.

Prizes for first place in each participating category are yet to be confirmed.

Spot prizes will also be awarded, such as for the quirkiest way of exercising.

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Sea 2 Sea Challenge
Categories for the challenge are:

> Workplaces: Under 15 employees.

15-49 employees.

50-99 employees.

100+ employees.

> Active medical practices.
> Community groups.
> School staff rooms.

The challenge takes place from September 28 to November 6. Registration forms are available at Sport South Canterbury and must be filled out by September 11.

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- Cerisse Denhardt.