Product innovation
Everyone Active to launch new exercise classes to reduce gender gap
As part of their work to break down the barriers that deter women and girls from participating in sport and physical activity, Everyone Active has teamed up with EMD UK to launch new exercise classes linked to the This Girl Can campaign.
Launching on 7 February, Award-winning leisure operator Everyone Active will host This Girl Can Classes at 30 leisure centres across the country, as part of Sport England’s campaign of the same name.
The classes, created by EMD UK in partnership with Sport England, seek to encourage women who are not currently active to give exercise a go.
And with the most recent Active Lives Adult Survey showing that women remain less likely to be active than men, it is hoped the new classes will help to redress the balance.
Everyone Active will stage hour-long This Girl Can Classes, with social time before and after. Each class is split into sections which include a warm-up, two 10-minute exercise blocks and a cool-down.
The blocks include any combination of dance fitness, boxing fitness, move, tone or yoga-inspired stretch, so participants can experience a variety of activities. The classes are designed to be an accessible stepping stone which allows less active women to discover the group exercise style that works for them. Everyone Active membership is not required to participate.
Everyone Active class leaders have undergone a This Girl Can Classes instructor training course with EMD UK. The training is endorsed by CIMSPA.
Everyone Active's Group Development Director Ben Beevers, said: “Inclusivity remains at the core of the Everyone Active values and we’re delighted to support the brilliant work of the This Girl Can campaign.
“Our facilities are open to everyone, so we want to ensure we offer opportunities for more women to get active and have fun in a supportive environment and believe these classes provide an ideal route into regular physical activity, for those who wish to take it further.
“The classes are accessible and are designed to appeal to women who would like to dip their toe in the water and see how their local leisure centre can help them get healthy and improve their fitness.”
Shelley Meyern, Head of Operations and Projects at EMD UK, says “It has been brilliant to work with Everyone Active on launching these classes. The centres and instructors have a great enthusiasm and desire to assist the women that the classes have been designed for. From the physical and mental benefits that being active can bring, to the social connections we can make, every woman deserves to feel the benefits of getting active. At This Girl Can Classes, you can be reassured that there are no wrong moves, and everyone can take it at their own pace. We want women to come and do their worst.”