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| Starting early next year, teams from fire services nationwide will be challenged to increase their daily activity levels |
Comparatively, how healthy is the Fire Service? Not very, according to a Government-sponsored review published in 2012. The report states that of 24,272 firefighters tested for the rate of oxygen consumed during exercise, 2,890 failed to achieve healthy levels.
No organisation depends on the health and wellbeing of its employees more than the Fire Service. And that's why this year iGlobalWellness, the UK's foremost provider of corporate wellness programmes, is leading the way with a ground-breaking new initiative designed to improve the health and wellbeing of fire fighters in a fun and easy way - The Fire Service Stay Active Challenge.
Starting on January 31st 2014, teams of 5 from fire services nationwide are being challenged to increase their daily activity levels as much as possible over 6 weeks. Any activity counts, big or small - doing the gardening, cycling to work, even going shopping. It's simple, the team and department with the biggest average daily activity increases win. With success in the challenge being based on a percentage increase in activity, it provides a completely level playing field for all participants irrespective of their starting activity levels.
Participants wear the iAM, a revolutionary activity monitor developed by iGlobalWellness, which measures speed and intensity of movement, combined with calorie burn and metabolic data. The iAM automatically wirelessly uploads all this data to each participant's private online profile.
Participants also receive unparalleled support form a Personal Wellness coach as well as nutrition and dietary advice, and regular tips on how to get and stay active.
Through the Fire Service Stay Active Challenge, Chief Executive Russell Tomlin is determined to provide all the tools and support to enable the Fire Service to improve and maintain their wellbeing.
Previous Stay Active Challenges have already made startling inroads into getting the UK more active. To date, private corporations have been the ones to benefit from the scheme and on average participants have increased their daily activity level by a life changing 70%. Its not surprising that this is having a marked effect on productivity. 73% of previous Stay Active Challenge participants have reported an improved ability to manage stress and 64% reported having more energy at work.
The Fire Service Challenge will produce a Wellness Scale, unique to this key sector of the economy, allowing departments to measure the health and wellness of their team against the national standard. iGlobalWellness plans to use this data not just to help individual employees to improve their health, but ultimately as part of a broad study to provide essential insight into the health and wellbeing of the Fire Service as a whole.
