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Increasing physical activity levels will help prevent and manage a wide variety of conditions and diseases including cancer, coronary heart disease, diabetes and obesity. It is also very effective at promoting mental wellbeing and lowers your stress levels, as physical activity releases endorphins into your body which makes you feel better. Many employers recognises the benefits of promoting physical activity to their workforce, such as reduced sickness absence, increased loyalty and better staff retention.
Adults should be aiming for at least 30 minutes a day, and 60 minutes a day for children between 5 and 18 years.
Community and Public Health is committed to promoting physical activity as an integral part of a healthy lifestyle through assisting workplaces to implement physical activity programmes. We also advocate for the provision and promotion of appropriate physical activity and recreation opportunities and active environments in Canterbury, to enable people to be more active, more often.
Community and Public Health encourages and supports CDHB staff to take part in various events within Canterbury like the City 2 Surf, and some staff are also involved in CoachCorp.
Find out more about CoachCorp (SPARC).
The Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL) project was established in November 2004, and in collaboration with Health and Safety and Healthy Eating Healthy Action (HEHA) with the objectives to:
- Increase CDHB staffs awareness about healthy eating and active living
- Develop and maintain initiatives for staff that support healthy eating and active living
- Develop environments, polices and practices that support healthy eating and active living for staff.
Community and Public Health staff provide expertise around active transport, and support the website for this initative.
Supporting the Active Canterbury Network
 Community and Public Health is an active member of the Active Canterbury Network (previously known as Push Play with Active Christchurch) since it was established in 1999. The aim of the initiative is to encourage Canterbury’s population to increase its physical activity and enjoy the fantastic benefits it brings. Its current role is to support physical activity providers and health professionals (including GPs and practice nurses) through:
- Providing regular newsletters to raise the awareness of existing and future training, funding and networking opportunities to support and enhance their current mahi.
- Identifying gaps in what is needed but not currently provided for physical activity providers.
- Linking with current training providers with possibilities to provide the above.
- Holding twice yearly opportunities to learn and share with, and be inspired by other community physical activity leaders.
- Supplying providers with the tools and information needed to help their clients and patients get more active, more often.
View the Easy Promotion Tool that enables providers to create professional-looking fliers, posters and certificates with ease.
Active Canterbury also enables anyone to find local groups, clubs or classes for an activity or find information about parks, tracks and facilities you can visit.
Find out more on the Active Canterbury website or by phoning 0800 ACTIVE.
Documents
Downloads
Order copies from the Community Health Information Centre
Links
Sport and Recreation New Zealand (SPARC)
Fitness New Zealand
Register of Exercise Professionals (REPs)
Active Smart (ACC)
Physical Activity (Ministry of Health)
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