BULK POWDERS™ Fit Brit Survey 2014

Unfit Brit

1 in 3 people aren’t doing enough exercise

As a BULK POWDERS™ customer you probably head to the gym a couple of times a week, feeling pretty safe that you live an active lifestyle. But across the UK many people aren’t following in your footsteps. Our research has revealed that one in three people aren’t doing the right amount of exercise, as recommended by the NHS guidelines*. And as the NHS suggest a mix of both cardio and weights, you might be shocked to find that you too could be outside of their recommendations.

Surveyed 17 Cities

We surveyed seventeen cities to get a clearer picture of the types, length and frequency of exercise taken across the UK. Our research revealed that while almost 30% of people we spoke to don’t do any exercise at all or exercise less than once a week, only 16% mix the types of exercise that they take part in, and therefore adhere to the NHS guidelines.

This 16% is broken down into:

  • 9% of people who mix intensive cardio and muscle strengthening,
  • 5% of people who do both moderate cardio and muscle strengthening activities
  • and only 2% of people who combine moderate and intensive cardio with muscle strengthening

Fit Brit Infographic

Check out this infographic we put together to illustrate the findings:

Unfit Brit

All or nothing

When it came to the amount of time spent exercising, only 37% of the people we surveyed spent the NHS recommended amount of time (over one hour and up to three hours) exercising per week. Of those people who are active at least once a week, just 1% of people did fifteen minutes or less, while 34% exercised for more than four hours – proving we are an all or nothing nation!

Team games most likely played by men

We found women to be more active than men overall, but also better at doing the right kinds of exercise too, with 17% of women varying their exercise compared to 14% of men. But team sports like football and rugby, which count as both cardio and muscle strengthening, are most likely to be played by men. Just 2% of women were involved in team games compared to 13% of men.

Whether it’s the influence of London native and BULK POWDERS™ sponsored athlete James DeGale or the lads from LDN Muscle, London is the UKs ‘strongest’ city, beating the rest of the UK when it comes to the amount of people who perform muscle strengthening exercises per week. 27% of Londoners lift every week, while half that amount flex their muscles in Edinburgh, Brighton and Southampton.

Liverpool crowned most active city

However Brightonians were most active in team sports, while Liverpool topped the poll for intensive cardio, with 34% of Liverpudlians getting sweaty on a weekly basis. In fact, Liverpudlians performed well in all areas which led to Liverpool being crowned BULK POWDERS™ most active UK city.

Nottingham the least active city

Overall, Nottingham was found to be the least active city, with Glasgow a close second. Glasgow also had the highest percentage of people who exercised less than once a week (19%). Bristol was home to the highest percentage of people who don’t exercise at all (30%), but it was saved from the bottom of the table by the active people of Bristol performing really well.

Have your say

Are you one of the UKs top 16% or could you stand to benefit from a little variety in your gym routine? Are you a woman who plays team sports or an exercise-fanatic from Nottingham? Do you know of some lazy Liverpudlians or gym-mad Glaswegians? Regardless of where you are from in the UK (or elsewhere in the world!) we’d love to hear your thoughts on the results of our survey! Drop us a line on Facebook or Twitter and let us know what you think.

*The NHS sets physical activity guidelines for adults aged 16-64, stating the length of time you should be exercising for and the types of exercises you should be doing. They recommend the following:

  • At least 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (such as cycling or fast walking) every week, and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week
  • 1 hour and 15 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity (such as running or a game of singles tennis) every week, and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week
  • An equivalent mix of moderate and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity every week (for example 2 x 30-minute runs plus 30 minutes of fast walking), and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week

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