The reopening of local indoor sports’ facilities and the subsequent permission for adult group sports and exercise classes to resume is a hugely positive step towards us all getting our lives back on track.
Many people have increased their sedentary behaviour over the past 14 months and in a study conducted by Sport England, it was found that 43% admit that the closing of sporting facilities has reduced the amount of physical activity they do. The same piece of research confirms that 58% of people have missed the types of physical activity they were able to do before the outbreak.
While plenty of home workout solutions emerged and PE with Joe was a lifeline for parents, motivation, or lack of, is one of the main reasons for not maintaining an active lifestyle. People often need to be motivated by others in a comfortable sporting environment in order to pursue an activity.
For those who rely on swimming as the only meaningful form of exercise because they suffer joint or back problems, the closure of pools has been extremely tough. Wild swimming is reportedly fantastic but the security and comfort of lane swimming in a familiar and predictable environment is an important part of many people’s routine. We know that being physically active to help look after our health and mental wellbeing has never been more important but without access to indoor facilities, it has been harder to maintain good habits.
Physical benefits aside, the social gains that can be made from mingling with others in a fun, endorphin fuelled environment are huge and there’s no question that local sports’ centres can help to support the emergence of more cohesive and integrated communities.
High quality, accessible indoor sports facilities are an essential part of local living. They can offer a diverse, broader programme of activities that are more inclusive of all ages and athletic abilities and it is fantastic to hear from our clients that bookings for indoor courts, pitches and pools are coming in thick and fast once more.
This time last year, many of us were basking in the spring sunshine but the weather recently has been changeable to say the least and this has led to the cancellation of many local outdoor sporting activities, which is frustrating. There’s no denying that playing sport outside, when the weather permits, brings with it all the positive benefits of vitamin D, natural light and fresh air but with indoor facilities you get the guarantee of being able to participate at any time of the day and any time of the year, in a comfortable, climate-controlled, safe environment, come rain, wind or glaring sunshine. Of course you can always get the best of both worlds at a telescopic venue which can bring the outdoors indoors.
When people are given the opportunity to practice the sport they want at a convenient time and place then they are far more likely to frequent this athletic facility more regularly. When Peterborough Tennis Club instructed us to install indoor tennis facilities, they saw membership figures rise from 25 to 320 almost overnight and this number continued to soar rapidly. Bill Skeed from the club has received fantastic feedback from players and commented that “everyone gets a much better experience using the indoor facilities.”
We’re so pleased to see all our indoor sporting developments back up and running again. No doubt that after months of restrictions they will be more vibrant, bursting with more energy and buzzing with more people than ever!
