Last week, students from King Edward VII Science and Sport College in Coalville got to try their hand at creating their very own healthy smoothie by peddling away on a special smoothie bike.
As part of the Leicester Tigers and Aggregate Industries Concrete Rugby programme, Leicestershire school children have been learning about the benefits of healthy living, exercise and cycling with the programmes #GetOnYourBike campaign.
The purpose of the smoothie bike is to promote a diet rich in fruit and vegetables, coupled with a lifestyle rich in activity. Taking it in turns, the pupils chose their fruit and vegetables, jumped on a bike, and blended their drinks, getting to enjoy the fruits of their labour after.
Over the last few weeks, representatives from both organisations have been visiting schools across the county to chat about topics ranging from ‘sustainability’ and how cycling can help the environment, to ‘cycle safety’ and how to stay safe whilst on the road.
Donna Hunt, head of sustainability at Aggregate Industries, attended the session and said: “Our campaign is all about getting people active, and doing it in a sustainable way. Whilst it’s important to remain active, it’s equally important to eat a healthy and balanced diet.
So what better way to demonstrate both elements than getting the pupils to jump on a smoothie bike? The kids had lots of fun peddling away and got to enjoy a refreshing and healthy smoothie at the end of it.”
Joe Reynolds, rugby development officer at Leicester Tigers, who runs the programme, added: “As part of our sessions, we extensively cover the importance of exercise by getting the school children to play rugby to not only get them moving, but learn the importance of working as a team.
“It was great to shift the focus onto healthy eating and how fruit and vegetables play an important part in that.”
The Concrete Rugby initiative will have reached out to more than 1,500 Leicestershire students aged 11-14 by the end of the 2017/18 school year.
Aggregate Industries is also hosting a social media campaign, encouraging pupils to get involved by asking a friend to take pictures or videos of them with their bike (in a safe space) and tweeting @aggregateuk, using the hashtag #GetOnYourBike.
