Gym chain PureGym is hosting a nationwide fundraising relay that kicks off on the 16th of June 2022. The Hearts and Minds Relay aims to raise £300,000 for the British Heart Foundation and Mental Health UK and will see over 2,000 staff and gym members cover 3,000 miles by way of dancing, rowing, spinning and more! A grand finale will take place in Oxford on the 23rd of June where representatives from all over the country will meet to ‘cross the finish line’ together.
It is estimated that one in two of us will suffer from a heart or circulatory disease, and one in four of us will experience a mental health problem each year. With exercise having long been heralded as a vital part of our physical and mental health, PureGym will use this opportunity to spread awareness and raise money for the two charities, both of whom drive forward groundbreaking research and champion initiatives to assist those living with cardiovascular and/or mental health problems.
Participating PureGyms all over the country are organising their own event(s), from coffee mornings to special classes and challenges, and members are being encouraged to get involved* to help smash the fundraising goal… and maybe a PB or two while they’re at it.
In London, the capital’s PureGym teams relay includes a 10-mile walk across the city, a 50-mile bike ride, the skywalk across Tottenham Hotspur’s stadium and a 4 kilometre rowing machine row from Muswell Hill to Southgate. The full list for the rest of the London-based participating gyms and how members can get involved can be found below:
What’s Happening in London?
West London
London Park Royal – Bake Sale and Coffee Morning
London Acton – Burn 10,000 Calories in 10 Days
Northolt – Charity Cycle Class
London Hayes – Protein Pancakes
London Hammersmith Palais – Coffee Morning
London Fulham – Coffee Morning
North-West London
London Wembley – Charity Cycle Class
South London
London Oval – Coffee Morning
London Camberwell New Road – Coffee Morning
London Camberwell Southampton Way – Board Games Night Against the Team
London Lambeth – Coffee Morning
London Borough – Paid Charity Classes (All Week)
South-West London
London Putney – London to Brighton
London Twickenham – Arts and Craft Event
London East Sheen – Coffee Morning
South-East London
London Bermondsey – Charity Cycle Class
North London
London Holloway Road – Charity Boot Camp
London Muswell Hill – Row 4k to Southgate
London Finsbury Park – Spinathon
London Kentish Town – Row to Holloway
London Edgware – Super Spin Class
New Barnet – Charity Cycle Class
London Colindale – Coffee Morning
London Southgate – Coffee Morning
Stephen Rowe, Chief Marketing Officer at PureGym commented: “Our cardiovascular health and mental wellbeing are such key factors in leading a healthy and fulfilled lifestyle, and exercise is so closely linked with both, it’s incredibly important to us to help both our members and the general public in learning how to support and improve their own.
Mental Health UK and the British Heart Foundation are two charities doing incredibly valuable work in both of these fields, from pioneering research to spreading awareness, and are charities close to many of us at PureGym. Our last relay for Mental Health UK was all the way back in 2019 and was a big success, so it feels long overdue to start another relay after having had to take two years off of the event due to the pandemic. We can’t wait to see how much our staff and members are able to raise, and see all the different events everyone will be taking part in throughout the relay!”.
For full information on the event, see here: https://www.puregym.com/relay/
