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Johnny Wilkinson champions sport for children's physical and mental health

DL Kids class

Wilkinson shares how kids taking rugby up as a sport improves their wellbeing in a number of ways including their co-ordination and self esteem.

31 Aug 2023

JONNY WILKINSON CHAMPIONS SPORT FOR CHILDREN’S PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH

  • Wilkinson shares how kids taking rugby up as a sport improves their wellbeing in a number of ways including their co-ordination and self esteem
  • David Lloyd Clubs offers Kids’ ‘rugby squad’ classes in clubs across the UK No 1 Living, Jonny’s range of healthy drink products, are now stocked at David Lloyd Clubs

31 August 2023: David Lloyd Clubs, UK’s leading health and wellness group has collaborated with rugby legend and No 1 Living Owner Founder, Jonny Wilkinson, to share how rugby can improve the mental and physical health of the next generation.

In a video for David Lloyd Clubs, Jonny outlined the key benefits of rugby as a sport and why he is championing rugby programmes for children:

Co-ordination – The ability to perform smooth and efficient movement is really important when it comes to rugby, the sport can improve children’s coordination. Research conducted by the University of Leeds reveals that young children with better eye-to-hand co-ordination are more likely to achieve higher scores for reading, writing and maths

Improving fitness – The simple activities of passing, catching, tagging and evasion in rugby can improve fitness in children and helps to build a strong heart and lungs, which are able to work faster to deliver oxygen to the muscles. Rugby is a great way for children to engage in physical exercise and build physical resilience.

Team Spirit – In my opinion, rugby can help in building essential life skills like teamwork. The Sport encourages players to share passions and unite behind a common goal. Introducing the sport to your children helps to develop their capacity to create inspiring environments for themselves and for others.

Building self esteem – Playing rugby and engaging in sports can subtly boost your child’s self-esteem and confidence. For example, this happens as the child sets small goals on the field, such as perfecting a skill, and achieves them. It also takes place when things don’t go as planned and they experience disappointment because learning to see the opportunity and growth in every challenge enhances resilience too.

Stress reduction – Sports can help reduce stress in children. For example, it is a well-known fact that endorphins are released during exercise, which is a hormone that makes people feel happy and more relaxed. Engaging in a physical sport like rugby helps to lift the mood of a child as well as aid a better night’s sleep.

David Lloyd Clubs offers six to eight week-long kids’ rugby mini classes. These classes target two age brackets, ‘Let’s Play Rugby’ (for 3-5 year old’s) and Rugby Squad (for 6-10 year old’s), and offer exciting new skills for kids to learn, whilst helping them to make new friends.

Each session focuses on different skills which aim to improve overall fitness, co-ordination and understanding of the sport, including passing, catching, tagging, evasion and the rules of rugby through fun games and activities. And at the end of the programme during ‘Awards Week’, the children are presented with a rugby medal.

Discover what classes and experiences David Lloyd Clubs offer at www.davidlloyd.co.uk/kids.

ENDS

Press Enquiries

For more information on the campaign please contact the M&C Saatchi Talk press office team: [email protected].

Notes to Editors:

About David Lloyd Leisure Group

David Lloyd Leisure helps members to live life better with a focus on physical and mental wellbeing and a sense of belonging. We are Europe’s largest health and fitness group operating 132 clubs - 103 clubs in the UK and a further 29 clubs across mainland Europe, comprising three brands David Lloyd Clubs, Harbour Clubs and David Lloyd Meridian Spa and Fitness in Germany.

We continually innovate to offer the best products and services for families and individuals in welcoming surroundings including state-of-the-art gyms, heated indoor and outdoor pools, top-class racquet facilities, well-equipped group exercise studios, luxurious spas, kids club facilities and crèches. Our Clubrooms offer a place to spend time with friends and family or enjoy a bite to eat, our clubs also feature large and inviting spaces to work, relax and socialise.

Our 730,000+ members and over 10,000 team members make a positive impact on the communities and environment in which we operate. We have an expert health and fitness team of over 2000 and more than 680 tennis professionals work with us. David Lloyd Clubs’ racquet facilities are unparalleled with over 1080 tennis courts as well as over 400 badminton and squash courts.

About The No.1 Living

When Jonny Wilkinson launched No.1 Living, he did it with a purpose-driven mission to bring the benefits its of a healthy diet rich with living cultures to more people. He wanted to share his passion for how living foods contribute to overall mind and body wellbeing. After realising how hard it was to find a product that was both accessible in price and delicious, he set out to create his own kombucha brand, and No. 1 Living was born.

“What and how I eat, drink and feel are all connected. No.1 Living is based on the simple notion that by putting our wellbeing first and improving the quality of what we put into our body, we get more out of life.”

No.1 Living includes innovative, great tasting, revitalising drinks that are alive with beneficial cultures and accessible to all diets. Jonny is thrilled David Lloyd clubs have launched his new health-focussed drinks range, No.1 Living Plus. The line launches with a trio of adaptogen-enriched kombuchas to help support, stimulate and energise wellbeing and harness the power of living foods.

For more information on classes and experiences on offer at David Lloyd Clubs, please visit www.davidlloyd.co.uk

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