Manawatu an active region

Research just released from Sport and Recreation New Zealand (SPARC) shows a large number of people in the Manawatu are getting active every week.

Results from the Manawatu profile of SPARC’s 2007/08 Active New Zealand Survey show 79% of adults in the Manawatu are participating in at least one sport or recreation activity in any given week.

Sport Manawatu chief executive officer, Andrea Durie, believes this reinforces how easy it is to be active in the region.

“For a provincial region we have recreational and sporting facilities that rival many of the major centres, as well as a relatively flat landscape that makes active transport a great option for people. Couple that with the proactive groups and committed individuals we see making the most of our indoor and outdoor opportunities it shouldn’t be a surprise to learn we live in an active region. This is a strong result we can build on”, says Durie.
Manawatu’s weekly participation rate of 79% is equal to the national average and is similar to other regions including Wellington with 80%, Wanganui with 75% and Hawkes Bay 72.9%.
Active NZ is the first survey of sport and recreation participation to be published since 2001. A total of 4,443 face to face interviews were conducted over a 12 month period including 233 in the Manawatu region.

Further results from the regional profile:
44% percent achieved the national physical activity guideline by undertaking 30 minutes of physical activity on five out of seven days.
The most popular sport and recreation activities were walking and gardening. Followed by swimming, equipment based exercise and cycling.
Activities uniquely popular with women were dance, aerobics, pilates/yoga and callisthenics, while fishing, golf, tramping and hunting were uniquely popular among men.
Tramping and hunting were among the 20 most popular activities for men in the Manawatu – while neither of these options appeared on the overall New Zealand list.
The amount of adults participating in an organised competition or event per year was lower than the national percentage.
34.4 percent of adults received instruction from a coach, instructor, teacher or trainer to help improve their performance.
30.7 percent of adults were members of clubs or centres in order to take part in sport and recreation activities.
19.2 percent of adults volunteered for a sport or recreation activity, equating to 24,824 sport and recreation volunteers in the Manawatu region.

A copy of the Manawatu regional profile and the full Active NZ survey can be downloaded from www.sportmanawatu.org.nz.