Council offers subsidised fitness classes in rural locations

Called Active in the Regions, the program will run from July 12, 2021 to March 31, 2022.

All classes cost just $5 (excluding pool entry), with fees paid directly to the service provider.

Council’s representative on the North Queensland Sports Foundation Board (council’s funding partner for this program), Cr Laurence Bonaventura said it was fantastic to be able to combine the natural beauty of our rural areas with these subsidised fitness programs.

“Being able to make these classes accessible to our rural communities is great,” Cr Bonaventura said. “And at $5, it’s affordable to anyone in the community and will save residents considerably on the cost of driving to town for classes.”

He said there was also a real need for our region to shape up when it came to health and fitness.

“The Heart Foundation released a report in December last year (2020) that revealed the Mackay-Isaac-Whitsunday greater region was ranked ninth on the national ladder when it came to a lack of exercise and movement.

“We are also fourth on the list of high blood pressure hotspots.

“Rural residents have less access to trained fitness providers, so this is a fantastic initiative that helps provide some affordable fitness options to folks in some of the far corners of our region.”

Subsidised classes include child-friendly group fitness at Sarina Range, pilates and yoga classes at Finch Hatton, group fitness at Dows Creek Hall, aqua fitness at Sarina Pool and aerobics at the Sarina Field of Dreams.

Find the full list of providers and locations and a timetable here.

Active in the Regions is an initiative of council and Move IT NQ (an initiative of the North Queensland Sports Foundation).