Walking Cricket gathers pace in Leicestershire

Have fun and make new friends whilst becoming physically active when attending Leicestershire County Cricket Club’s Walking Cricket sessions.

With the help of The Centre for Ethnic Health Research and Leicester Changing Diabetes, LCCC set up Walking Cricket to help ethnic minority communities who are high risk of Type 2 Diabetes get more physically active and meet new people within the community.

However, the programme is open to ANYONE who is keen to try out a new sport, socialise and get some more physical activity in their life.

Walking sports are a slower paced version of popular sports, aimed to encourage physical activity and increase wellbeing amongst those aged over 50.

Walking Cricket is a one-and-a-half-hour session delivered by a qualified coach from the cricket club, held in the Mike Turner Indoor Cricket Centre at the Uptonsteel County Ground where each player has an opportunity to experience all three facets of the game; bat, bowl, and field.

There is evidence to suggest that South Asians are an increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. Low levels of physical activity is a risk factor for increased body weight and in turn increases the risk of Type 2 diabetes further.

Making small lifestyle changes for the better such as increasing physical activity can reduce the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, and can help manage an ongoing condition.

Walking Cricket’s aim is to bring older adults to an organised session of cricket where they can socialise with other like-minded people and get more active through a team-based sport.

Participants reported that due to group exercises, they no longer felt isolated and attending the sessions gave them more confidence to be physically active elsewhere.

One of the attendees, Ishvar Rohit, commented: “I absolutely love the Walking Cricket sessions.

“They not only keep me active physically and mentally, but also gives me a precious opportunity to meet dear friends once a week.

“It is one of the highlights of my week.”

We would love to see you at one of our Walking Cricket sessions on Wednesday mornings at 10:30am until 12pm, held in the Mike Turner Indoor Cricket Centre at Uptonsteel County Ground.

To get involved, contact City Development Officer, Dave Allen on dave@leicestershireccc.co.uk, or call 07495092679.