Championing fitness and inclusion: Maria Clark is ready to take on Active Wellbeing Autumn

Maria Clark began her career in the civil service at the Home Office but has since moved to the Cabinet Office where she works in workplace adjustments, helping colleagues work as comfortably and barrier-free as possible.

Growing up, she always took an interest in sports, whether watching or playing them. She did tap dancing and ballet until going to university, but to this day enjoys watching football, rugby league, and tennis. “I’ve always thought that sport and moving your body is amazing in so many ways. It helps you make friends, find connections with different people, and it’s really good for you physically and mentally,” she said.  

Outside of her 9-5 in Sheffield, she is also a fitness instructor who loves the idea of giving back to people through the classes she teaches. But being in her thirties, she’s learned the importance of looking after her own health and prioritises running and weight training. She said, “I love weight training and think it’s so important, especially for women. As we get older, we are more prone to things like osteoporosis and the emphasis on a strong physique becomes so important.”

When asked about the barriers she’s faced in fitness, Maria pointed out that there have always been certain ways that women should look and act. However, the more time she’s spent in the fitness space, the more she realised how untrue it was, saying: “I feel really grateful that I’ve been in gym environments where people are really welcoming and like to share their knowledge as it’s really helped me to learn.”

For Maria, fitness is part of her daily life. “Ninety percent of the time, it’s just routine. Motivation dips, like in anything, but you do it because you always feel better afterwards. The positive impact shows up in every area of your fitness. My running has improved because I am stronger. I’ve gotten faster because my body can recover better. Setting small, achievable goals works wonders for me.”

The 33-year-old and her colleagues, who all have varying fitness levels, are gearing up for the Active Wellbeing Autumn campaign. “Everyone has signed up now as part of the Thunder Thighs team and I’m quite competitive so I’m looking forward to insisting that they get their watches synced and hitting the road so we can all ger our steps in,” she laughed.

This is not the first time they will be taking on the challenge, so they know exactly what to expect. “During the last challenge, we would message each other every morning to see how everyone was doing and talk about how we were going to improve on our personal goals.”

The team doesn’t only rely on each other for motivation; they share advice too. Some members have even signed up for the Great North Run in September, so the more experienced runners are more than happy to offer each other tips on how to improve their performance.

As someone who works in a team environment, Maria finds that the Active Wellbeing challenge is also a great ice breaker for new members to find a middle ground straight away. She said, “If you live close to someone, you can go for a run, walk or swim together. You’re not starting from scratch.”

“I loved the challenge last time” she said. “That’s why I love instructing and seeing people that don’t usually do as much do more and getting a lot from it. Any bit of movement can make a huge difference.”

This September, Active Wellbeing is back with a brand-new run, walk, wheel, swim and cycle European Adventure, to nudge you to move more. Join over 75,000 colleagues from across the civil service and public sector by signing up for Active Wellbeing Autumn here.