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28th January 2021

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Average2Awesome: Smeg UK completes gruelling fitness campaign with Team GB coach, Rory Coleman

Quitting carbohydrates, alcohol and sugar just before Christmas sounds like a terrifying prospect for anyone, but staff at Smeg UK went several thousands steps further embarking on a gruelling fitness regime led by a Team GB coach with a thousand marathons under his belt.

Performance coach Rory Coleman's aptly named Average2Awesome challenge gave the team of 11 just eight weeks to get into shape through the strict diet, along with gym sessions, a spot of office Olympics and covering minimum of 12,500 steps-a-day.

By the end, Team Smeg had lost an impressive 77kg in weight - approximately the same weight as a FAB30 fridge. They had also covered six million steps - that's around 3,000 miles, or the equivalent of walking from Smeg HQ in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, to Boston, Massachusetts, in the US.

Not a single staff member was aware of what they were signing up for, or that a special final challenge awaited them - visit as many Circle line London Underground stations on foot as possible in two-and-half-hours, taking a selfie by a platform sign each time.

Rory's challenge of raising fitness levels and managing your diet in the most indulgent month of the year comes from a man who knows something about desolation, having completed the world famous Marathon des Sables desert race not once, but 12 times.

Team Smeg were not only motivated to hit targets themselves, but their enthusiasm rubbed off on others too, with new faces joining in the challenge. "I've got a 13-year-old son so I'm hoping he'll learn from my example and lose weight with me," says IT technical support mananger, Lynn Atkinson, one of those to take part.

"We're all already very proud of where we work, but through the programme we're now even prouder of each other," adds HR director, Alison Rennie. "We have more respect for each other in our daily jobs and what makes us tick."

Smeg is an Italian family owned business and has always based its products around the joy of cooking and eating. This goes hand in hand with eating well and feeling good.

Watch Team Smeg's Average2Awesome journey at:

www.vimeo.com
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T: 0844 557 0070
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22nd January 2016