Max Bupa Walk for Health mobilizes 40,000 Indians to walk more; culminates in Bengaluru

Leading Kannada star Radhika Pandit and National athlete Anju Bobby flagged off the Walk 10,000 Bengalureans joined in high spirits and participated in a one of its kind walkathon

Bengaluru, February 26, 2017:Max Bupa Health Insurance today flagged off the final leg of its three city initiative, Max Bupa Walk for Health, in the city today. Leading Kannada star Radhika Pandit and National Long Jump Athlete Anju Bobby George flagged off the 5 kilometre walk. The winners of the Max Bupa National Race Walking Championship led the participants from the popular Kanteerava Stadium to cover the route crossing the famous Cubbon Park and Vidhana Soudha today morning.

Max Bupa Walk for Health is a reflection of Max Bupa's commitment to help India put its ‘Health First’. Flagged off in Mumbai on February 12 and Delhi on February 19, the walk event concluded in Bengaluru today. Held for the first time in 2012, Max Bupa Walk for Health has so far inspired over 1, 00, 000 Indians to walk more.

The walk event witnessed huge participation from the city with an ecstatic crowd from various walks of life who came together on the Sunday morning and pledged to walk for good health. Radhika Pandit and Anju Bobby, along with ex Mrs India Aditi Gowitrikar, who flagged off the 2 kilometre walk for kids and senior citizens, extended motivation and encouragement to all the participants.

Ashish Mehrotra also felicitated Sandeep Kumar, the winner of the Max Bupa National Race Walking Championship 2017 at the event. Max Bupa recently hosted the National Race Walking Championship in association with the Athletic Federation of India in the capital. This was the first time in the country that a corporate promoted ‘race walking’ at a grand scale. Sandeep made a national record in the 50 km race walk category with the record time of 3:55:59.05. He was presented prize money from Max Bupa, by Ashish and Anju Bobby George.

Bengaluru’s famous walking communities, health enthusiasts, school children, senior citizens and others turned up in huge numbers and walked together in 5km and 2km walk categories and made the event a huge success. The stadium was filled with fanfare while people excitedly jiving away to Zumba and workout session by Cult Fitness. There was a live ‘Rock n Roll’ music performance by Bajaow band that further pumped up the crowd. Thousands of school children got a chance to meet their favourite Nickelodeon Toons- Dora the Explorer and Ninja Hattori.

Ashish Mehrotra, MD & CEO, Max Bupa said, “We decided to host Max Bupa Walk for Health in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru this year, as people in metros are more prone to lifestyle illnesses, due to sedentary and stressful lifestyles. Our annual Max Bupa Walk for Health Survey 2017 also reveals that 91% of people in Bengaluru believe walking helps in curbing lifestyle related diseases. However there is still a significant number of people, including millennials who are not walking enough. Hence the initiative is a perfect fit for the city to encourage people to walk towards a healthier, more successful life. I’m delighted to share that this year, Max Bupa Walk for Health event in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru together received an overwhelming participation of close to 40, 000 families, who took a step towards a healthier tomorrow.”

Leading actress Radhika Pandit said, “My favourite fitness regime is walking because I enjoy the nature and greenery as I unwind from a heavy day. Walking outdoors relaxes and freshens our mind while giving us a full body workout. Max Bupa Walk for Health is a great initiative as it encourages families to adopt the healthy habit of walking. I encourage each and every individual to walk as it’s the simplest forms of exercise and has innumerable health benefits. I urge everyone, including men, women and children, to step up and start walking more for a healthier and happier life.”

Sports icon Anju Bobby added, “Fitness is an integral part of my life. I learnt the importance of being fit and healthy when my dad enrolled me into athletics at the age of 4. For me fitness doesn't only mean rigorous workout routine, instead a simple walk everyday can prove beneficial in maintaining the right balance between physical and mental health. I urge all my fellow Bengalureans to take step towards good health and make Bengaluru the fittest city of India. It is heartening to witness so many enthusiastic participants gathered here today at Max Bupa Walk for Health.”

A host of popular brands like Nickelodeon, GoQii, Barista, Fitness First and Bookmyshow among others associated with Max Bupa for the initiative this year.

Max Bupa Health Insurance
Max Bupa a 51:49 joint venture brings together a combination of Bupa’s health insurance and customer service expertise with Max India’s understanding and experience of the Indian health and insurance sectors. Max Bupa offers quality health insurance services through a dedicated team of over 1900 people and its network of 29 offices across 19 cities - Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Pune, Ludhiana, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Surat, Kochi, Kolkata, Patna, Goa, Gurugram, Lucknow, Vadodara, Thane and Jodhpur. Max Bupa offers individual and family oriented health insurance policies for Indians across all age groups. Max Bupa has a direct working relationship with a network of over 4000 top quality hospitals and healthcare. Over the last seven years, Max Bupa has introduced many innovative offerings that cater to the evolving health needs of various customer segments. For more details about the company and a list of all our network hospitals please visit www.maxbupa.com.