Swansea City AFC Foundation 'Go Red' at walking football sessions to support the British Heart Foundation

Swansea City AFC Foundation’s walking football project partnered with the British Heart Foundation to raise awareness of Heart Month by supporting the 'Go Red' campaign.

‘Go Red’ aims to inform people about heart and circulatory diseases, helping to save and improve lives by going red throughout February.

Heart and circulatory conditions affect people of all ages, and from all walks of life. In the UK someone dies as a result of these conditions every three minutes.

Walking football is proven to help create positive change with improved resting heart rates and provides an inclusive exercise that reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Swans Foundation deliver three weekly walking football sessions across the local area, including a walking football maintenance programme for former FIT Jacks participants.

Across all of the Foundation's walking football sessions at the end of February, participants were given the opportunity to talk about their health and learned more about heart and circulatory diseases from a presentation delivered by the Foundation's coaches.

Foundation health and wellbeing officer, Robin O’Brien, delivers the walking football sessions, and was delighted to be partnering with the British Heart Foundation to spread an important message.

“The campaign really links into the constant themes and messages that we are giving to our participants, it’s really important for us to talk about heart health, and physical activity plays a key part in maintaining that,” said O’Brien.

“People have different ideas of exercise, a lot of our participants had never played walking football before. There’s also a social aspect to it that is also beneficial.

“We’ve found people feel at ease and comfortable, there are no judgements so walking football is a perfect way to share this message of heart health.”

To sign up to the Foundation's free walking football sessions, click here.