STRIDE: Find Your Y, Move Your Way

People are moving. Just not enough. That was the insight that started everything, and the question it sparked was simple: how do we help people find more movement that actually works for them?

STRIDE: Find Your Y, Move Your Way is a community movement initiative from South Australia, led by Angela, a Y Australia Change Agent and staff member at The Parks Recreation and Sports Centre. The Y Change Agents program tasks young leaders with designing and delivering real projects that make a difference in their communities. Before anything was built, the work started with listening. Angela visited OSHC services and met with a youth team made up of young people from Y services across South Australia, asking what movement they enjoyed, how it made them feel, and what movement-centred activities they wanted to see.

What came back was clear. People wanted something social, accessible, and joyful, not just exercise. That feedback shaped everything that followed.

STRIDE Week ran across six days and six sites in Adelaide's western suburbs. There was something for every age, ability, and interest. Sunrise Pilates on the sand at Largs Bay Foreshore. A stadium open night at The Parks featuring MultiBall and Hot Method Pilates. Pickleball and roller skating at St Clair Recreation Centre. It closed with a free Glow & Go twilight session at Largs Bay, in the heart of the Port Adelaide Enfield community, where participants lit up the foreshore with glow sticks and chose a 2km, 4km, or 6km route, finishing with a live DJ and beachside games. Asahi came on board as a partner for the Glow & Go evening, supplying electrolyte drinks and water for participants.

The MOVES Challenge, powered by Technogym, gave participants a way to track their movement through the Technogym app. The idea was simple, movement should be available to anyone, anywhere, anytime, breaking down the barriers that so often get in the way of people staying active.

In Angela's words, "What we saw was powerful, people didn't just show up, they found something they enjoyed."

The STRIDE program highlights how the Y lives out its mission of empowering local communities, not just by providing fitness activities, but by bringing people together with activities we can all enjoy.

To find out more about the range of wellness activities your local Y has on offer, head online and find your Y today.