Rewarding exercise
DOUBLE world champion cyclist Alison Palmer is going to help us all get off the couch with the promise of free stuff and some discounts.
Interested? Of course you are. And all you have to do is walk, run or cycle to get rewarded.
Palmer (nee Shanks) is launching Running and Cycling Heroes in New Zealand
It is the world’s largest rewards platform for runners and cyclists. The concept was launched in Paris three years ago and has expanded into the United Kingdom and Australia.
Registered users sync their GPS tracking apps and then get out and exercise. That activity is logged and will earn prizes and discounts. It works like air points, only you accumulate the points through activity.
Palmer will head the New Zealand operation.
‘‘Basically, I’m the country manager. I saw Running and Cycling Heroes on Instagram . . . I thought it was really cool,’’ she said.
‘‘I jumped on and a lot of the offerings weren’t available to New Zealanders. So I reached out to them and said why don’t we bring it to New Zealand and do it properly.’’
The New Zealand operation was launched earlier this month.
‘‘It is free to register . . . and your kilometres earn you reward points.’’
The faster, further and longer you exercise, the more points you earn.
Palmer represented New Zealand at two Olympic Games and two Commonwealth Games, winning a Commonwealth gold medal in the 3000m individual pursuit in Delhi in 2010.
She also won gold in the individual pursuit at the World Championships in 2009 and 2012.
A former representative netballer, she retired from cycling in 2014 and has two children, threeyearold Lucas and fourmonthold daughter Abigail.
The former Dunedinbased rider relocated to Cambridge with her husband Craig Palmer in December 2013.
The 34yearold is a director on the Cycling New Zealand and High Performance Sport New Zealand boards. She is also a member of the New Zealand Olympic Committee Athletes Commission and has been appointed to the Commonwealth Games Athletes Advisory Commission.