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In this episode, Stephen speaks with Dr Ben Rigby from Newcastle University (United Kingdom) about his commentary, Reflections on inaction: how might we reverse continuing trends in physical inactivity, which asks why decades of physical activity promotion have failed to move the needle — and what bold ideas might finally shift the dial.
Ben shares his reflections on the limitations of current policy approaches, and the tendency to treat inactivity as a simple behaviour problem rather than a complex, systemic issue.
You’ll hear about:
• Why global physical activity targets are likely to be missed — and what that tells us
• The need to think beyond individual behaviour change to structural levers like time, equity, and resource distribution
• How we might re-imagine physical activity promotion to create more meaningful movement experiences
Whether you work in research, policy, or practice, this conversation will challenge you to step back, rethink assumptions, and imagine a more radical future for physical activity promotion.
🔗 Read Reflections on Inaction: https://doi.org/10.1080/19406940.2025.2473331
🔗 Learn more about Dr Rigby’s work: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/medical-sciences/people/profile/benjaminrigby.html
🎧 New episodes of the NESI podcast are released bi-weekly. Don’t miss updates on future episodes. Follow us on:
Bluesky: @isbnpa.bsky.social
X: @ISBNPA
Instagram: @isbnpaadmin
LinkedIn: International Society of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity
📢 Got research to share? Reach out to us at [email protected] — we’d love to feature your work.
By NESI Podcast TeamIn this episode, Stephen speaks with Dr Ben Rigby from Newcastle University (United Kingdom) about his commentary, Reflections on inaction: how might we reverse continuing trends in physical inactivity, which asks why decades of physical activity promotion have failed to move the needle — and what bold ideas might finally shift the dial.
Ben shares his reflections on the limitations of current policy approaches, and the tendency to treat inactivity as a simple behaviour problem rather than a complex, systemic issue.
You’ll hear about:
• Why global physical activity targets are likely to be missed — and what that tells us
• The need to think beyond individual behaviour change to structural levers like time, equity, and resource distribution
• How we might re-imagine physical activity promotion to create more meaningful movement experiences
Whether you work in research, policy, or practice, this conversation will challenge you to step back, rethink assumptions, and imagine a more radical future for physical activity promotion.
🔗 Read Reflections on Inaction: https://doi.org/10.1080/19406940.2025.2473331
🔗 Learn more about Dr Rigby’s work: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/medical-sciences/people/profile/benjaminrigby.html
🎧 New episodes of the NESI podcast are released bi-weekly. Don’t miss updates on future episodes. Follow us on:
Bluesky: @isbnpa.bsky.social
X: @ISBNPA
Instagram: @isbnpaadmin
LinkedIn: International Society of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity
📢 Got research to share? Reach out to us at [email protected] — we’d love to feature your work.