PĀNUI
NEWS
24 HOUR WORKOUT CHALLENGE WRAP UP!
23 / 05 / 2026
During Youth Week 2026, the kaimahi of He Waka Tapu took on something big. From midday Thursday to midday Friday, they kept a 24-hour workout going non-stop at Tinana Gym, to show up for the young people of our community. No breaks. No stopping. Just mahi, together.
The message behind it was simple: being a young person in Aotearoa is not a walk in the park, and neither was this challenge. Our rangatahi deserve people who are willing to push through.
Three pieces of equipment kept things moving: the assault bike, the rowing machine, and the treadmill. Every 15 minutes, kaimahi would tag in and out, keeping a continuous output going around the clock. The first block was set off by Niki, Sefa, and Lita, and from there the baton was passed again and again, hour after hour.
As the evening came and kaimahi headed home to their whanau and tamariki, members of the wider community stepped in to fill the gaps. Rangatahi themselves even joined the effort during the night shift, a reminder that when we work alongside young people rather than just for them, real progress happens.
It was a cold night on the east side. Blankets and heaters came out in full force to keep the overnight crew going, but they pushed through to the morning and were tagged in just in the nick of time by kaimahi who showed up at first light.
Alongside the workout challenge, we ran a gear drive for Gear Up Otautahi, a kaupapa focused on getting Eastside rangatahi active by connecting them with sports gear they need. A collection bin was set up at Tinana Gym throughout the challenge, and the response from the community was awesome. Shoes, boots, and equipment flowed in from whanau across the area. Every bit counts, and those donations will go directly to rangatahi who need them.
As the final hours ticked down, the community came out in force. Whanau, friends, and supporters gathered from 8am on the Friday morning to cheer our kaimahi across the finish line. A free BBQ was fired up for everyone who came through, and the energy was something special.
24 hours straight. We came, we saw, and we conquered.
A massive mihi to Rawiri Hazel for coordinating the whole challenge, being a constant source of motivation throughout, and for coming up with "waaahey" as the overarching slogan. To all the kaimahi who stayed overnight and kept the fires burning, to Meno at the gym for opening up the space, to everyone who brought down gear to fill the Gear Up bin, to the rangatahi who pitched in and brought the energy, and to every person who turned up on that Friday morning to send us home. Epic mahi all round.
Mauri mahi, mauri ora.
