January: fitness
This month is about getting moving, building consistency, and laying the foundation to reach your goals this year.
TOTAL HEALTH CHALLENGE
NOVEMBER NEW SKILL CHALLENGE
This month’s free challenge is about building strength in more ways than one. The New Skill Challenge helps you master a new exercise skill while improving coordination, confidence, and control. Each week, you’ll learn something new, push past limits, and discover just how strong and capable your body can become with a bit of daily practice.
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Repetition is protective
Learning a new skill isn’t just good for your body, it’s a great way to keep your brain sharp. Research shows that consistent practice strengthens connections in the brain, helping your mind work faster, more efficiently, and with less effort over time.
How skill learning protects your brain:1
Faster thinking: With practice, the brain can select and perform actions up to 10x faster, as repeated movements become second nature.
Less mental strain: As your skill improves, your brain doesn’t have to work as hard. That means you use less mental energy while still performing better
Habit building: Repetition “caches” neural pathways, like creating shortcuts in your brain, which improves memory and coordination.
Cognitive resilience: Learning and refining new skills keeps your mind active, boosting memory, focus, and long-term brain health.
Your year of transformation: monthly highlights
Over the course of the year, we'll challenge you to improve upon different areas of your health, with hopes to create lasting, sustainable change that facilitates better health and wellbeing.
February: heart health
Show your heart some love with cardio moves and heart-healthy meal swaps.
March: mindfulness
March is all about meditation, journaling, and mindfulness to help you stay balanced and clear-headed.
April: clean eating
This April, we’re focusing on the powerhouse of health - the gut, and how to keep it thriving.
May: outdoor
Summer's creeping up, so we're taking your workouts outside to reap the benefits of fresh air.
June: strength
Feel the summer pump with strength workouts that build power, boost flexibility, and keep injuries at bay with moves that deliver results.
July: hydration and kidney health
Beat the summer heat with hydration tips, water-rich foods, and creative ways to keep your water intake consistent.
August: commuting
Turn your commute into an adventure this August and watch your step count soar.
September: sleep
Build a bedtime routine, reduce screen time, and create the perfect sleep environment for a more energised you.
October: selflessness
Lift your mood and strengthen connections through acts of kindness and self-care.
November: new skill
Step out of your comfort zone by mastering a new exercise or skill that challenges you to grow.
December: 12 healthy days
Celebrate 12 healthy days of Christmas with treats and activities that keep your progress on track without impacting enjoyment.
This year's previous challenges
Our Total Health Challenge is a year long. Each month focuses on healthy habits that can be built into your routine in the long term. So even if you miss a month, you can download it for free and follow the core principles of the challenge.
February's Heart Health Challenge
April's Clean Eating Challenge
July's Hydration and Kidney Health Challenge
August's Commuting Challenge
August's challenge focused on transforming your daily journeys into opportunities for movement. Whether it’s swapping the bus for a bike or walking to your local coffee spot instead of driving, we helped you turn your commute into a health boost. With weekly goals and simple tips, we guide you to move more, stress less, and feel better. Click on the button below to download the challenge.
September's Sleep Challenge
September’s challenge focused on transforming your nights to improve your days. From building a better bedtime routine to cutting down on late-night screen time, we guided you through weekly goals and science-backed tips to help you sleep deeper, wake more refreshed, and feel sharper throughout the day. Click the button below to download the challenge.
October's Selflessness Challenge
WHY THE NEW SKILL CHALLENGE?
It’s easy to think “learning a skill” is just a party trick. But research shows skill practice acts like preventative medicine for your brain and body. Repetition turns effortful actions into automatic habits, often within just 2 days, so movements feel smoother, faster, and less mentally draining. Keep practising for a few weeks and performance keeps climbing, helping you get better control, quicker reactions, and more consistency.2
Skill learning also frees up cognitive load, which protects focus, confidence, and motivation when life gets busy. Much like sleep or nutrition, daily practice is a health habit which sharpens coordination, builds usable strength, and trains your brain to run key movements on autopilot. In short, small sessions add up, helping you progress faster with less stress.2
What makes our challenge different?
Each month of the 2025 Total Health Challenge focuses on a different part of your wellbeing, and November is all about learning a new skill. This challenge encourages you to pick up and try something new, with the aim to get you moving in fresh ways, building coordination, confidence, and strength along the way. Regardless of your desired new skill, be sure to step outside your comfort zone, have fun, and discover how quickly progress comes when you practise a little every day.
What's in it for you?
This challenge is your gateway to lasting change, each month building on the last, creating routines that stick and transform the way you approach your health. And if you’re working with a health coach, you’ll have someone to cheer you on, track those wins with you, and help you overcome any hurdles along the way.
You’ll become part of a growing community—people just like you, sharing their triumphs, setbacks, and everything in between. With the hashtag #NumanHealthChallenge, you can document your progress on social media, inspire others to take that first step, and celebrate those small-but-mighty wins that add up to something remarkable. Below are just some of the benefits of signing up to this challenge now.
Future adaptability
Learning a new skill trains your brain to adapt. With practice, your brain starts to “cache” steps, making actions faster and freeing up space for sharper thinking. Research shows that deliberate practice like regular, focused effort, helps builds adaptability. In one study, people who consistently practised new skills handled stress and change better than those relying on one-off training or feedback.3
Just five to fifteen minutes a day can reshape how your brain responds to challenges. Over time, you’ll think quicker, stay calmer, and adapt more easily, whether it’s at work, at home, or in pursuit of long-term health and fitness goals.
Staving off dementia
Your brain is like a muscle; stop using it, and it starts to lose strength. But when you challenge it with something new, like learning a new sport or instrument, or picking up a new language, you’re training it to stay sharp for years to come.4
Research shows that lifelong learning can actually delay or reduce the risk of dementia. People who regularly stimulate their minds have up to a 30% lower risk of developing cognitive decline.4 That’s because learning builds cognitive reserve, that is, extra brainpower which helps you adapt, stay focused, and bounce back from stress.4
Knowledge
Take a deeper dive into all things health
References
1. Haith AM, Krakauer JW. The multiple effects of practice: skill, habit and reduced cognitive load. Curr Opin Behav Sci. 2018;20:196–201.
2. Yang CS, Cowan NJ, Haith AM. Control becomes habitual early on when learning a novel motor skill. J Neurophysiol. 2022;128(5):1278–91.
3. Mei M, Yang F, Tang M. Does practice enhance adaptability? The role of personality trait, supervisor behavior, and career development training. Front Psychol. 2020;11:594791.
4. Flexman R. Lifelong learning:: A key weapon in Delaware’s fight against cognitive decline. Dela J Public Health. 2021;7(4):124–7.