At a north London gym on a recent evening, Claire Palmer was busy pounding her gloved fists into a punching bag.
To raise money and get fit, Palmer is trying all 30 Olympic and Paralympic sports in the next year — and boxing is on this month's schedule. Palmer, 29, is taking part in the Gold Challenge, a charity challenge trying to get people more active by the time the 2012 Olympics roll into town.
She admits the program is a hard sell to many Londoners: Britain has the fattest population in Western Europe, with about half of all Britons overweight. Physical activity levels have largely stagnated in recent years.
"For a lot of people, it's very easy to make excuses about why you can't exercise," she said. "I think it's fantastic the Olympics are coming, but not everyone thinks that."
That's something British officials are finding out. When London was awarded the 2012 Games, the government promised it would get 2 million more people physically active by the time the Olympic torch is lit.
With fewer than 500 days to go, that looks highly unlikely.
"Based on the current figures, the target will be met sometime around 2023," said Mike Weed, director of t
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