I just wanted to do up a little summary of initiatives that we are doing at Active Living these days. We have a lot of exciting programs on the go and have big plans to keep expanding them.
With the added space provided from the Fitness Club we have the space and equipment to be able to provide exercise classes for many clientele. Neurological physiotherapy is very function-focused, which is awesome for helping people regain independence. However, many people with neurological disabilities or injuries find it difficult to get their heart rate up and actually exercise for fitness. We are aware of the need to exercise in order to decrease our risk of heart attack, stroke as well as protect the brain as we age. We have classes for stroke, brain injury and spinal cord injury. We continue to run daily (sometimes more than 1 per day) classes for Parkinson’s disease. And we have now been able to work 1:1 with people in some adapted yoga sessions.
The gym allows caregivers to exercise while their loved one or patient is at therapy. It’s a healthy option for something to do during their wait and often the only time they may have available to do it.
This month we have started two new exciting initiatives!
First, we have started LSVT BIG. It is an amazing program that can significantly improve mobility in people with Parkinson’s disease. It can give people the skills to be independent for longer.
Secondly, this week started with some clients through Active Together. Active Together is a project of the Council for Persons with Disabilities. Their goal is to increase participation in sports and recreation for people living with disabilities in the Peterborough area. We are starting a group session focused on teaching them exercise programs and how to independently access our gym as well as help them gain confidence to use any gym in the future.
And then of course we have our adaptive golf league starting up again in a couple of months. This will be our 5th for the Active Living Golf League, hosted by Keystone Links Golf course. It is aimed to help people get back into golfing after injury or disability took them away from the sport.
We continue to have monthly meetings to discuss our programs, share experiences for best practice with our clients, and to make future goals for our clinic and gym. Let us know if you have an idea. We have a great group of passionate (and a little crazy) people who love bringing out new programs.