A Safe Space for the Disabled
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) about 1.3 billion people worldwide have some form of disability. That’s 16% of the global population. In the U.S., one in four people suffer from a disability, whether it’s mobility-based or a condition affecting mental health and cognition.
Research overwhelmingly indicates that regular physical activity can help the disabled improve in nearly every aspect of physical and mental health, but many of the disabled are not engaging in exercise.
According to a report by the National Institutes of Health, “Nearly 60% of adults with a mobility disability report no aerobic activity, and those who are inactive are more likely to report at least one of four chronic conditions (heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer) compared with their physically active counterparts.”
Fitness facilities can play a huge role in helping this population gain the enormous benefits from regular exercise. That role begins by adhering to the requirements mandated by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), but access to a facility is only the beginning.
Hal Hargrave, CEO and president at The Perfect Step, has first-hand knowledge of how important exercise is to the disabled. In July 2007, he was paralyzed from the neck down in an auto accident. Determined to help others, in 2008, he founded the Be Perfect Foundation, which has raised more than $7 million and sponsored approximately 250 clients. He also founded The Perfect Step, exercise-based therapy centers, which offer programs to those with disabilities.
Hargrave tells us how fitness professionals and facility operators can better serve the disabled community.
CBI: What steps can clubs take in terms of creating more inclusivity within their environments?
HAL HARGRAVE: I’ll use the work I did at the Claremont Club in Berkeley, California, as an initial benchmark.
Where they can start is by addressing what the community needs are. Most clubs, in particular commercial health and wellness facilities, know the analytics of the demographics in their area. That data helps clubs make calculated decisions regarding the types of inclusive programming that would be worth considering.
This programming can provide a needed service for the local community. For instance, we discovered that in Southern California, there are over 50,000 people living with Parkinson’s disease. So, at the Claremont Club we created the Cycling for Parkinson’s program, which immediately had traction. That traction wasn’t just based on word-of-mouth; the existing population made it easily marketable.
CBI: Was this your experience?
HAL HARGRAVE: People in the area were more personally connected to my story as somebody who was injured in the local community. I was born and raised in the city of Claremont and The Claremont Club saw the opportunity to rally around my story and provide a community service—an impact story—within the walls of their studio. That connection created a very organic start to something that ended up growing legs, spreading its wings, and taking off. The impact it made on one person started this snowball effect of “build it and they will come.”