Episodit
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The physical & mental challenges of balance with my disability
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I went to the Naidex conference this past month, designed around accessibility, disability & inclusion, meeting so many people in the process, doing amazing work.
I tried new adaptions via the exhibitor space that have could have potential enhance elements of my gym training. It was so good to see a variety of adaptive pieces of equipment for different environments – in the home, gym and other places.
More recently, it got me thinking further about adaptions when training. I’ve often found I’ve had to be very creative and make things work around my programme as opposed to having anything tailored toward challenges with dexterity. Does anyone have any other experiences with trailered adaptive technology at the gym?
I certainly do think there is more research going into this in recently. I don’t know the right answer for every adaption by all means, that being said, but it’s certainly looking likely there’s more items becoming available in the sector as an increasing number of people enjoy training and more products bring more inclusion and accessibility!
It has taken me a while over the years to test and tweak a number of wrist straps and attachments to make my programme fit into my disability and I’m determined to help further – by at least signposting these.
I’ve found a couple of products that work well for my own dexterity with cerebral palsy – my latest was a smaller but stronger stitched strap from 1MR. One piece I also sampled at Naidex was from Adaptive Hands with taping over the hand that secures a dumbbell in place – which I think would work very well for many.
I learnt so much, felt very connected with a community working hard to make change, provide a voice and to create a spark that help provide ideas and importantly actions to take on this path. -
Puuttuva jakso?
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Growing up I felt like I ‘should’ have been able to fit into a mould, Which through my cerebral palsy, I feel like I wasn’t able to, in many parts and I was left feeling quite isolated in many ways.
It wasn’t until years later that I realised that I am not made to fit into a pre-determined box.
You can create that mould as much as anyone else! I have the creativity and ability to carve what I would like and how I can serve and help others too!
Among many things I learned with CP, is that the way forward can take many shapes with twists and turns, but it is your own path. That path can be filled with success, love and happiness. I’m gutted in a sense it took my a while to figure this all out, and yet I’m still on a journey. But I am certainly at peace with where I am at, and that there is still some moulding to do on my path, at my pace! -
For a number of years growing up, lots of reactions to my disability painfully made me feel weak. Not through my own doing, which looking back, actually brought sadness. But what I didn’t realise at the time, those emotions would be later channelled into a positive….
A positive emotion because from the obstacles presented, the comments directed at the difference in my left sided cerebral palsy – highlighted the individual paths I found to make things happen along the way. Yes the ability to grow muscle fibres is very different from left to right but…
Resilience built from a determination in not being excluded from activities by finding a way forward…that has lasted a lifetime in many pursuits!
It’s ended up turning that into a positive effect as I’m sure it’s had an influence on the joy I find in training – I feel like I’m trying to solve a slightly different puzzle with a disability but I’m grateful to able to try and give it a go! 💚 -
There are challenges every day.
A new one to start, to continue or finish, but there is always an opportunity at a fresh platform upon waking.
I’ve had a number of hurdles as everyone does, I’m still trying to figure things out into my 30’s but I love the feeling of a new page to wake to.
This past week had required a slow down in pace due to some joint pain but still maintaining the thinking of a new day seems to always bring that spark about what can be done (if it has to be adapted) to make the morning ignite 🎉
Keep going my friends… -
I couldn’t control the restrictive movement, but although I was far removed from this for years, I control how I feel about my movement in my cerebral palsy on my left side.
It’s too strong to say I hated my disability, but just saying that I had one was challenging for a long time. I didn’t want to stick out, have to answer questions with every new discussion – I didn’t want it to be a topic.
That’s changed over years – a transition that felt differently internally about I viewed myself and the structure that has grown with me. From annoyance at what I couldn’t do to accepting that help that could just make things easier, or at the very least, provide more options for me.
My new thinking of controlling how I feel from a negative to positive of what IS possible – with help along the way being part of that – brings empowerment. A sense that I can succeed, with how I can contribute with my body (not despite it).
I’m thankful to be able to control getting up, deciding how and when to train – and now have a platform of equipment to choose how to shape my body & the fact I can mould elements of this through bodybuilding is possibly one of the most powerful.
Having the power to create a structure for the stage is so empowering – that’s why I try to bring my energy to the stage if you’ve ever seen my routines – high energy music, a big smile and getting some reaction from the audience – because, well, we can!
It’s a joy and I’m grateful. -
I wouldn’t have had the experiences I’ve had without people sharing their stories of their own journeys of opening doors & breaking down barriers.
It’s in part why I do this here. That I owe it to those who helped me build that confidence to pay things forward and shine a light either on my own past experiences or share someone else’s current story to shout loudly what they’ve done (if they would like to) to show what access there is & also what further access which should be there also.
I’ve made some wonderful friends through listening to their stories – some in a common direction toward a goal but each one different. In the disability community I’ve found a way to express my feelings like never before. I didn’t have the confidence 15 years or so ago to do that – I didn’t feel I had access to a community to share the challenges, the hurdles but also the ways forward and the help and sharing the successes too.
When I look back on the these past few years, they really have provided me with wonderful opportunities to meet new friends, go for competitions and take on challenges with bodybuilding I wouldn’t thought possible a little over a decade previously.
I’m very grateful.💚 -
There was a regular exercise I was given in my younger days during physiotherapy that was all about balance. How long could I stand unaided on my left side (compared to my right) the muscle tone has always been lower in my left and with other factors it remains a tricky discipline to carry out.
That being said I enjoyed (around the frustrations) the challenge – could I find a technique to help – could I use a distraction to move my thoughts away from movement issues and focus away enough to beat my previous time.
Now this was one of many a task to aid my overall left side function, one that isn’t lost on me to this day. There are still moments of frustration around my left sided alternative paths that do pop on occasions – but I quickly have to remember the practice!
The recent moment in question was earlier this week when attempting legs splits off a bench in my gym. I just couldn’t push my weight off on my left side which equated to me dangling for some time.
However, unlike what would be seen as so awkward and embarrassing say, 15 years ago, I recalled I’m in my gym to practice not to just add the weights, everyone who there is trying something new, something they maybe haven’t done before and it’s the practice and the persistence & support that aids this – I want to keep trying the balance and practice to take the smaller steps to something bigger down the line and I’m just the same as the young lad in the hospital physiotherapy room all those years ago -
I’ve tried to keep things simple this week – a lot of recent trials with attachments and new exercises have had relative successes – however it’s not lost on me to keep things simple with my workouts, keeping in what works well for me and whilst taking in new ideas, keeping a solid base to work and improve on.
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The FitXpo was something that had been on my calendar for months and there was much anticipation for a number of reasons.
Right up the top was to the chance to reconnect with friends and learn from industry experts but to also once again witness and support the opportunity for a mixed disability class to take to the stage in the Strom Classic during the weekend.
The event had everything – lots of opportunities to learn, with excellent talks throughout – meet great brands (with samples aplenty!) – There was that buzz – from competition, to reuniting with friends and personally exploring a new City in Liverpool… -
This podcast, the blog & content has documented my thoughts, findings, challenges & positive angles when training & beyond.
What I’ve found really powerful is to take the time to schedule writing and transforming those into pods to try and make them as accessible as I can. This has helped me delve into areas that I’ve previously found challenging to express feelings around when going back over some hurdles growing up with CP. That being said it’s allowed me to make more sense of exercises done to help my growth and reasons behind it.
So, I’m asking this week – what do you want to hear / read more of? The weekly challenges with training (positive & difficulties) / prep stories / more of how it’s helped me outside of the gym??
I’d be interested to read / hear some thoughts to help more as we go along this journey in life. -
I’m always on the lookout for something new or a tweak / improvement to make in many areas of my life and that starts with the springboard to my day that is the gym.
At first, the new adventure had lots of new ground to explore. Many weeks and months were spent going through many pieces of equipment - some were used as they were presented when I got there, others had to be figured out as time went by.
As the years passed I learned to approach every day as a learning curve. Even down to smaller details and also learning to…slow down. Certain things are better at a slower pace and in doing so knowing when to dial it down. This is how I’ve continued a path of development which helps build a longer term plan which breaks new ground further in the future - I continue to learn new things about my body and how my CP reacts to such exercises - but I want to enjoy that in the long term too and slowing things down allows me to appreciate that even more when looking at the bigger picture. -
I remain incredibly grateful for the movement have in this life, no matter any frustrations this come along the path that at first glance may seem restrictive, but I’m often reminding myself that while I do have muscle limitation in structure, it could have been even more challenging had things not been as quick when I was born.
That drives the journey in many areas in my life and I’m faced with choices on the a daily basis between frustration and upset and finding the adaptions and the way forward. -
I first entered a gym full of thoughts of the limitations, of what I couldn’t do. I would go around and take machines & even whole areas off my list of things, never thinking I would be able to use them. It was a long page! free weights, Barbell Cable cross with both handles. You name it, it was a long list But I could do a few things and even if I could work my right side for some of it I’d give it a try.
Something gradually changed. I think there was fear of judgement that I couldn’t achieve things, but in my experience gyms are very welcoming and I’ve been fortunate to have great support too… -
Something I realised of late is how extra careful I need to be with the extent of the volume of my sets involving pressing a bar that includes my left hand within the lift.
I’ve long advocated the joy in finding different ways to adapt and seeing attachments around the gym to compliment my workouts have evolved into more of a need.
I’m experiencing more challenges with press exercises through my dexterity, which, does cause some frustration thinking of what I could do without that change – but it’s what I’ve got to work with – the key I’ve found is to gain further knowledge of the sets I can do and mix that volume up. A good example here was my continued frustration at not being able to execute a dumbbell shoulder press with my left side. I found I can’t safely lift it freely – but here’s the thing – my mission in there isn’t to use the shoulder press, but rather to work my delts….The mission was more to do with what can I use to work that muscle group? Answer…(after lots of trial and error) to use ankle straps attached to my arms to lift in front of me, taking any wrist movement out but still targeting my delts. -
“What’s wrong with your hand?” Why do you have a limp?”
Yes, all questions posed to me when I was younger with CP. when I came into this world I didn’t know I had a disability, it was through those conversations I was told there was big differences. Differences that brought questions, some just purely out of curiosity, some of not so nice nature.
I found I had to unlearn that I wasn’t “broken”, it was just my make up, my structure. Finding the words to describe it to myself was hard enough, having to translate that to other people in my youth without going into mass detail but letting them know “I’m good, it’s a just different structure” takes time and energy.
Everything seem to go a million miles more faster at that age.
Where I’m at now, I’ve had 37 years to find my understanding of what cerebral palsy means to me. I have an open nature to questions, I love conversations about adaption and inclusion should people want to have a discussion and share experiences. I love the building community on social, thank you sharing your time with me.
And I’m not broken, it’s my unique structure!💚 -
A stunning event at the PCA Universe this past weekend featured top class athletes from across the globe competing in many categories.
The one closet to my heart that continues to grow and showcase top level competition kicked off the day as members of Team GB & Team Finland Mixed Disability class proved once again the incredibly high standard in our category! -
Supporting physical & mental health…
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Well into my 30’s now, recovery times are even more crucial with my training, HOWEVER! I still feel we’re only just getting started.
I’ve been training consistently for around 8 years, but I’m still learning every day, I think that’s why I still love it. Training and bodybuilding is a world of discovery. As is my own disability, I’ve asked questions of it my whole life. I understood I have cerebral palsy, but I’m forever asking what does it mean to me. -
I loved getting to Exeter this past weekend to take in my first bodybuilding show of 2022!
Although I’m not competing this year, there is so much to learn during these times and a feeling of just enjoying the sport plays a huge part in travelling to support the competitors hard work throughout the season.
It took me back to when I first started bodybuilding – one of the best pieces of advice I received when I expressed an an interest in competing was to go to shows, learn, watch, ask questions and get a sense of what the day entails for those in the sport. - Näytä enemmän