A Cayman gym has expanded its training programme to enable people with disabilities to reach their fitness goals.
Kayley Fowler, a trainer and inclusive fitness coordinator at the Performance Lab by FNSports, shared what that programme has meant for one of their members who has cerebral palsy.
He is in his early 20s and has been training at the facility for six months. When he didn’t have any other way to get to his favourite class, he took the initiative to ride the public bus by himself for the first time to get to the gym, she said.
“It was the first time he advocated for himself in that way, and he created a plan on how he would access the gym,” she said. “People with disabilities don’t always have that intrinsic feeling of empowerment because so many people make so many decisions for them … The fact that he was like, ‘Nope, not today. I’m going to do it,’ I think is a good sign of how people with disabilities are viewing their life, and how they’re starting to see more autonomy and more control. I love to see it.”
Fowler said this is just one example of what outreach can do to empower community members.
The Performance Lab has also been working with Sunrise Adult Training Centre members and other residents with disabilities to make the gym more inclusive.
Sunrise director Kim Voaden said the class has become incredibly important to many of the members, one of whom even implored her to to allow them to attend their regular class while Hurricane Beryl was approaching, saying, “The hurricane isn’t here yet. What if the gym blows away?”
Equal playing field
Fowler first took an interest in behaviour therapy out of a simple desire to make the world more equal, and she has been working in the field for 13 years.
“I had fallen in love with fitness, and I realised there was a lack of disabled bodies in the gym, not just at the Performance Lab, but worldwide,” she said.
Gym owner and trainer Kendall Ebanks said he was grateful that Fowler spearheaded their outreach efforts last April. He said she’s taught him about how best to train people with disabilities, knowing when to teach and when to push them to dig deep and reach their goals.
“One of the major things that really stood out was when she said to me, ‘Just treat them like anybody else,’” he said.
Fowler noted that inclusivity doesn’t necessarily come down to having specialised equipment or offering dedicated classes for differently abled members. Rather, it’s about giving them the age-appropriate training to pursue their fitness goals.
“We have clients with cerebral palsy, who are nonverbal, autistic, and they just come and access our gym in the most mainstream way possible,” she said.
She said they have also been finding creative ways to support those recovering from addiction, and collaborating with Aspire Therapeutic Services to support people with learning challenges to further their social skills.
“We’re doing a lot at the Performance Lab to try and help our Caymanians really access the most from their community by using fitness as a leverage to get there,” Fowler added.
Youth participation
The gym also welcomes young people to join after-school fitness classes, and Sharai is one of the most enthusiastic participants.
One of her coaches said her face lights up every time she arrives at the gym, saying, “She gives it her all each session, and it’s been a pleasure working alongside her.”
Coach Hosea Harris encourages other gyms to “be more open minded and remember that, despite their disability, they are still capable of pushing through their glass ceiling”.
“Have patience, and treat them like everyone else,” he added.
Fowler said one of the biggest challenges gym owners face in offering more inclusive services is likely a “fear of the unknown”.
“It’s not out of malice,” she said. “They don’t want to take on people with disabilities because they’re scared about not knowing how to work with them or don’t have the experience. But here, I was able to really quickly upskill the staff to just treat them as anyone else. You look at their deficits like you would look at anyone else’s deficits.”
Fowler said she has been proud to be a long-time advocate for others, and she is especially pleased with what the facility has done so far.
“It’s one of the best jobs I’ve ever had in my entire life,” Fowler said. “It doesn’t matter what social class you are; if you have a disability, if you don’t; if you’re rich, if you’re broke – everyone gets treated the same in the Performance Lab. To see people flourish from the first day they step in the door and see their confidence grow, it’s amazing.”
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