CHRISTINE BAKER, The Patriot-News Trainer Larry Wright guides Ken Walters of Carlisle during his workout at the Living Well Fitness Center at the Center for Independent Living in Camp Hill.
Tucked away off of Erford Road in Camp Hill is a little-known gym where people go for the exercise and end up with a new lease on life.
Were not just a fitness center; were a whole life fitness center, said trainer Larry Wright of Living Well Fitness Center, run by the Center for Independent Living of Central Pennsylvania.
The centers Living Well with a Disability initiative is a one-stop resource that connects people with disabilities with information, services and opportunities to live independently.
Opened in 2008, the fitness center was designed to be accessible to people with all types of disabilities, especially those who use wheelchairs. The facility packs a big punch in its space standard and specialized fitness equipment, a scale that accommodates a wheelchair, even a community room used for gathering, Wii fitness and arts and crafts.
This was just a little closet and weve grown and expanded since then, said fitness center Director Jesse Swoyer as he pointed out marks on the floor indicating where walls once stood. With its initial membership of 30 expanded to more than 200, the facilitys main attractions are its one-on-one trainers and socialization opportunities, he said.
Exercise can be the first step here, but they do more than exercise, he said. People regain strength and improve their quality of life. They gain better balance and better self esteem, build relationships and become independent. A lot of individuals make friendships here. Thats all promoted through the fitness center.
We exercise … but the social interaction has been a huge benefit for me. I spent a long time locked in the upstairs of my house, said Ann Keiper-Smith, a CILCP board member who suffered a stroke at 42, followed by another a year later, necessitating a wheel chair. Now 50, shes had at least two more since. Sometimes I socialize too much, she said, rolling her eyes at her trainer.
Keiper-Smith has used the gym since it opened, now working out four days a week to build flexibility, mobility, strength and range of motion. Shes lost 75 pounds, walked about 10 feet for the first time in eight years and went on two cruises.
You would be surprised at how much you can do, said Keiper-Smith, who attributed her progress as much to the trainers as to her own hard work.
Its absolutely terrifying not being able to work any more. You dont know how youll feed your family. You dont know what you can do, you dont trust anything. Its very scary, she explained. I trust everybody here.
Bill Spotts, 39, whos used the center for about three months, agreed. The one-on-one attention is the key point that I benefit from the most, he said. I know everyone here. They can adapt to the individual and their ability and know they can push me harder.
The Steelton man had a kidney and pancreas transplant four years ago, suffers nerve damage in one leg and is relearning how to walk correctly after a broken leg healed incorrectly. He works out three days a week to improve my overall health, walk with less pain, increase my endurance and coordination and get to a point where I dont even have to think about it, he said.
He hopes that all of his hard work allows him to return to full-time work in the social services field.
New fitness center user Matthew Seeley, 36, also hopes increased strength will net him increased independence. Paralyzed from the waist down in a car accident 14 years ago, the Harrisburg resident uses the facilitys specialized bikes for improved circulation but is focused on building upper body strength.
I know Im weak. I drive around in a chair all day and Im an attorney. I do no physical exercise, said Seeley, a December Widener Law School graduate. If I get stronger, I can be more independent and do more for myself. Thats my goal.
CHRISTINE BAKER, The Patriot-NewsWilliam Mills of Harrisburg struggles to do a set on the Magnum Multi-trainer.
Only a few days into his new routine, Seeley said he was really sore after a first day of lifting. Im not ripped yet, he laughed. Im making strides. The longer Im here, the more improvement I show.
Swoyer said that in order to partake in the one-on-one exercise sessions, a consumer either must have waiver services, which provide Medicaid-funded services to live independently, or pay privately.
A popular program for non-waiver consumers over 50 with an injury or disability is the CILver Wheels program which meets one hour a week, 41 weeks a year but is limited to 12 participants.
It takes a lot of manpower and its difficult financially to run, Swoyer said of the program, which this year required attendees to pay a fee. Non-waiver and non-CILver Wheels clients pay a $5 membership fee to use the gym.
The first step to any of the offerings is participating in a free Living Well assessment, which helps determine the types of services or support necessary, what sort of aid may be available and, ultimately, an action plan to follow.
While the disabled can access some services in some gyms across central Pennsylvania, none have been built solely with wheelchairs and physical limitations in mind, center staff said. The centers equipment meets the Americans with Disabilities Act for Equal Program Access and last year the fitness program won a Central Penn Business Journal Nonprofit Innovation Award.
Its like if you go to a restaurant thats all you can eat. You can look but you cant eat, so whats the point? Wright said of other gyms. The best place for anyone with a disability is with people who are trained to work out with a disability. We have the adaptive equipment and we know how to use it.
Swoyer, who noted they just opened a second fitness center in Newport, Perry County, said that despite facing the inherent difficulties of being a nonprofit, the center hopes to continue to expand.
If we give half of what they give us we will all be good, he said of the facilitys clients. They are determined and have a will to be successful. We turn darkness into light here. We see their light turn on and other avenues open up. Its really about believing.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Phone: 717-731-1900, TTY at 717-737-1335, videophone at 717-255-0124.
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