Health / New bike at gym to help people with reduced mobility
A NEW bike which enables people with reduced mobility to exercise is now installed at the Clickimin gym thanks to a partnership project between three Shetland charities.
MS Society Shetland and Ability Shetland worked together to source and fund the all-ability bike, while Clickimin operator Shetland Recreational Trust (SRT) created space for it in its main gym, trained its staff and added the bike to its membership offer.
The THERA-Trainer Tigo enables people to exercise their legs or upper body from a chair or wheelchair, either using their own muscle power or with assistance from the machine if required.
It gently encourages mobility, can help with rehabilitation and has a positive aspect on many other aspects of health.
The bike was a direct request from a member of the MS community, Andrew Graham, who approached MS Society Shetland in November to see if it could support with sourcing an adapted bike.
Graham said: “I first heard of the Thera Trainer Bike through my physiotherapist. She knew of someone in the North Haven Care Centre who was kind enough to let me have a go of it there. I’m a wheelchair user so my legs are completely immobile.
“Using the bike makes me feel very liberated with the feeling of movement in my arms and legs.”
Alyson Halcrow, volunteer administrator at MS Society Shetland, added: “We took it to the disability sport development group and that’s when Ability Shetland and Shetland Recreational Trust came onboard. Luckily they were as keen as us to work together to try to figure something out.”
Ability Shetland’s sports development coordinator Charis Scott said the bike will “benefit many of the people we support so we were happy to jointly fund the purchase of it with the MS Society”.
The SRT’s health and wellbeing community liaison officer Kerry Geddes said: “Knowing that this piece of equipment has been identified by customers and facilitated by groups which support them means we can be sure that it is a bike which will be well-used and will be of benefit to many.
“It is an expensive piece of equipment with lots of amazing features so we’re really grateful to Andrew and both charities for allowing us to enhance our facilities like this.”
Health and fitness team leader Toyah Irvine said the trust is “lucky to have the gym staffed at all times so are on hand to help set up and support where needed”.
It comes after two sensory rooms were opened in the Clickimin last week.
Clickimin sensory rooms getting good feedback, local charity says
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