I Want Your Body/Money!

Obviously, we can’t sponsor everyone and we have to choose the charity that means something to us or, if the sponsored person is really doing something which is a tremendous effort for them and requires bravery and months of training this usually gets us reaching for our hard earned cash! Someone once refused to sponsor me for doing a half marathon but was happy to give me money to pick up litter; he just thought running was doing nothing for the environment. I'll have him know that I deserved every penny of the money I raised because in front of me there was a Scotsman with a hole cut out of his kilt at the back so that his buttocks were wobbling about, getting redder and redder as the miles went on - it wasn’t pretty. I only managed to get passed him at mile eight, thankfully the kilt was in one piece in the front.

I have been guilty of recruiting sponsors for various events that I have taken part in and I’ve always been amazed at people’s generosity but I totally respect the people who declined, although I never spoke to them again…

The reason for this blog is, yes, you’ve guessed it, for fear of sounding like Bob Geldof, I want your money or/and your body! I don’t suppose Sir Bob actually said that last bit at Live Aid but I’m sure he has at some point in his life…

SLL are organising a six hour Fitathon on Sunday 29th November at the Stevenage Arts and Leisure Centre, 10.00am – 4.00pm. Unfortunately we are not jetting away to somewhere hot and sunny, we’re in Studio One, where incidentally, the sun always shines, ask our customers!

The reason for the Fitathon is that SLL want to buy two pieces of specialist equipment for the community, a FES bike and an Anti-Gravity treadmill.

SLL Leisure Centres all have Exercise Referral schemes which offer physical activity prescription, advice and support for people who have a variety of medical conditions under the supervision of qualified level 3/4 Fitness Instructors. We are committed to find exercise for everyone but, there are some people who we simply can’t help because of their medical conditions or disability and we don’t have suitable equipment.

This is where the new equipment will help:

The FES bike is just like a normal bike but the difference is it has electrodes which are applied to the users’ legs. The electrodes deliver an electric impulse which stimulates nerves to send messages to muscles to stimulate them to contract and encourages cycling. This is a huge benefit for people with medical problems including multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, strokes and spinal injuries.

The anti-gravity treadmill will be a massive help to people with all sorts of health problems; people with arthritis can find walking too painful, the treadmill gives support so that the user can be lifted to the point of where they are pain free. Anyone who needs support and confidence to walk will benefit from this piece of equipment, spinal injuries, lower leg amputees, MS, the list goes on! The treadmill will also aid with rehabilitation from surgery, broken legs and injuries.

Most of us are extremely lucky that we if we fancy a bit of exercise we can walk out the front door, attend a gym or fitness session, go for a bike ride or swim, play a team sport or boogie the night away in a club. But, imagine if this was taken away from you due to ill health or an accident; how frustrating but it be to not be able to be active anymore?

I know a lovely lady who used to come to our gym on the exercise referral scheme. She joined because she had MS. Unfortunately her condition has got worse and we can no longer train her as the equipment just isn’t compatible for her needs. Because she is inactive she has gained weight, lost a lot of confidence and when once she held down a fantastic career she is now stuck in doors, unsurprisingly she also has depression. This is not an isolated case, there are many people who are in the same situation and are at risk of developing further health problems associated with being sedentary. She was my inspiration to start fund raising; I want to see her back in the gym with a lovely big smile on her face!

So, if you want to annoy some people and make a whole load of other people very happy, pick up a sponsor form from the Sports Reception at the Stevenage Arts and Leisure Centre and get as many people as you can to support you to take part in six hours of fantastic fitness sessions! It’s £10 to enter for the whole six hours and £5 per session.

10.00 am HIIT

11.00 am Clubbercise

12.00pm Fitsteps

1.00pm PiYo

2.00pm Boxercise

3.00pm Cardio Mix

Each session will be 50 minutes long and there will be a chance for comfort breaks and refuelling!

We’re not getting a ‘free’ holiday, we’ll be working our butts off but… we will be doing something we love to help other people get back to doing something they loved.

Sir Bob, over and out….

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