Accessibility Offers New Fitness Opportunities For All

The health benefits of regular exercise are well known, but many gyms may not be accessible environments. A team from the Faculty of Human Kinetics is working to ensure that working out at University of Windsor is free from barriers and accessible to all. The Adapted Physical Exercise (APEX) program, led by Drs. Sean Horton, Chad Sutherland, and Sarah Scharoun Benson, is creating the space, and developing the programming that makes fitness accessible. Thanks to a grant from the Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Foundation awarded in 2021-2022, a program stream for young people with disabilities has been added to APEX, which already supported adults with disabilities through a project funded by the SSHRC Partnership Engage Grant program. Not only do participants get much-needed exercise and social interaction, but their families also report their loved ones now want to exercise outside of APEX, can be more comfortable in new social situations, and no longer need certain medications thanks to the increased physical activity. Researchers following the program are working to understand how APEX impacts both the mental and physical health of participants. Dr. Horton’s team assesses the physical fitness of participants when they join the program, and throughout their participation, but also talks to them and their family members to learn about why they love the program and how it is impacting their lives. Through a partnership with Community Living Essex County, the program stretches out into the community, expanding reach and impact. “It began as offering a community service that wasn’t currently available, but it’s grown to be so much more than that,” Sutherland says. Dr. Horton says the program has had a far-reaching effect, with former students volunteering out in the community, and a free adaptive exercise handbook that has been downloaded in a dozen countries. “It’s not just about the folks who are participating in APEX,” he adds, “but about having the program right alongside other campus fitness programming. Developing a sense of belonging is how we are making our fitness environment more inclusive.”

The APEX group in the Faculty of Human Kinetics knows that fitness is for everyone, regardless of ability.