Tone & Trim (T&T) community gym operate out of Wythenshawe Civic Centre, offering a vital service to members of their community who have complex health conditions and need a tailored exercise regime to achieve their goals.
Over 70% of T&T’s clients live with disabilities and over 50% are 60+, so they aim to provide the welcoming atmosphere and specialised support that most mainstream gyms do not cater for.
Listen to founder, Janice Wilson, talk about the work she does with the gym:
Testimonies from their users speaks for itself:
“In the chairs at T&T I felt safe and comfortable. I couldn’t go to a traditional mainstream gym or use the equipment because of my balance and legs get fatigued, plus the people who work there don’t really understand your needs and won’t make the time to help to people with more complex health conditions. I found T&T was only place I felt safe, comfortable and supported with equipment I could use.”
“Since last year I have been going to T&T a few times a week and I have seen so much benefit. I have various illnesses which affect me physically and mentally. Before finding Janice and the gym I was just in bed a lot of the time. Janice working with you makes a real difference – helping and supporting and she makes you feel at home. You never feel like an outsider.”
Why are we funding them?
The physical and mental health benefits experienced by T&T’s users are enormous, however they have been limited in who they can support due to the capabilities of their current equipment. Their max weight bearing load is 23 stone, meaning despite T&T’s best efforts some members of the community were still excluded from the full support they strive to offer.
From our Stronger Communities Fund, we awarded T&T with £4,295 to purchase a highly specialised exercise machine that can suit a user weighing up to 32 stone. This ensures that as many people as possible can benefit from the brilliant work being done by Tone & Trim Community Gym.
How has the funding gone?
By all accounts the addition of the specialised machine has been a massive success! Listen to Janice and service user Ste talk about how big a benefit it has been:
We’re delighted to have supported Tone & Trim with this grant, which really supports the ‘Combatting Loneliness and Social Exclusion’ key theme from our Stronger Communities Fund. We can’t wait to see Janice and the entire Tone & Trim team continue to uplift and support their Wythenshawe community as well as they have done since they started!
Read more about Tone & Trim on their Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ToneAndTrimTheCommunityGym/
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