June 14, 2024 “Turn your Disability into Ability.”
Did you know that bones that were broken and heal properly are stronger than bones that have never been broken at all? It’s a fact, as well as a great metaphor for those with disabilities. As a health and fitness coach, I often tell my clients to not harp on the disability but emphasize how they have overcome it. They must send the message that adapting to, and in some cases, overcoming a disability, makes them far stronger than someone who has never gone through adversity. Whether people are born with a disability or develop one due to illness or injury or chronic condition, regular physical activity will help improve one’s quality of life and reduce the risk of other health issues or complications.
There are, in fact, many ways to turn a disability into a desired ability when it comes to fitness. Of course, it all depends on the type of disability and more importantly your mindset. Mindset is the key because as demonstrated, we see Paralympians win world gold medals by jumping higher, running faster, and flipping better than a person with all 4 of their working limbs. We see people born with no arms, learn to function with just their feet, drive cars, cook and other amazing things. What we see as a disability, they see as a capability.
In 2010 Justin was doing one of his favorite past times, riding his motorcycle when a driver not paying attention hit him with a car, changing his life in a matter of seconds. Justin suffered many injuries leading to his leg being amputated. Justin first joined Tadda’s Fitness Center as a member of our bootcamp. As a trainer I was no stranger to training someone with a disability, heck I train many of them every day. You see disability is defined as the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, MENTAL, physical or a combination of multiple factors.
Like Justin I didn’t see Justin’s leg as a disability, but his mental state of mind certainly was. When I asked Justin to run on runday Monday, he refused stating he couldn’t run because of his leg although he had a prosthetic leg made just for sports, running and training etc. When I asked him to do a push up, he stated he couldn’t because he couldn’t put pressure on his leg. We had countless disagreements because I knew it wasn’t his leg. Most of it was mental, but his weight and physical ability was also a huge factor. He was weak, his endurance was poor, and his core and balance were almost nonexistent.
From the time Justin started bootcamp, then personal training, to open gym, Justin has never stopped exercising, not during the pandemic, not for the summer, not during the holidays, not because life got busy. Justin realized that consistency was where he was making the difference. Justin is a true example of turning your disability into your ability. Justin started off at 283 lbs. down to now 190 lbs. of a muscle machine. Justin is now jumping onto and off of high boxes, killing plyometrics, doing one arm push-ups, squatting hundreds of pounds and much more. Justin had to change not only his negative mentality but his unhealthy eating habits. Justin started getting vitamin B12 & D3 injections along with glutathione shots. So, you see Justin's amputated leg was not his disability, his mental state at the time he started on this weight loss journey was his disability!
I recognize that clients often initially feel frustrated over what they can’t do because of their disability but over time they shift their focus to what they can do, especially when they go through some tragic event. In many cases they start to exceed their expectations, doing much more than they thought they were capable of doing. Under Fit/Nurse Tadda’s watchful eye clients receive hope, resources, and the WILL to improve. With this support they recognize that the sky is the limit on what a person with disability can do. I ask you what disability do you need to turn into an ability? No Mess
