Get Up, Get Out, and Do It!
Let’s be honest: I was never a jock. In fact, I was the opposite of a jock – clumsy, awkward, studious, and an avid reader. Growing up, I was that kid who would rather spend time with my nose in a good book or listening to music than on the baseball diamond. Oh, I enjoyed watching Major League Baseball or college basketball, but playing sports was not my thing.
But as I grew up, I learned the positive results of exercise and playing sports. A world of benefits flowed from being active: better blood pressure, better muscle tone and strength, better respiratory health, fewer aches, and pains. And I learned there were emotional benefits as well: people who are active have a brighter attitude, tend to be more optimistic, have better self-images and better social lives. Who wouldn’t want all that…and more? So, for many years I went to the gym somewhat regularly. I would never have been mistaken for an athlete, but I stayed active.
So, when I was injured, part of the adjustment was trying to figure out if I could ever be active again. I looked at wheelchair athletes and knew that organized adaptive sports teams were not for me. I wondered: was I now destined to be even more sedentary than I was before my injury?
I was fortunate to go to the International Center for Spinal Cord Injury at the Kennedy Krieger Institute (KKI) for my spinal cord physical therapy. Not only are their therapists fantastic, but they have created a personal training component to spinal cord recovery, and I work out on my upper body with a personal trainer after each therapy session at KKI. This outstanding staff is trained to adapt exercise programs according to each person’s level of injury and ability. Even during the COVID lockdown, I learned I could work out by video with my personal trainer.
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What I have discovered over time is that physical activity accelerates our recovery and gives those of us with spinal cord injuries even more benefits than the general public. Check out this page from the Reeve Foundation website to find out more.
If you enjoy sports, your team sports activity does not have to come to a halt after your injury. In fact, there are more adaptive and wheelchair sports leagues and groups than you can ever imagine. You can find many of them here.
Are you the type of person who prefers individual sports or activity? There are groups for that too! Click here.
You may be saying to yourself, “I’m not an athlete. Before my injury I could spend hours in my garden, but you would never get me on a sports team.” Well, here’s the good news! There is a wealth of information on accessible gardening and its health benefits, with tips, videos and resources. Start here.
Like fishing? There’s a group for that! Try “Fishing Has No Boundaries”.
These links are just a sampling of the resources available to all of us on the Internet. But you can see that there is a wide world of options for staying active and improving your health after a spinal cord injury.
Does this mean I have become an athlete? Far from it. No one will ever mistake me for Aaron Rodgers or Arnold Schwarzenegger. But my experience has made me an advocate for staying active and exploring the options to improve our health through sports, exercise, and recreation.
It’s summer - get outside and try a few things. Or hit the gym with your trainer and feel and see the results. I guarantee you will feel better.