Community Group Gym Trial

By Felix Elsen (Community Physical Activity Organiser)

Since early 2025, I have been working with a group of mostly elderly St Davids residents, some of whom have limited mobility and are trying to be more physically active to improve their health and wellbeing.

While exploring ways to support this group to become more active despite some of their physical limitations, we came up with the idea of low impact exercising. This type of exercise is less strenuous and suitable for older adults, people recovering from injury, those with lesser mobility as well as anyone looking for a gentle way to improve their strength and fitness.

With most gyms offering only limited accessibility and equipment suitable for this purpose, we contacted Motortone in Marsh Barton, a small gym with electrically powered equipment, allowing people to passively or actively exercise. As a small business, owner Katie was happy to work with the group and offer a flexible extended trial period to let them see if this set up may work for them.

With funding from Live & Move, we arrange a fully funded trial membership for the residents to start attending the gym as a group on a weekly basis. Following a group induction in March, the residents started attending the gym together. Their group visits have now successfully carried on for the past six months. Almost all of the group members have carried on with the gym and are now paying their own contribution towards their membership fees.

Due to the overwhelmingly positive reception and with the group finding that their weekly work outs started benefiting their overall wellbeing, they are now progressing to using the facility’s regular gym equipment as well. With the residents having spent the past months increasing their fitness levels little by little, seeing them move on to regular gym equipment is a testament of their commitment and the improved strength they are now benefiting from.

Some of the participants have shared that they "can't wait to go again" and that they feel stronger and better in themselves since starting the gym sessions. This funded project is due to continue till the end of the year, when individual group members will decide if they want to continue their memberships in 2026 beyond the trial.