Health

HEALTH • Summer 2017 17 Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014 Percentage of U.S. adults who get no physical activity, by disability type "I know there's a need for this, I know I have the interest," Aylward recalled thinking. "What do I have to do to make a gym succeed?" He saved $32,000 to buy the requisite equip- ment while working full-time during college, and at age 23, Aylward signed a lease on his gym space. Doors opened in July 2016 and just under a year later, he has about 300 members. About 75 are adaptive athletes with disabilities, while the rest are non-disabled and looking to fulfill a vari- ety of fitness goals. Through weekly group classes and one-on-one training, Aylward's focus is to always help clients improve, whether they're college athletes trying to stay in shape for the summer, or children with medical conditions who need to get stronger. New perspective George Kent, director of organizational develop- ment at Special Olympics Massachusetts, said the Unified Health and Performance model offers something unique in Massachusetts, and it's "breaking down barriers" for disabled athletes. Kent, who has know Aylward since he got involved in the Unified Sports program in high school, has visited the gym. He described the gym as "spartan," but he said Aylward maximizes the use of the space, and much of the equipment can be adapted for different ability levels. "(Brendan) spends time with each one of the ath- letes. Whether they're a Division I college athlete or a Special Olympics athlete learning the basics of the sport, he knows each one," Kent said. Dick Hoyt, who raced in events with his son since the 1970s and now does speaking engage- ments around the country, said he's never seen a gym like Aylward's. "What he's doing is just unbelieveable," Hoyt said. Exercise as prevention Access to exercise programs that are tailored to them is especially important for the disabled. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, disabled adults are three times more likely to have heart disease, diabetes or suf- fer from stroke than non-disabled adults, and nearly half of disabled adults get no aerobic physi- cal exercise, which is key to prevention. For athletes with disabilities, taking a class at Unified Health and Performance is often a foray into the world of group fitness, said Dr. Kate Engelhardt, a Lancaster chiropractor who refers pediatric patients to Aylward when strength and conditioning will help their overall condition. Engelhardt said she has seen physical therapists do adaptive exercise programs with the disabled, but finding that in a gym is unique. "Brendan is really special because he has the knowledge but he also understands the only limits that people have are what they put on themselves," Engelhardt said. Anyone who is intimidated by group fitness or new exercise programs, regardless of ability, is likely to feel at ease working with Aylward. So says Marta Aurin, a Lancaster resident who began tak- ing group classes with Aylward soon after the gym opened last summer. At 51, Aurin was in a fitness rut and wanted to get stronger, but she wanted to avoid an environment infused with a "jock men- tality." At Unified Health and Performance, Aurin said athletes are safe from that. Her son, a middle school student who prefers solo sports to team sports, has thrived since starting group classes with Aylward, and her husband has even joined. "They're on a level playing field in there," Aurin said. "What they're doing in there is not like any- thing else they're doing in school or in a sport." Sixteen-year-old Owen Anketell, a Hudson resi- dent with a hereditary form of paraplegia, said he appreciates how Aylward has leveled the field. Anketell began training in the winter for a hand- cycling trip he plans to make from Maine to Florida this summer, focusing on rowing and weightlifting to build upper-body strength. "I think it's just great how we're all able to inter- act together," Anketell said. Managing expectations Those familiar with the program speculate that Aylward will need to find larger space eventually. But Aylward, who hasn't taken a day off in almost a year and has been profitable since his third month in business, is taking a conservative approach. He's content in the Mill Street space for the foreseeable future, as he mulls ways to diversify, including designing a certification program for trainers who want to work with the disabled, and becoming more active as a public speaker. Meanwhile, the business continues to grow, mostly by word-of-mouth referrals from clients. He frequently fields texts from athletes he's work- ing with, and he even competes in events with some of them. "The aspect of the gym I love the most is the relationship with the clients, and I wouldn't dif- ferentiate between the adaptive clients and non- adaptive clients," Aylward said. 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 57% 40% 36% 33% 26% Mobility Cognitive Vision Hearing None Exercise shortage Brendan Aylward works with athletes in an group class at Unified Health and Performance in Lancaster. H

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