How to improve accessibility in your gym

Imagine navigating a world that wasn’t designed with you in mind. Imagine everything being the wrong size: clothes that don’t fit, light switches set too high, sinks and fountains a little too far. Wherever you go, there is another obstacle. Maybe the elevator doesn’t work, the bus has already left, your route is too far, or the bathroom counter doesn’t work.

Now, imagine facing these challenges every day.

Living with a disability often means dealing with an environment and services that rarely take your needs into account. With everything from sinks and water fountains to buses and toilets often inaccessible, people with disabilities constantly face barriers in both spaces and programs.

These issues are particularly noticeable in gyms. Instead of removing barriers, many gyms add to them, both physically and behaviorally. Most fitness facilities are not very attractive to people who use mobility devices. Elevated reception areas, tightly packed lower-body cardio machines, a lack of upper-body equipment, and inaccessible locker rooms, restrooms, and classrooms all combine to create an unwelcoming atmosphere. Ask yourself, if a person who uses a wheelchair or who is blind came to your gym today, would you know how to accommodate them? Your staff?

Two years ago, just before the summer Paralympics, the Lakeshore Foundation wrote a six-part series on making gyms accessible to people with disabilities:

Now, with the Milan/Cortina Paralympic Winter Games in the rearview mirror, it’s time to ask: what progress has been made — not in general, but specifically at your facilities? Have you implemented any strategies or improved access to your gym?

Some may argue that “change takes time”, and this is it definitely true but after 16 years of being married to someone who uses a wheelchair, 25 years of working in accessibility and 36 years of Americans with Disabilities Act became law have we have seen little real progress. So how do we go about and “build that ramp”? How can we begin to make sense change right now?

Here are five key steps to improve accessibility and behaviors at your gym:

1. Remove physical barriers. Go beyond basic requirements to implement universal design. Make the pathways clear, staff the reception desk and make sure all areas such as showers and changing rooms are accessible.
2. Offer free trial visits. Whether your gym has highly accessible equipment or not, invite people with disabilities to try out your space and share their feedback.
3. Give options. Offer a range of inclusive and adapted classes — a class includes people with and without disabilities, while an adapted class is one that has been adapted for people with disabilities (eg wheelchair basketball). Also, subscriptions should reflect access. If someone can’t use certain amenities, they shouldn’t have to pay full price. Share information in many formats, from large print brochures to accessible websites, so everyone knows what your facility provides.
4. Train your staff. Make disability training part of training for every employee, from the front desk to lifeguards and instructors. You can also provide specialized disability-related fitness certifications.
5. Demonstrating diversity. Commit to hiring people with disabilities. Include inclusive language and imagery in at least a quarter of your marketing and outreach efforts. Make sure your facility is welcoming and inclusive to everyone through the images and words you use.

Lakeshore Consulting Services

If this has motivated you to action but you just No you know where to start, there are many ways to move. Come back and check out our blog series on gym accessibility centers—links are provided above. Each one includes list of resources for this area. If you still need help and are ready to implement real change, you can check out Lakeshore Consulting Services and learn about us 4D innovation process that moves from discovery to delivery. You can take the guesswork work where to start and how to become a fully inclusive gym.