Who needs the gym? Ben’s balcony fitness sessions workout just fine
The balconies at a Staffordshire retirement living scheme have come alive since the coronavirus outbreak thanks to a quick-thinking fitness instructor.
Personal trainer Ben Bate has been a permanent fixture at Bromford’s Beacon Park Village since it first opened its doors on Lower Sandford Street, Lichfield, in 2005.
On hearing the government’s new social distancing restrictions, the 38-year-old worked with services coordinator Kerry Steadman to quickly reconfigure his weekly fitness sessions for residents at the over 55s scheme.
Moving away from the village’s onsite gym, Ben now runs three outdoor fitness sessions every week.
Videos of the workouts have captured dozens of residents getting involved, many of them using their own balconies to work out while keeping a safe distance from other people.
Ben said: “This hasn’t just been about exercise for me. It has equally been about bringing everyone together and easing people’s minds at what is quite a tough time for everyone and the response has been absolutely fantastic.
“We typically get between 15 and 20 people and we’ve been getting up to 30 in the past few weeks and as more and more residents hear about it, a greater number are coming out onto their balconies which is so great to see.
"We’ve been working on loosening their joints, using a range of movements to improve their core strength, and really just releasing those good endorphins.”
Fitness sessions aren’t the only thing keeping residents entertained as the scheme has also held sing-alongs to popular classics to lift spirits.
Pat Jobson, Bromford’s village manager, said: “Ben is such a popular figure here at Beacon Park Village and it is no surprise to see him uniting customers in his usual dynamic way.
"These are undoubtedly uncertain times but we are running a varied activity programme to keep everyone’s spirits up whilst sticking to the government’s guidelines around social distancing.”
