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How my journey began
My name is Rene Roberts and perhaps, like many of you, I have been on a personal journey toward health and wellness. For me the journey began out of necessity after an injury to my knee that seemingly would require surgery and a complete knee replacement. Complications with my Cerebral Palsy and difficulties with my insurance company would not allow the surgery to safely take place and I began to experience extreme pain and difficulty moving. My life seemed to be shrinking and everyday tasks became increasingly difficult. By Christmas 2007 I had had enough and decided as a last ditch effort to join a gym and begin supervised exercise with a personal trainer. The results have been miraculous!
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Amazing results
Not only have I lost 50 pounds since that time, I also now stand two inches taller, I am stronger and more mobile than I have ever been, and I have completed 3 Sprint Triathlons. Needless to say my life has expanded exponentially and I love knowing myself as an athlete for the first time in 44 years! Pretty amazing considering during my knee injury my doctor recommended I begin using a wheel chair.
Recently while swimming at the gym I began to wonder what my life would be like now if I had been able to exercise like this as a child. I always went to physical therapy after a surgery (I have had 20) but that seemed more like time spent addressing what was wrong with my body rather than actual fitness exercises meant to address what was strong and “right” with my body.
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The "A-Ha" moment leads to our vision
That day I had an “A-Ha” moment! I knew I wanted to open a gym for children with disabilities and their families. I knew how good I felt after I exercised my muscles that are normally so tight and stiff. I knew how confident I felt when I accomplished something new. (Simple things like standing from a chair without using my arms to push up or leaning back in the shower to wash my hair, not having to lean on something to stay standing for any length of time). Most of all I know the accomplishment that comes from exercise as it strengthens me for the rest of my life.
I want to give these kinds of opportunities away to children with disabilities and their families! It is with this passion to make a difference that I started Inclusion Infusion. My vision is that Inclusion Infusion be a gym and a support link for children with all types of disabilities and their families. We will provide individual personal training, chiropractic care and small group classes for children who are so often excluded from typical activities like ballet, yoga, or karate because of the challenges they face physically, mentally or emotionally. We will also provide support groups, coaching, and advocacy services for parents as well as an adult area of the gym where parents can exercise and relieve stress while their children are either being trained or taking classes.
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