A program aimed at increasing fitness and adopting a healthier way of life for local indigenous people has met with great success. The fitness program has been running since March in conjunction with Cliff Rowe at his gym located at the Guyra Scout Hall.
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It is funded by New England Medicare Local (NEML) and is open to anyone who wants to get fit in a supportive and fun environment.
Coordinator of the program Nellie Blair said that the program is part of the Closing the Gap initiative, which aims to close the health and life expectancy gap between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians.
Originally aimed at aboriginal men, the program has now expanded to include both males and females from all age groups and non indigenous people are welcome to join in.
Nellie said that the response to the program has been excellent and there have been many positive outcomes for those involved. Attendances have remained high and enthusiasm continues to grow.
Training takes place each Tuesday from 5pm to 6pm under the watchful eye of Cliff Rowe and qualified instructor Tremaine Patterson. Cliff said that Tremaine, an up and coming boxer, is a good role model for the younger members of the community.
“The kids respond well to him and he leads by example,” Cliff said. “He has had a couple of good wins in competitive bouts recently and was unlucky last week in Narrabri when he had to withdraw because of injury.”
The fitness program has been designed for beginner levels and all exercises are based on one minute intervals. The gym is well equipped with boxing equipment and anyone who wants to can come along and join the fun.
