A gym in Harrogate has offered a free programme to help people suffering from chronic pain.
The six-month programme is based at the Nuffield Health gym in Hornbeam Park.
The programme is funded by the Nuffield charity and is worth roughly £1000 for each participant. It was designed by GPs, physiotherapists, and emotional wellbeing clinicians across the UK.
The course is run three times per year and can accommodate up to 60 participants at each start.
It is open to anyone who has suffered from pain and stiffness around a joint, lower back and neck pain, arthritis, gout and other conditions for more than six months. Participants can be referred to the programme by their GPs or can complete an online self-referral form.
Rehabilitation specialist at Nuffield Harrogate Melanie Hook said:
“At the charity we recognise there’s a need to support people living with chronic joint pain, affecting more than 8.75 million people in the UK and has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The programme aims to empower and enable individuals with chronic joint pain to self-manage their condition and pain symptoms.”
For the first twelve weeks participants are expected to meet twice a week for a group workshop and an exercise session guided by joint pain experts.
Some of the exercises covered include joint strength training, flexibility training, yoga, and swimming. Full gym access is also provided for the entirety of the programme.
After this participants are moved to the next unsupervised phase where they can apply what they learnt in weeks 1-12 individually at the gym.
Those who have completed the programme have reported significant improvements to their pain levels and overall quality of life.
One participant said:
“I feel I have benefited enormously. I feel much stronger. I’m walking better. And my pain has reduced to the extent that I don’t need to take pain relief as much.”
Ms Hook added:
“Our program has been a huge success and since our start, we have had hundreds of participants go through the programme.
“Some stay on at the gym and others have gone away and kept up with their activity in other areas of their lives.”
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