Blog: "I enjoy the social side of being active the most"
The English Federation of Disability Sport (EFDS) website features a blog post every Friday through the year. In 2017 we'll be sharing the experiences of disabled people on their journey to being more active. To kick off the New Year, we catch up with 2016's Together We Will campaign ambassador Amanda Worne and find out what she's looking forward to in 2017.
Amanda's blog
I like to think that I’m an active person. I regularly go to hydrotherapy as part of my physiotherapy. I also take part in my local Parkrun, and more recently I have been giving horse riding a go.
I try to do something every day. I don’t always feel like it but that’s where little Max, my new puppy comes in. It doesn’t matter whether I want to go for a walk or not, he needs to. So I usually wheel a couple of miles or so with him each day.
I enjoy the social side of being active the most. Talking with my friends at Parkrun, or catching up with my husband and children when we walk the dog. At the moment I'm really enjoying horse riding and working with the instructors at my local Riding for the Disabled Association group (RDA). They provide great therapy and equestrian activities for disabled people of all ages.
After recovering from my accident, I had no idea how or where to go to get active and it was hard to make enquiries. It was going to Parkrun as part of my rehab and talking to people, that I found out about other local opportunities and activities to try.
Being active has helped me through some tough challenges. When I’m exercising I forget about my impairment and the pain it sometimes causes me. It always makes me feel good and puts a smile on my face, even if I was feeling low before I started.
Last year, I was selected to be an ambassador for the Together We Will campaign with the National Disability Sports Organisations. It was such an honour to be a part of this, because I know how important having support from your friends, family and supporters can be when you want be more active.
It’s the New Year and I’ve set myself a few activity aims. I’m looking forward to continuing with my horse riding and would like to have a go at dressage, maybe even a local competition. I also want to get out and about more on my recumbent hand bike and try a new team sport, like wheelchair basketball. Plus I’ve promised myself that I will complete my scuba diving instructor course with the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI).
That lot should keep me going for a while!
To disabled people, who are thinking about being more active, I would say go for it! The personal and social benefits you’ll enjoy as a result are enormous.
Being active has such an impact on my mental and physical wellbeing.
I couldn’t live without it.
