On September 24th, Moving Forward Rehabilitation and Wellness Center here in London held an open house to celebrate their first year in business. Moving forward is a facility designed for people with spinal injuries, brain injuries, who have MS, or have any other disabilities to improve their strength, abilities, and quality of life.
Company owner and founder Mike Mulligan says he decided to open the gym because of a personal experience.
“I was going to California to a facility down there to learn how to control my body. I have a spinal cord injury, so I was trying to get more function back below my injury, so get more control of my legs and my arms. When I came back home from California, I realized that there wasn’t a gym I could go to that I could go and work out and improve my abilities.”
Mike Mulligan, owner of Moving Forward
He adds that he wanted a gym where he and other people with disabilities could go that is accessible, and has qualified trainers that know how to work with them. Moving Forward has specialized workout equipment starting off with a vibration table to improve circulation and range of motion. Once someone is ready to use other equipment, they have squat wracks which assist people with standing, a treadmill that they can assist people with walking on, and a number of other machines.
Among the equipment, there are also some inspirational posters:
Mulligan says that his favourite thing about going into work every day is “The smile on someone’s face when they’ve done something they never thought they could do, and that tear in their eye when a family member is watching them do something for the first time.”
He says it’s been an amazing year.
For more information about the facility, visit www.movingforwardlondon.com
