FOR ALL EX E ERCIS

Paratriathlete and personal trainer Josh Landmann is on a mission to get people working out again – whether that’s at the gym or at home

JOSH LANDMANN joshualandmann@gmail.com

Going to the gym as a newbie can be a daunting and overwhelming experience for many of us, whether you’ve got a disability or not. Some of us embrace it and thrive in that kind of environment, while others are afraid of it, which is totally understandable.

Of course, people might stare and you’re more noticeably aware of it because, well, we stand out. People might stare because they’ve never seen someone in a wheelchair in a gym or because the exercise you’re doing looks weird because you need to make adjustments. They might also be taking a lot of inspiration from your actions!

I broke my neck back in July 2014 whilst on holiday with some friends. I hit my head on the floor of a swimming pool which resulted in a fracture and compression of C6/C7 with a diagnosed paralysis from T8. I’m an incomplete spinal injury, so do have some use of my legs and they can sometimes have a mind of their own. I’m based in the Northwest of England in a little village between Preston and Lancaster.

I qualified as a personal trainer just before the Covid-19 lockdown hit us so I could develop a better understanding of my own training, how the body works and how it might react by using different methods of training.

The fitness industry can be a scary place and often overlooks people with disabilities within it. Some of the big fitness brands do things here and there to assist but I personally don’t think they’re helping

Through the course I found so many flaws within the learning platform and how it covers disability in personal training and was quite shocked at how bad it was. One statement read that if a client approaches you with a disability, you need to refer them to a specialist. Why? If a client approached you in a gym, asking for help to train them, wouldn’t you first and foremost find out what they can or cannot do, what restricts them, what experience have they had in the past and why didn’t that work?

The fitness industry can be a scary place and often overlooks people with disabilities within it. Some of the big fitness brands do things here and there to assist but I personally don’t think they’re helping. There isn’t enough noticeable disability fitness content on social media feeds and that’s something that could easily be changed with the right conversations and messaging.

This is an area I want to help try and change! There are a few really good platforms on social media for accessible training and correct form, and a handful of good personal trainers who know how to really adapt exercises to best help people with spinal injuries and other disabilities to get the best from their training.

I want to help increase this profile and I’ve now set up Josh Landmann Training do just that! I offer 1-2-1 personal and online coaching and group sessions.

I’ve created an accessible training platform for everyone and anyone. I’ve even created my own exercise demonstration videos tailored for each individual client as I found a lot of these videos online just weren’t accessible.

I will be working together with SIA to create more accessible workouts for people to follow online and will also be offering my services to everyone who feels the need for some guidance. I have clients with spinal injuries and am more than happy to travel to see you in person to gain an understanding of what you do and don’t enjoy about exercising and what you can or can’t do. I want to make training and fitness exciting and accessible for everyone!

FURTHER INFORMATION

Please feel free to get in touch with me directly through Instagram @joshlandmanntraining or through my website joshlandmanntraining.mypthub.net/preview/mysite