By Kelly Almond
Diane Sauve was overweight and needed to get in shape.
“I was too lazy. I didn’t want to get up,” she says.
Because gym memberships are so expensive, she had little motivation to get fit. But after her husband saw an advertisement for an affordable fitness program for women, she decided it was time to get her life back.
The Woman Alive program, which has given her that opportunity, provides affordable physical activity programs for women on limited incomes.
Sauve says she would not have gotten off the couch if the program weren’t so affordable.
Participants are asked to contribute $1 per class, or as much as they can afford.
The program includes yoga, weight training and aqua fit classes. It’s a joint venture between Ottawa Public Health, Regional Heart Beat, fitness professionals and Parks and Recreation Services.
When Kathy Watcham, program co-ordinator for special needs at the Jack Purcell Community Centre, heard of the program, she says she knew women in the Centretown area could benefit.
It was launched in 1999 at the Kanata Leisure Centre, and it started at the end of January at Jack Purcell.
“Basically, it’s been a huge success,” says Watcham. “The response has been overwhelming.”
So overwhelming, in fact, that the program has reached its capacity of 50 women after just seven weeks. Watcham says she gets up to five calls per day from people interested in joining. She is still trying to stream people into the classes as spaces become available.
Because the response has been so positive, Nathalie McKenna of Ottawa Public Health says the city is looking at expanding to new community centres throughout Ottawa in September.
“It’s such an important need for the community,” she says.
Working with community centres is a logical choice for the program, she says.
“Two or more organizations can be much more effective in starting a Woman Alive program when they work together by offering their own expertise.”
The city provides most of the funding while the community centres give women access to their facilities.
Watcham says the program also tries to help women buy the necessary fitness equipment like bathing suits.
Watcham also works with the Running Room, a store for joggers. When runners wear out their sneakers, they can donate them to the Running Room, who then distributes the shoes to people in need, such as those in the Woman Alive program.
The shoes are helpful for the weight training component of the program.
In addition to its fitness classes, the program has a strong support component. A half hour before each class starts, the women meet to discuss how well their goals are being met.
“I think [women] are often intimidated by fitness,” says Audrey Brewster, one of the fitness instructors for the
program. The group atmosphere to the program really helps them overcome their fear, she says.
Brewster tries to keep the program fun and interesting by offering prizes at the end of each class. After the women contribute their $1, they are entered into a draw for prizes donated by the city, such as t-shirts or water bottles.
Most of her students are 40 to50 years old, but some are even in their 70s.
In addition to the varied age groups, Watcham says the women who participate in the program at Jack Purcell have different needs in general. Some live on welfare, while others may have just lost their jobs and can’t afford gym memberships while living on employment insurance.
“It’s quite a mix of women, but also a really supportive group,” she says.
Sauve says the supportive atmosphere of the program has really helped her to achieve her goals. And after seeing personal results with the Woman Alive program, Sauve says she plans on continuing her fitness routine.
“The program helped me to motivate myself. It woke me up, and gave me a new chance in my life.”