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If you have been to or talked to anyone at Walk It Off in the past few months, you have probably heard about a new machine we are trying to purchase called the Madonna ICARE. But what is it? An Apple product sponsored by the ‘Like A Virgin’ singer? The Madonna ICARE actually stands for: Intelligently Controlled Assistive Rehabilitation Elliptical.
This piece of equipment differs from a typical gym elliptical machine by allowing individuals with varying disabilities the opportunity to stand and take strides safely. A harness is used to support the individual while increasing or decreasing the amount of weight that goes into the feet. The ICARE offers the option to exercise with different degrees of motor assistance. The ICARE can be used as a typical elliptical or set to move an individuals legs when the motor senses muscle fatigue. It can also be set in automatic mode for those with complete paralysis.
The additional bonus of the ICARE as an elliptical, is that gives a full body workout by allowing the user to hold the moving handlebars and coordinate the arms with the legs. The elliptical lends
itself to being smoother and has lower impact movement on the user’s joints than a treadmill. The ICARE emphasizes repetitive gait training and load bearing which is the core of our program.
We are very excited about bringing this new piece of equipment into the facility! We are certain that the ICARE will enhance Walk It Off member’s rehabilitation in many ways. Along with all the physical benefits, such as cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness, it will also increase member’s autonomy and independence within their work out sessions. Our SCI Recovery Trainers are also very excited to be able to preserve their arms, hands and backs as manual gaittraining, such as on our Litegait Treadmill, requires a lot of physical effort to move clients through their steps.
Please take a moment to watch this video on Kevin’s trial on this amazing equipment!
We have raised $33,500 so far, for a down payment and must continue to raise another $27,000 to reach our goal of $60,500. We look forward to seeing our clients on it by Fall! Currently, the money raised from the annual Walk It Off Bonspiel, 5K Run-Walk-&-Roll and Tee It Up for Walk It Off golf tournament have been put towards purchasing the ICARE – so a huge ‘THANK YOU’ to everyone who participated and donated!
Additionally, a donation challenge has been put forth by Rob Wheeler, a Walk It Off believer. He has generously personally donated $1,000 towards to the ICARE and is putting forth a challenge to everyone reading. The challenge is for everyone to reach out to their companies, their organizations, their friends and family to come together and meet his personal donation!
Let’s all GET MOVING TO HELP OTHERS – GET MOVING!
As always we welcome your feedback and your questions. You can connect with us by email or telephone or leave a comment right here on the site. Check out our Facebook and Twitter pages and our YouTube Channel too and join in the conversation!
Until next time,
Heather
In memory of Kevin Mills’ Nana, May Earnshaw, the Earnshaw family has matched the $1,000 donation challenge started by Walk It Off supporter Rob Wheeler! Thank you Earnshaw family who are spread out from the West Coast of Canada to England.