Throughout my time in the sector, I’ve heard from refugees and asylum seekers about the difficulties of not being able to go to the gym and do exercise.
I’ve heard this from a diverse group of people: young people who want to focus on staying fit and healthy, but also people who you might not think of as traditional gym goers; older people with chronic health conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure, who are being told by their doctors they need to do more exercise.
Many of our refugee friends also struggle with depression and anxiety, and some have PTSD.
For most of us, it’s one thing to know you should be exercising, and then another thing then to have the confidence and the time to regularly exercise.
And that’s before we even add in the specific barriers have face people seeking sanctuary who are banned from work and have no income, who might not know where they can find exercise classes, who might not speak English as a first language.
Let alone when you’re living in destitution – if you’re searching for somewhere to sleep that night, or you’re worried about when your next meal will be, you’re not going to be able to plan how you will eat healthily or keep fit and do exercise.
A couple years ago, a local Wapping resident introduced me to Michael Traynor, who is a pastor at St Paul’s in Shadwell. St Paul’s is an incredibly vibrant and active community, and they run lots of projects, including a fitness program, which Michael oversees.
Michael agreed to run gym sessions with JRS UK so that they are accessible for our refugee friends; the sessions are in our local park (or in the centre, if it’s raining), and we make sure people have money to travel to attend. The gym sessions have now been running for 2 years and 36 refugee friends have attended.
12 attendees can attend weekly, who rotate in a circuit, and Michael makes sure that exercises can be adapted according to each person’s ability and health needs. The group support each other and feel safe exercising together, and working with a personal trainer, they can all work on their form and get the most out of each exercise and avoid injury.
The group’s progress has been amazing: one person no longer needs a walking stick to get around, and she now has the physical ability and the confidence to go up and down the stairs at Wapping station. Another friend has started running in a group local to her, after getting more confidence in our Friday sessions.
Access to exercise has also brought mental health benefits for our friends: whether it’s increased confidence, the benefits of physical exercise, or learning new things with other people and being outdoors in green spaces.
Health inequalities for Black and Asian communities in the UK are well documented, and making sure that people have the agency and ability to exercise and look after their health is such an important part of trying to bring about racial justice. The hostile environment is destructive for people’s mental and physical health, exacerbating those inequalities.
The theme of this World Health Day is ‘healthy beginnings, hopeful futures’, and I hope that these gym sessions put refugee friends in a good place to manage their health once they get status and can start rebuilding their lives. Stay tuned for more!
