Prescription for exercise gets patients a 2-week free trial at Bell Aliant Centre

Health-care professionals now have an added incentive to treat their patients with exercise thanks to a program from the Bell Aliant Centre.

The new program, Fitness as a Prescription (Fitness Rx), allows any registered health-care professional to prescribe a two-week all-access trial membership to the aquatics facility. Participants will haveaccess to the hot tub,lane swims, open swims and 17 aqua fitness classes hosted each week.

Some of the roughly dozen registered affiliates of the program includeCharlottetown Physio, Sports Centre Physio, Hurricane Physio, Health PEI, Dr. Vincent Adams and Dr. MikeSider.

"Everyone loves a chance to try something out without a financial barrier," saidShanahanGardiner, the centre's director
of aquatics andprogramming. "It's a nice way to get an experience without that commitment right off the get-go to make sure it's the right fit for that person."

Aftertwo back surgeries and a shoulder replacement, AliceMacDougallwasn't able to exercise like she used to.
She said time in the pool helped shed the weight she gained during her recoveryand improved her mobility.

"When you exercise in the pool, it doesn't hurt any of your joints. You can do anything in the water, it's the same as being in spaceit's wonderful for everything," she said.

After the trial, anyone interested in continuing will have to pay to use the facility but it's free for thoseover 80 years old.

PhysiotherapistEdieRodgers said prescribing pool time is ideal because the exercises are safeand patients can control the intensity of their workoutbased on how hard they push against the water. A number of conditions can benefit from water workouts, she said, includingpeople recovering from a new hip or knee, long-term conditions, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis andheart conditions.

"There's really nobody who couldn't benefit from pool therapy," she said.

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