Client Stories

The Challenge

In her early 90s, she wanted to maintain her independence and feel more confident on her feet. She felt that her balance had deteriorated and was increasingly worried about falling. For a number of reasons, she had struggled with motivation and had not been doing much physical activity for around four years. She was walking slowly and cautiously, often using furniture or walking sticks for support around the home. She had also lost confidence in everyday movements. Getting up from a chair was difficult without using momentum.

The Assessment

We began with a full assessment, taking the time to understand her medical history and what mattered to her. We then looked at her strength, balance, mobility and walking.

The assessment highlighted reduced strength in the legs, reduced shoulder movement and a hesitant approach to balance activities. Her walking was slow, with a rounded posture and wider base of support, and her confidence was particularly low because of her fear of falling.

Rather than focusing simply on exercise, we worked together to build confidence alongside physical ability.

The Approach

We started with simple, achievable strength and balance exercises, building gradually as her confidence increased. Over time, we progressed the exercises by introducing weights, increasing resistance and challenging her balance in different ways. The aim was to help her feel stronger and more capable in the movements that mattered to her in everyday life.

The Progress

The changes have been remarkable. She can now stand up from a chair while holding a 3kg weight. She is now able to walk around her home without relying on walking aids and stands noticeably taller when walking. She continues to use the stairs with confidence and has regained the confidence to take part in social activities, including going to the theatre, knowing that she can get up and walk out when she needs to.

But some of the biggest achievements have been the things she never expected to do again.

She completed one of her favourite walks for the first time in years, something she had previously thought she would never manage again.

She has also been able to open and close the high windows in her home independently, something she had always needed to ask someone else to help with.

She is enjoying family social occasions and getting out to activities again. She is also back outside maintaining her garden and feeding the birds, something that brings her an enormous amount of joy.

More than maintaining independence

She originally came to New Horizons because she wanted to stay independent. But she got more than that.

• She got her confidence back
• She got back to doing things she loved
• She got back to enjoying time with family and friends
• And she rediscovered the freedom to do more for herself

Sometimes rehabilitation isn't just about what you can do physically. It's about getting back to the life you want to live.

The Challenge

Over a number of years, he had experienced several health problems and multiple hospital admissions. Prolonged periods of bed rest had a significant impact on his strength and mobility. By the time he contacted New Horizons Health & Wellbeing, he had been unable to get out of bed for around 18 months and had done very little outside the home for several years.

The Assessment

As with all home visits, we began with a full assessment to understand his health history, current abilities and the activities that were important to him.

The assessment identified significant weakness through the lower limbs, particularly through the muscles at the back of the legs that are important for standing, walking and climbing steps. At the beginning of his rehabilitation, he was unable to stand, even with assistance.

The Approach

We focused initially on rebuilding lower-limb strength, particularly through the muscles needed for standing and functional movement. As his strength improved, we introduced trunk exercises to help him develop greater control and reduce the need to compensate during movement.

His home exercise programme was a key part of his progress. He worked incredibly hard between sessions, consistently completing his exercises and gradually building his strength.

Every couple of weeks, we progressed his programme as his abilities allowed.

Initially, his only goal was to be able to walk again. As I saw his strength and determination develop, I encouraged him to aim beyond the house, because I believed getting back outside was within his reach. Once he had developed enough strength to stand, we introduced step-ups and functional tasks to work towards a longer-term goal that we had set, to manage stairs and get out of the house.

The Progress

After around five months of consistent hard work and gradual progression, the changes have been amazing.

He can now walk around his home using a walking aid and is able to complete car transfers, allowing him to leave home and travel to stay with his daughter.

He shared that his daughter couldn't believe what he had achieved: he had been able to walk up and down the stairs while staying with his daughter. Something that had once seemed out of reach had become possible through months of gradual strengthening and functional practice.

He has now been able to get back into his garden and completely trim the plants in his greenhouses. He is once again able to spend time caring for his garden and has started enjoying planting his vegetables again.

And now that he has regained so much of his independence, he can continue building on that progress.

The Challenge

Following a diagnosis of osteoporosis, this client wanted to make sure she stayed as strong and active as possible as she moved into her 60s.

She was already very active day-to-day and enjoyed walking and Pilates, but resistance training wasn't part of her routine. She wanted to learn how to strength train safely and confidently, particularly following her diagnosis.

Before starting, we had a conversation about her goals, what she wanted from 1:1 support and whether we were the right fit to work together. We discussed the role of progressive resistance training and loading in maintaining strength and supporting bone health, and how we could gradually build her confidence with weights while focusing on technique and control.

The Assessment

As we worked together, we identified some areas to focus on, including reduced mobility through the thoracic spine and some weakness through the glutes, particularly on one side. This gave us an opportunity to build a programme around individual needs.

The Approach

We began by developing confidence with resistance training and making sure she understood how to perform movements with good technique and control. From there, we gradually increased the challenge, progressing the weight and complexity of exercises as strength and confidence developed.

A key goal was to help her become independent in the gym, rather than feeling that she would always need someone there to tell her what to do.

Her programme has included progressive strength training, larger compound lifts and impact-based work including bounding and jumping.

The Progress

She has progressed to performing deadlifts with 40kg, alongside working towards pull-ups and incorporating bounding and jumping exercises into her training. She is now comfortable walking into the gym and completing her training independently, without needing guidance throughout her session. She has become stronger, more aware of how her body moves and much more confident handling heavier weights.

She has developed the confidence to train independently, progressed to lifting weights she may once have felt nervous about, and is heading into her 60s feeling strong, capable and confident.

The Challenge

This client lives with Parkinson's and wanted to stay active, maintain his strength and continue doing as much as possible. When we first started working together, his goal was largely about maintaining what he could already do. But as we got to know each other and built trust, I challenged that mindset.

Instead of asking, “How do we maintain what you have?”, we started asking: “What if we tried to improve it?”

The Approach

We started with the foundations of strength training, looking at technique through both upper- and lower-body movements and identifying any areas of limitation. As his confidence grew and he became more comfortable pushing himself, we gradually increased the intensity and built on those foundations.

His training has incorporated:

• Strength training
• Balance work
• High-intensity exercise
• Mobility work
• Exercises to support posture and movement

Everything has been adapted around his individual abilities, rather than being dictated by his diagnosis.

The Progress

One of the things I believe strongly in, is not placing unnecessary limitations on someone because of their age or diagnosis. That doesn't mean ignoring someone's condition or pushing without consideration. It means understanding the individual in front of me, working within their abilities and seeing what they are capable of achieving.

He has developed his strength, balance and mobility and has achieved things he never expected to do, including box jumps. He has also completed a 6-mile run/walk to raise money for Parkinson's UK, something that represents just how far his confidence and physical ability have come.

He wanted to maintain what he had. Instead, he has become stronger and more mobile. His diagnosis is part of his story, but it doesn't define what he can achieve. We work with the person, not just the diagnosis, build the foundations, challenge what is possible and see where it takes us.