Anytime Fitness club manager develops fitness programs to raise awareness for autism

Kimberly Leonard, Club Manager of Anytime Fitness Capalaba, has developed a fitness program to help people understand the challenges people with autism go through.

Leonard developed the program - which five other gyms across Brisbane, Logan and Ipswich - for World Autism Day on Tuesday 2nd April, aiming to help educate the world and better understand people like her son, Lochlan.

Leonard told local newspaper the Wynnum Herald "Go Blue For Autism is our day to stand collectively and do that.

“Raising funds for services is so imperative, I remember the early days attending the free workshops Autism Queensland offered and they helped make sense of the new path our lives had taken and gave us tools to be able to better support Lochie.

“We have been incredibly lucky with the services and support we have been able to access for Lochie but so many others aren’t in the same position to do so.

“Go Blue is about raising funds and awareness but it’s also a way as a community we get to let those families and individuals that we see them, we’re helping and we’re all in this together.”

On 2nd April, the gyms, including Anytime Fitness at Cleveland, hosted group fitness classes with activities designed to raise awareness of the communication, auditory and visual processing challenges of people on the autism spectrum.

Those attending were asked to make a gold coin donation.

Image: Lochlan and Kimberly Leonard at Anytime Fitness. Courtesy of Anytime Fitness.