Car accident victim walks to her future

It has been revealed that the Sports Council for Wales has launched a nationwide scheme, to get people up and about and start exercising. They have based their core thesis on people getting more active and how it can benefit individual’s mentality and physicality. One woman who encourages the campaign, is a car accident victim, and is living proof of how exercise can help someone’s life. The female motorist was 22 when she was involved in a car crash that caused a hairline fracture to her spine. She had just graduated from the Police Training School, and was involved in a car chase, when the police vehicle she was in, hit a kerb and rolled over. The victim, now 40, lives in Pwllheli said: “I was in hospital for three weeks and off work for a year. I couldn’t go back to full-time duty with the police after the accident because the demands of the job were too great on my body. “The doctors told me that it was vital that I exercise and build the muscles around the spine. I fractured the lower vertebrae and so it was important to keep the weight off also, which was another reason to keep fit.” Walking to the future In an inspiration story, the woman is now a Nordic walking instructor and also had a hysterectomy when she was 35. Again, her doctor told her that she would benefit greatly from exercising. She stated: “Since the accident and the operation, I have always appreciated the importance of keeping active and healthy because it was a great way for me to strengthen the core muscles and my whole body. As a result, I haven’t had major problems with my spine since.” She commented on her work: “I soon went from being a walk leader to a tutor and now train other walk leaders in the area and monitor local walks as part of my walk facilitator role with Gwynedd Council,” she said. “I walk every day for three to four miles, swim four times a week and also go to the gym regularly. I know full well that if I didn’t exercise, I would seize up and wouldn’t be able to do anything – and that’s a position I would hate to be in. “I also know that all the walking and exercise that I’m doing, is helping to keep the weight off and keeps me within a healthy BMI for my height.” Since moving to Pwllheli, she has helped set up the Penygroes walking group, which now has more than 50 members. She has also formed a Nordic walking group in Penllyn, which meets every Friday. It seems that nothing can stop her in her tracks. She added: “Walking really has changed my life because not only have I made great friends in the process, but I’ve also kept the weight off and feel stronger than I’ve ever felt. It’s also a cheap yet effective way to keep fit.” The Welsh Sports Council has urged people to seek cheap ways of exercising, such as walking, so expenses do not have to be spent on the gym.