BlindAlive.com

Accessible Fitness, more choices for more people

Fitness has always been a concern with regard to both mental and physical health regardless of age, gender, or any other variables that make each one of us unique. And for those in the blind community, fitness is every bit as much—if not more—important.

Exercise for the visually impaired is something that should be incorporated into a weekly, if not daily, routine for a variety of reasons that are both similar and different from people within the sighted community. For those with total loss of sight as well as for those who are low sighted, a lack of regular exercise can bring on a host of other issues, including weight gain, sluggishness, and perhaps worst of all for many, insomnia or a circadian rhythm that has been thrown completely off track.

A quality workout done at the right time of day and at the right pace to meet your unique physical and mental needs is just what the doctor may have forgotten to order. For many blind people, fitness has been a challenge: without someone to guide you and without the ability to drive yourself to the gym, it becomes obvious why so many visually impaired individuals give up—but with the BlindAlive line of Fitness Workouts for blind people, you’ll never have to depend on anyone else again.

Yoga and Strength Training with wieghts for blind people along with a variety of other cardiovascular exercises help our bodies stay toned, help us gain muscle mass and lose weight, but most of all, can help lead a blind person away from a sense of helplessness.

Are you ready to sweat? Come get healthy and leave all your notions of not being able to get fit due to your visual impairment behind with BlindAlive!

Sad but True, BlindAlive Is Closing

November 25, 2018  /  Mel Scott

Dear Everyone,

This is difficult for me to write, but I am a big believer in transparency. I would rather people know the truth and not be left wondering about the details and reasons why.

First of all, my health is fine as far as I know. I did have a second bout of breast cancer three years ago with a year of treatments. I feel fine now, so no worries. It did cause me to be more aware of stress levels and the importance of making time for close family and friends. This has factored in to my decision.

Secondly, five years ago when the idea to create accessible fitness programs landed in my head, I had no idea what I was doing in relation to starting and maintaining a sustainable business. All I cared about was making it happen no matter what it cost. If I had known, I would have been too frightened to do what I did. My wonderful husband, bless him, got swept up in my idea and agreed to finance it with the intention of it becoming self-sufficient in a year or two. I was never able to make this happen. Despite purchases of the workouts and some donations, the costs associated were more than I anticipated and more than our personal funds could sustain.

Thirdly, I have discovered over the last five years that my temperament and personality are not suited to marketing and motivational speaking. I am more of the contemplative, introverted type person. In order to make BlindAlive profitable, I needed to prepare presentations and do a lot of traveling. The cost both psychologically and financially were just too much.

I will not pretend that I am not grieving. I am. I will miss working with my team more than anything. Chris Cox has had my back, witnessed my elation and tears. He has been completely responsible for creating an accessible website and shopping cart. He has posted all the blogs and podcasts. His greatest gift has been to wrangle my ideas and thoughts into a form that was logical. That is a true gift. He has done much more than this but he keeps quiet.

Lisa Salinger has been with BlindAlive for four years. She is also a master thought wrangler. She makes me look much better on paper than I would be otherwise. She has contributed her wisdom and honesty, which I appreciate more than I can say. I value her work and her friendship immensely..

Jamie Pauls has edited most of our workouts and all of the Eyes-Free Fitness® podcasts. He has been a joy to work with and I am glad Lisa introduced me to him.

Austin Seraphin developed the Eyes-Free Fitness® app. It was his first attempt at developing an app, and he did a great job.

I will not name all the instructors, music composers, and hand holders along the way but suffice it to say, there were many, and all of them have enriched my life so much.

What does all this mean for you customers and fans?

All you need to know right now is that all programs are free for you to download on the BlindAlive website. You may have all of them and share them as you choose. Regardless of whether or not you have purchased workouts in the past or you download them now, you may want to keep a backup copy, since you will not be able to retrieve them from the site after December 31 of 2018.

The workouts will also be free in the Eyes-Free Fitness® App, but the app will not be fully supported after December 20th. You will be able to play workouts in the app, but will not be able to access podcasts, blogs, or exercise descriptions after this date. If you do not own a computer, consider using an app like VoiceDream Reader to get them on your phone, or find a way to save them on some kind of removable media like a thumb drive or SD card.

Also, please note that there will be no refunds for website or in-app purchases. The free offer does not include CD’s thumb drives, or SD cards.

Podcast 105 will be coming out soon, and Lisa and I will answer more questions. If you have a specific question, please e-mail us at [email protected] and we will try to get to them on the podcast.

I hope all of you take advantage of these programs, and that your life is enhanced by them. It has been a great joy to have created them for all of us.

I wish you health and peace.

Good health to you,
Mel

 

BlindAlive - Creator of Eyes-Free Fitness® - Doylestown, PA 18901

COPYRIGHT © BlindAlive All Rights Reserved. Eyes-Free Fitness is a registered trademark of BlindAlive