Greenville & Hockessin Life: The optics of EPIC: Inspiring health through fitness | Chester County Press

By Gabbie Burton
Contributing Writer

Spending a few hours at the Hockessin Athletic Club (HAC) highlights the full extent to how fun an ordinary workout can be, and EPIC Delaware — which stands for Endless Possibilities in the Community — is providing just that for many friends, family and neighbors in the Greenville and Hockessin communities and beyond.

Through its commitment to provide access to physical fitness to citizens with disabilities, EPIC provides access to programs that offer a friendly and enabling environment to exercise, learn about healthy living options and build social skills. Held at several facilities throughout Delaware including the HAC, classes include strength, Yoga and lessons on education, nutrition, and social skills, all aimed at enhancing the overall health of each member.

Just as physical health can easily be looked over in any individual’s life, the same is true for adults with disabilities. 

“Adults can be very sedentary,” said EPIC Delaware Executive Director Kat Luebke. “We can all go home and just want to sit on the couch at the end of the day and not incorporate enough physical activity into our day on average. It is no different for somebody who has a disability.

“Reducing the risk of chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease — which this population is more likely to get – is something that we’re trying to address.”

According to Luebke, the four main barriers for physical activity in individuals with disabilities are cost, feeling welcome, having a knowledgeable staff and transportation. EPIC aims to address those barriers.

EPIC is free to all members in order remove cost barriers and give everyone an opportunity to participate. The programs mainly rely on grants for funding. Luebke also said that EPIC staff go through state required training to “build their skill set as a direct support professional” and fitness staff either have certification or degrees in their fields. EPIC is active at five locations throughout Delaware including the HAC, and four YMCA locations including Bear Glasgow, Western, Brandywine and Dover, and is continuing to expand their reach to more individuals across the northern Delaware region.

Each of the locations has embraced the EPIC members, its instructors and the agency’s mission.

“It’s great because you get to see them in that community,” Luebke said. “They’re going into Zumba classes, they’re getting high fives, the members know them by name and they’re learning other members by name.” 

Two programs, many options

EPIC currently offers two programs — the EPIC abilities program for individuals with physical disabilities, and the traditional EPIC program, which is targeted toward those with intellectual or development disabilities (IDD). The traditional program, which is offered at the HAC, aims to go beyond just physical activity in order to give the participants skills that translate from the athletic world to the real world.

EPIC offers two three-hour sessions Monday-Friday at the HAC with the goal of keeping members active for at least 90 minutes of the session. Though the sessions are in groups, each participant has a say in their choice of activities for the day. Luebke said that a typical session at EPIC starts with catching up with their fellow members, planning their own workout for the day, and engaging in physical activities, that can range from open gym time, group basketball, aquatic exercise or taking classes offered by the participating facility.

Whether it’s a group activity or an individual workout, EPIC team members accompany the member and assist them in meeting their set goals.

“Each of our programs is very person centered and driven by that individual and what they want to do,” Luebke said. “They might have individual goals that they’re specifically working on, like weight loss. We help gear their workout in order to help them meet those goals without saying, ‘No, you have to do this,’ because, again, it’s all about what they want to do.” 

Additionally, the activities will also include group meetings, where members will discuss a social topic such as holiday plans or nutrition. The ultimate goal of the program is for members to “graduate” by showing they are able to begin working out independently.

“They have a set of goals that they choose to work on and then as far as our program, we have certain goals to get them to basically graduate and we have a very big checklist,” Luebke said. “They can either stop the program and join the gym, or they can still stay with us, and we just serve them in a different capacity.”

Luebke shared individual success stories of EPIC students, including one young woman who began her program having no desire to work out, but is now committed to a full exercise regimen that includes working out at the squat rack.

“We had a member graduate from the program in Dover, because he was basically able to show all the skills that he needed to come in and workout independently,” Luebke said. “He knew how to navigate the building. He knew how to clean off the fitness machines and he displayed the social etiquette that comes with being a member of a community fitness center. It was great to see his progression — from somebody who needed that support to someone who is now fully independent in the fitness center.”

Whether members ultimately graduate or not is not the main focus of the EPIC program, but rather, that they enjoy their physical activities and make consistent improvements wherever they can.

Overall, this is the most rewarding part of the job for Luebke and the EPIC team, she said, is seeing the growth in each of the members and their eventual integration into the physical fitness community.

“We watch people come out of their shells when they are here and become recognized members of the community,” Luebke said. “Fitness is for everyone, and we want to be able to support individuals in order to give them that choice to fulfill their needs, do the things that they want to do, and do so not only with peers in their disability community, but with the entire fitness community.”

To learn more about EPIC Delaware, visit www.epicdelaware.org.