Latest news with #adaptivefitness
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
At 13, He Lost His Arm. Now He's a Top Peloton Coach
Growing up, Logan Aldridge could never sit still—and if you've met him, you know that hasn't changed. Sitting across from him in his cowboy hat at Sounds Like Nashville Live, his smile was warm and his energy magnetic, so much so that you might not even notice he's missing his left arm. And that's exactly how he wants it. When Aldridge was 13, he was out wakeboarding—something his family did almost every weekend. In an instant, the rope he was holding tangled in the boat's propeller. His left arm was severed, and blood was everywhere. On the way to the hospital, still in shock and trying to process what had just happened, he looked to his mom for answers. 'In the ambulance, when I was thinking, 'Oh my gosh, my arm might get amputated,' I asked my mom [what would happen],' he told Men's Journal. 'And she says, 'Logan, it's just an arm.' That mentality can be viewed by someone as tough love, but it was also the moment that shifted my perspective. It kind of transformed the way I saw myself—and what could become of this.'Aldridge has never let his accident define him, and he doesn't want it to define how others see him either. After he lost his arm, he stood up in front of his entire school and told them what happened—head-on, no drama, no whispers. He's never been afraid of the spotlight—and he's spent the years since turning that resilience into a movement. Today, Aldridge is Peloton's only adaptive fitness instructor. The accident that changed his life also changed how he sees others: with compassion, not caution. While he encourages his trainees to work within the realities of their bodies, you better believe he'll still push them. "My coaching style is one of inclusive accessibility and democratization of fitness, where there shouldn't be barriers to entry, especially if the individual has physical limitations. And through that lens, it's made me a really compassionate instructor and coach. But, big but here, I will make you want to throw up." When he was young, Aldridge remembers people constantly trying to help him. Whether it was teachers stepping in to assist before he had a chance to figure things out, or people gently reminding him of what might be harder now that he'd lost his dominant arm, he understood they meant well. But he never saw himself that way—and he never wanted to be told what he couldn't he brings that same mindset into his training and coaching. He wants everyone he works with to walk away knowing they're capable of more than they think. That they can work hard, push themselves, and move past the limits they—or others—have placed on them. "Just because you're a seated athlete, bilateral amputee, one arm, or whatever the case may be, I have compassion and understanding, but I don't have sympathy," he said. "I still want to push you and show you, regardless of impairment condition or not, if somebody's timid and afraid, doesn't think they can become strong, I want to show them through affirming, empowering action that they're capable." He's able to do just that through Peloton, a platform that meets people wherever they are—no gym membership required. Since joining in 2022, Aldridge has made it his mission to help people of all abilities see themselves reflected in fitness. "I want to help build a way in which people who are intimidated, fearful, who have disabilities, can have this platform. It doesn't have to be on a bike or a tread. It can be in their pocket. It can be on an app. They can just be on the couch and open the app and just watch, just watch. And then maybe the next day you'll try, you know, it's just baby steps, micro changes that make it to macro solutions. And the community at Peloton is the definition of an inclusive, welcoming, understanding community." At 13, He Lost His Arm. Now He's a Top Peloton Coach first appeared on Men's Journal on Jun 27, 2025
BBC News
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
DJ keeps injured woman's passion for spin alive
"I'm just doing what I used to do, just in a different way."When an accident left Sue Frost paralysed from the chest down and unable to get on a bike, it looked like her days of leading online spin classes might be with the help of a DJ and producer, the 60-year-old has found a new way to keep her passion Gribby, from Nottingham, is sharing his skills with Sue so she can pump out top tunes while instructing at future spin sessions. Sue, from Lincoln, told the BBC she has had a passion for spin for about 15 years and ended up teaching 11 classes a week after her instructor stepped down - before she broke her neck falling down the stairs at her home three-and-a-half years ago."It's changed my life completely," she said."I've gone from a very active life with my spin classes, cycling and working full-time to doing basically nothing, but just trying to reintroduce things that I was doing before in a different format."She had resigned herself to giving up spin before meeting Paul through SoundLincs, a community music charity based in Lincolnshire, and he then introduced her to the world of DJing. "I wanted to help Sue because I believe that no matter your situation, there's always a way to try and do things," Paul said. "It's just a matter of trying to find them."The 49-year-old, who hosts DJ workshops, told the BBC within the first two hours of meeting Sue, they had come up with the idea of her DJing spin classes."It would actually be something good for Sue to focus on, give her something to do away from spin classes as well," he said."Finding music, creating playlists, practising DJing and just being in a happy place."Paul said after a bit of research they found some decks that fit on Sue's lap, which then connects to an iPad and from that to a speaker. Sue said: "It's something I've never thought about doing before with DJ decks, I honestly thought I was a bit too old for that."But Paul's showing me that you can do anything. If music isn't your life, it can become your life."It was my life before, I've always enjoyed my music, but now I'm just moving on to a different way of doing things."She said she plans on practicing more on her decks before getting people together for an online class."I'm doing what I used to do, but in a different way. I can't get on a spin bike anymore, but that doesn't really matter - I can still teach online," she added: "It's just really inspiring to see, because originally I think Sue just wanted to have a go to see what was going to happen."I think she's always wanted to have a go at DJing and then I think it just spiralled into a whole new area which Sue and I didn't even think we could do,."But I think there's always a way, you've just got to find it."
