Introducing Jimboomba Park Retro Exercise Trail from the 80’s

An exercise trail in Jimboomba Park demonstrates that public health has been in focus for quite a long time with the community capacity builders.

Previously in a few of my blog postings I have introduced the concept of Senior Park and LifeTrail for community sports and recreation enthusiasts. At the same time, I have been pondering what is it that seems to stop me from actively implementing my awareness that regular exercise is crucial to my wellbeing and actually take it up as part of my daily activities. Also, I have been investigating what kind of play/exercise areas we need to develop to enhance public health for all ages through our community care organisation.


I can say that I am seriously interested in my own and other people’s wellbeing. I can be relatively easily persuaded to group activities and anything energetic that would relate to my work as confirmed by my interest in travelling around and investigating what is available. Yet, somewhere there is a wide gap between this interest and actually doing it. I would like to help everyone, including myself to close this bridge. I feel that I now have to start from the nearest and easiest park available to me at
work.


Jimboomba Park is situated right next to the Caddies Community Care Centre, where I work. I drive past it every day and sometimes I have taken part in some events, like The Vibe or other youth events organised by my own staff. I know there is a walking group organised by us that uses the park early mornings. Our Community Service Delivery Coordinator is doing everything she can to get people enthusiastic about healthy lifestyle, food and activities. There is a scooter and skateboard track there, which is often full of young enthusiasts. On a weekday I very seldom see any other people in the park or the playgrounds. So, I decided to go there on a Saturday instead.


The concreted retro trail is approximately 120m long. There is an exercise station at every 20 meters. I couldn’t really call them equipments in a modern sense, except maybe for the monkey bars. Rather, they are small items placed on soft surface to help those who complete the trail to do a particular exercise, like hopping over a log or walking a plank for balance. There is even a two train monorail that was a popular feature in the 90’s parks. Unlike modern outside exercise equipments these items are not designed to actively aid with the exercise itself. Rather they are there to provide a platform for a movement or action. However, similarly to modern trails, a good trainer or physiotherapist can do a lot in guiding people to do a right exercise with the help of a particular station to enhance and keep their physical abilities in good shape longer. The difference is that the new equipment and playgrounds are designed to enthusiastically help to attain results. It is a further developed concept from what is provided here that applies the modern efficiency approach to sports and recreation standards. The new playground equipment comes complete with the research results about how efficient they are in aiding the exerciser’s goals.


Yet, I had a very good half an hour walking down the trail and trying all the stations and so did the few families, I did encounter. I am quite convinced, though that with some deep analysis of what is needed and suitable for particularly set aims, we will be able to develop a suitable activity area for both young and old to have professionally guided activity groups that really enhance our physical wellbeing.

Visiting Limestone Park, Fitness Path and Nodes in Ipswich

From the concept of the Senior Park to the community recreational health through walking at a park



It is interesting what can be found if one pays attention to detail. Not that I say, I do. For example not before a PlayWorld, play equipment representative, from Western Australia, had a telephone conversation about the concept of LifeTrail with me last week, did I know that 15 minutes down the road where I live, in the Limestone Park, in Ipswich, there actually is one. This is how it works in reality.

One is alerted to something through media, like I was impressed by the worldwide media coverage of the opening of the London Senior Park at Hyde Park. I was inspired by the idea. It fits with the development of services desperately needed in my own community and within the framework of the services provided by the organisation I work for. I was able to visit the London Senior Park on my trip to Europe and I was lucky enough to speak with the park project manager (see my previous posting on my visit there in July). From there on, I have found that there are many different solutions that have been realised by many countries, councils and places in order to get the public noticing that healthy living and regular physical exercise should be at the forefront of their mind. From being inspired by an idea, there is still a long way to actual regular exercise. For example Lappset (also introduced by a previous posting) playground equipment for seniors was developed in Spain and is manufactured in Finland. PlayWorld is an American invention. LifeTrail consists of low impact exercise stations that can be organised along a pathway for people to stop to use at their own leisure while walking at a park or a provided area. The stations are especially suitable for people with moderate exercise in mind and those who are over 65. The exercise equipment nodes are mainly meant for adult use.

I knew that there is an exercise node at the Limestone Park in Ipswich. My son regularly bikes past it and has taken me there after I became interested in the Senior Park concept but I was unaware that these nodes are part of a larger LifeTrail setup. They are not detectable through Google Maps satellite pictures, not yet at least. Last Saturday my daughter and I went to investigate.

I parked near the node I know exists and went to take pictures. From there I could see another node in the distance. Afterwards I found yet another one. These nodes are connected by a concreted pathway which is suitable for a wheelchair, if needed. I also found a parking place near the presumed start to the LifeTrail with five stations. My daughter, who had left her wheelchair home, had a hard time waking, and the slight slope of the path stoped her way completely. Luckily there are some benched provided in each node, so I could walk by myself while she sat and waited.

I talked to a woman who parked next to our car asking her if she used the stations while walking. “No”, she said. But she told me that the Ipswich Hospital walking group uses them in early mornings and that she knows they are well used by others. On a Saturday afternoon, the pathway was relatively empty, just a couple of families. The sporting ground was in use, though.

Limestone Park is a nice place to visit. It is a large area, well suited for the LifeTrail setup. I was quite impressed by it. I am quite prepared to add the visiting to the park to my list of suitable picnic areas. I could walk there quite happily. Taking my daughter, who is in a wheelchair, to the park would be a bit more difficult as I would need to push her wheelchair along the pathways and up the slopes. I also noticed that the material the stations are made of is plastic. Although high standard and able to stand the weather, ecologically thinking some re-designing could be used there. All in all, I am very happy to have found such a remarkable setup near home. The arrangement is a wonderful sports and recreational initiative by the Ipswich City Council, Sports and Recreation and the Qld Government.

Further Discussion on the Senior Park Concept and Its Relation to Community Capacity Building

International Perspectives

Immediately after posting the Senior Park at Hyde Park report on my blog I got a few interesting emails as comments from people both from Finland and in Australia.

From Finland I got an email saying how interesting this kind of concept is, even though the person had not thought about it before. Next, I got a link to ‘Iltalehti’ and ‘Tamperalainen’ (a local paper) articles which were describing the process of building the first Senior Park or Play Area in Tampere, Norrköping Park.

This has led me to further think about the Senior Park in relation to the community capacity building. It is not such a simple concept after all or in any way a 'one fits all' kind of concept.

In the Tamperelainen article the Principal Park Ranger Timo Koski comments on the Senior Park equipment. The use of equipment is aimed at getting results. “Besides enhancing the muscle condition”, Koski explains, “the equipment is designed to specifically improve coordination and balance.” He also expressly states that the equipment is for the use of all age groups. No restrictions there.

When discussing the Senior Park concept with Emily at Hyde Park, her comments were in relation to the atmosphere and the heritage the senior park would carry as part of the historically defined recreation area in London. The most striking thing there is the deck chairs which on a sunny day are filled with people enjoying the sun and casing over the lake. In my opinion they have also amicably realized their prior stated aims.

In Tampere, although the ‘Iltalehti’ uses the word ‘leikkipuisto’ as reference to children’s play which could work against the concept in older people’s minds as it is a bit degrading, the focus is on results. The park will even have a fitted rail along the edges to enable the walking practice for those people recovering from stroke or other kind of injuries.

The focus on results is a familiar concept to me in relation to HUR-gym equipment (also Finnish) and their use in aged care facilities across the world. The goal there is to improve the muscle condition for the elderly to allow a normal lifestyle as long as possible. The results are very good and often help the elderly to stay at home for much longer period and so save public funds in relation to unnecessary hospital or nursing home intake.

In the Finnish model of Senior Park (or Spanish as the Lappset concept of senior play areas was designed in Barcelona according to the Lappset Australian representative) there is no particular social focus in opposition to Hyde Park. It is not stated if there are any benches there. This does not mean that there wouldn’t be some.

The next contradiction is low impact and low visibility. The equipment in the Finnish model is colourful in opposition to Hyde Park gray look. On the other hand the enclosure in Hyde Park is surrounded by beautifully kept flowers and hedges and so creates a warm and cosy atmosphere. The Lappset equipment, on the other hand calls for an adventurer to try them on.

Some of the Australian people, who have commented, have promised pictures from their areas, where equipment is laid out in parks. I am hoping there will be more talk about this in the future.

As in what suits our community in Jimboomba or Logan, the discussion is just starting. I am hoping the thoughts presented here and the general information about the subject will help us desire on an initiative that enhances our community and works to improve our services.

Links:

http://www.tamperelainen.fi/Uutiset/Paikallisuutiset/Paauutiset/Lasten-leikkipuiston-valineita-Ei-tassa-kiipeilevat-vanhukset?sms_ss=email

http://www.iltalehti.fi/uutiset/2010072212076504_uu.shtml

The Senior Park at Hyde Park in London

A few weeks ago (June 2010), a new ‘Play Park Area’ opened in London at Hyde Park. The park is specifically targeted for the use of older people, those who are 60 years and older. The opening of the Park was very well covered in the media around the world.




Immediately upon reading some articles about the Senior Park as a concept I became very curious and wanted to investigate it further for the benefit of my own community. If the concept would be suitable, I thought, we could consider a similar kind of project in Australia. The weather in Queensland certainly is right for outside activities around the year. A Play Park Area like that could be an ideal addition to a Community Care Centre which does not have space enough for an indoor gym but is suitably positioned next to a park and secure enough to run activity programs for older people, including toilet facilities and a possibility of a cafe.


I emailed the Royal Parks in London and acquired an appointment with Emily, who had managed the Senior Park Project for the Royal Parks in London. She told me about the project as follows:


The aim of the design and construction of the Play Area according to the ‘Older People’s Play Area, Design and Access Statement’ was to “provide the greatest health benefit and ease of access while creating as little visual impact upon the surrounding landscape as possible.”




Some issues the project management has considered:

The Senior Park had to
- be in a secure place to allow the privacy and the safety of the equipment
- the park needed to be near a pavillion with a cafe, a covered area and the toilet facilities
- besides the activity element a social element had to be considered
- the set up of the park had to be specifically considered for older people’s comfort
- low impact equipment had to be chosen
- low visibility had to be considered for safety and heritage reasons


The Senior Park is situated in an enclosing with the Tennis Courts and the Lawn Bowling. The only entrance is through a Pavillion with toilets and cafe. It is enclosed by lovely gardens.






The setup of the Play Area is in a circular form. There are six low impact equipments situated in a circle, with three benches for social interaction. It is very easy to move around the circle between the equipment. The Park is enclosed with hedges for privacy and low visibility reasons.


The only thing Emily saw as a possible issue was that there is a children’s play area quite near. The equipment is not suitable for children under 15 years. There have been some issues of some equipment breaking down. It could possibly be due to usage by children.





The difference between the Trim Trail setup and the Senior Park setup for outdoor play area

I was really interested in what the difference is between just having gym equipment in a park and the concept of the Senior Park. Emily said that it is mainly the setup of the equipment where the social angle has to be taken into account; that the park is provided with benches for the possibility of socialisation. The other difference is in the circulars setup that enables easy access to the equipment. The visitors do not need to walk between the equipment like with the trim trail.


This is a gym equipment area at Leyton, London, with rock climbing and a circular Trim Trail setup for vigorous usage. My son’s comment on this was that he never needed to be a member of a gym as he could go to this area and exercise as much as he wanted to on a daily basis during the summer months.




Also, mark how people have added weights to some equipment to get more out of them. Also the visibility is to be considered. Here all the equipment are green and create much more visibility although still less than children's play areas which are real high visibility areas.









Some links on the net about the opening of the Senior Park:


http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,5642453,00.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8506302.stm

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23835771-playground-helps-elderly-to-shed-the-grey-pounds.do