Not your regular gym: A space for people with special needs to grow stronger

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On gym days, Malcolm Ho is always waiting by the door at home five minutes early. If his father Alex Ho, 59, is not ready, the 30-year-old tells him: “Papa, go already.”

Malcolm, who has Down syndrome, attends NCSF Uplift, a free strength training programme for people with special needs, including those with intellectual disabilities, autism, and physical, hearing or visual impairments.

Exercises are adapted to each participant, who are known as "buddies". “If someone needs more time, more encouragement, or a different approach, that is perfectly fine over here,” said co-founder Chung Tze Khit, 41.

For volunteer trainer Francis Chan, 63, that sometimes means patiently working around a buddy’s mood shifts. If someone is not up for a workout, trainers may try something simpler: “It could be just a dance. Some movement is better than no movement,” said Mr Chan.

NCSF Uplift now supports about 300 buddies with some 500 volunteers from all walks of life. Besides getting stronger and more confident, Mr Ho said Malcolm’s attachment to the gym and its people is unmistakable: “He really treats (the gym) as his home.”

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这段音频由人工智能工具生成。

健身日，马尔科姆·何总是提前五分钟在家门口等着。如果他59岁的父亲亚历克斯·何还没准备好，30岁的他就会说：“爸爸，快去吧。”

患有唐氏综合征的马尔科姆参加了 NCSF Uplift，这是一个为有特殊需要的人（包括智力障碍、自闭症以及身体、听力或视力障碍者）提供的免费力量训练计划。

训练内容会根据每位参与者的情况进行调整，他们被称为“伙伴”。联合创始人钟子吉（41岁）说：“如果有人需要更多的时间、更多的鼓励或不同的方法，在这里完全没问题。”

对于63岁的志愿者教练弗朗西斯·陈来说，这有时意味着要耐心应对伙伴们的情绪波动。如果有人不想锻炼，教练们可能会尝试一些更简单的活动：“可以只是跳个舞。动一动总比不动好，”陈先生说。

NCSF Uplift 目前为约 300 名伙伴提供支持，并有来自各行各业的约 500 名志愿者参与其中。何先生表示，除了身体变得更强壮、更有自信之外，马尔科姆对健身房及其成员的依恋也显而易见：“他真的把（健身房）当成了自己的家。”

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