by Tiff -

SCI Superstar: Lyena Strelkoff

A performance artist since the day she was born, let me introduce you to the special soul that is Lyena Strelkoff.

She would say she’s first and foremost a dancer and actress, and that goes without question, but now days she’s best known for motivational speaking, and she’s becoming one of the most sought after motivational speakers in the country.

From discovering the joy of storytelling when she was in rehab (and finding self confidence she never had before) to developing a one-woman show that toured the country, check out the fascinating story of a woman who’s transformed her talents into a compelling art form aimed at helping the world understand the spinal cord injury experience. Read this entry

by Tiff -

Wheelchair kite-flying (plus a crazy wind trick)

The wind can be one of the most entertaining aspects of nature, and most can agree that one of the best ways to enjoy a windy day is going kiting.  That’s right – good old fashioned kite-flying.

All you need is an open field, a secure way to tie your kite to your wheelchair and a kite of course, and the trouble you can get into is awesome.  Check out these three videos below showing some amazing kite-flying from a wheelchair, as well as a young kid who’s got the right idea with an umbrella. Watch the videos

 

by Tiff -

Podcast 97: Neil Picone – wheelchair bodybuilder

In podcast 97, Neil Picone, an IFBB Pro wheelchair bodybuilder from New Jersey is on the show (he was paralyzed 6 years ago in a motorbike crash), and boy is he awesome. With an upper body that is better than most guys and a sweetheart to boot, this relatively new bodybuilder has an amazing story.

In this episode, Tiffiny and Neil discuss everything from dating and how he gets a lot of stares to his training regimen (and diet) and his plans for 2013. If you’ve ever wanted to sneak a peek inside the world of wheelchair bodybuilding, then this is your chance.

Listen below. Run time is 50 minutes.

No Free Rides is brought to you by Easystand

Links:

– Neil Picone Ifbb Pro on Facebook

– Neil’s bio on Wheelchairbodybuilding.com

[powerpress]

by Tiff -

Green thumbs on wheels

When in a rut, grow stuff. That’s what I say. Growing things has been the zen-moment of humans for centuries, and when you have a spinal cord injury, there’s something even more therapeutic about growing things.

A sense of control, the peace from being enveloped by nature, all the senses are stimulated when you garden. Gotta love it.

Here are four really cool gardening videos for wheelchair-users that show how to do it right and taking care of your plants once they’ve sprouted. Read this entry

by Tiff -

SCI Superstar: Candace Cable

Sometimes we can become incredibly passionate about a certain sport after our injury. This happens with countless people with a SCI, and a few even excel at it beyond their wildest dreams. This has certainly been the case with Candace Cable – a six-time Paralympian in cross-country skiing.

Adapted sports have been “the sun” in Candace’s post-injury life. From being known as a pioneer of wheelchair racing to creating a slew of educational videos for the Reeve foundation, let’s delve into the fearless world of Candace Cable. Read this entry

by Tiff -

A little wheelchair TLC goes a long way

A little TLC can go a long way with a wheelchair. You can’t expect your wheelchair to keep up with you if you don’t treat it right. Just like a shiny sports car, you need to go all out with how you treat your four wheels. If you do, it’ll love you back.

From regularly maintaining your casters to one of the coolest wheelchair wash days ever, check out these three videos that emulate our point to a tee. Read this entry

by Tiff -

SCI Superstar: Nick Scott

Wheelchair Pro bodybuilder, motivational speaker and even a wheelchair ballroom dancer, Nick Scott is without question the global promoter of wheelchair bodybuilding.

It may be a self-given moniker, but it’s hard to disagree. An incomplete T12-L1 injury, Nick is one of the buffest men you’ll ever see with a SCI. Read this entry (with videos)

by Tiff -

Crazy never-before-seen wheelchair tricks

There are wheelchair tricks, and then there are the wheelchair tricks we dig up at SPINALpedia. We’ve profiled some impressive wheelchair tricks before, big tricks like like Aaron “Wheelz” Fotheringham’s 50ft wheelchair jump or quirky tricks like Johnny Hollenstein’s huge portraits he paints with his wheels.

And there are always new videos popping up online. We’ve chosen three of our favorite s that either completely blew us away or tickled us pink. Get ready for three big OMG wheelchair-trick moments.

Our first video literally will make you gasp. It shows the only wheelchair-user stunt cheerleader on the planet doing a routine with his team – WheelchairPS (Partner Stunt) – at the USASF Worlds 2012 .

As they perform, you’ll see Rick, the team member in the wheelchair (he has full upper-body movement) do a majority of the lifts. And needless to say, yeah his upper body is HUGE. Read this entry

by Tiff -

Podcast 96: Annette Hormozian

In podcast 96, Tiffiny is joined by Annette Hormozian, a wheelchair ballroom dancer from California who’s been dancing her entire life, both before and post injury (she was injured 24 years ago when the car she was riding in went off a cliff). Annette grew up doing belly dancing and traditional Assyrian dance, but transitioned to ballroom dance a couple years ago.

In this episode Tiffiny and Annette discuss how she got back into dance and finding her self-esteem after her injury, why dance is an opportunity to erase stereotypes and her recent journey into wheelchair ballroom dancing. She even won 1st place last year at the American DanceWheels Foundation’s 1st Annual Wheelchair Dance Competition (at Cheryl Burke’s Mountain View studio) last year, winning the power wheelchair division.

Annette also shares her secret for keeping her dress out of her wheels while she dances (not easy!), how wheelers can regain their confidence and more importantly, how people interested in wheelchair ballroom dance can try it out themselves.

Listen below. Run time is 55 minutes.

No Free Rides is brought to you by Easystand

Links:

– Visit American Dance Wheels Foundation

– Watch wheelchair ballroom dance videos from American Dance Wheels

[powerpress]