Local college student creates full weightlifting routine for those in wheelchairs

“I’ve been weightlifting now for roughly like four years,” said Howell. “One of my buddies, he’d been prompting me for a few months when were juniors in high school to get going to the gym. And after I had ended a relationship with somebody, he kind of used it to poke me a little more ... and eventually I caved.”

After the accident, Howell had trouble getting back into this hobby — he found little resources for wheelchair users who wanted to lift weights.

“I don’t want to put any bad credit or a bad name to OSU [Ohio State University] because they have an amazing team of therapists,” said Howell. “But they are considered the leading spinal recovery facility in the state, and that’s where I went. And even in consulting with them, like, they couldn’t really offer much as far as getting into weightlifting.”

Howell even struggled to find a routine online which would encompass everything which goes into a workout.

“Missing some of that stuff is really important because if you want an equal, balanced, healthy build and you’re only doing little bits and pieces, you’re not really getting that full spectrum,” said Howell. “And that can actually cause more issues than do good.”

While there are gyms specifically designed for those with disabilities, such as the ESPY Adaptive Sports Complex in Franklin, locations like these can be rare.

“To the people that have those options, I would absolutely recommend them because I mean, they’re so much easier,” said Howell. “However, those are very scarce and usually only are in like very big cities.”

With his background in weightlifting, Howell decided to create his own routine — one that can be performed at most gyms without specialized equipment. To achieve this, he had to retool many of the exercises to be comfortable and safe in a wheelchair.

Credit: Contributed

Credit: Contributed

“Whether you’re standing or seated in a bicep curl, the only difference is the wheel,” said Howell. “Small things like that weren’t super big. But then for other things, like ‘How do you do a back row?’ which is a pulling motion, when you don’t have abs and nothing to really position yourself to do it well, how do you incorporate that?”

According to Howell, the first step of this process was “understanding the body mechanics of [the exercises,] the actual movements and how they interacted directly with the muscles that you are trying to hit.”

In late 2025, Howell began sharing videos of these exercises online under the name One and All Fitness.

Howell recommends doing these workouts in a four-day routine, similar to the popular push/pull and Arnold splits. This will entail two workout days, followed by two rest days, for a total of approximately four exercise days per week.

While this workout can mostly be done independently, there are some tasks which will require assistance.

“There are a couple things that kind of can still be challenging,” said Howell. “Like if there’s a cable machine that’s out of reach, you can’t really do much about that.”

While he is brainstorming potential fixes for the future, in cases like those, Howell recommends people ask their fellow gym goers for help.

He also spoke about plans to create videos designed for people with other types of disabilities.

“One thing I am going to discuss later in my content is the people that aren’t quite as able-bodied,” said Howell. “Some people don’t have full function of their hands, some people can’t grip equipment very hard. So for those people, I’m going to discuss different routes.”

Specifically, Howell recommends hook accessories, which can be strapped to a weightlifter’s wrist to provide support.

Alongside the videos, Howell has been in contact with several local organizations and therapy firms to get the word out, as well as to help further refine the routine.

For more information, check out One and All Fitness on Tiktok and Youtube.