PENSIONER Jean Draper-Jones was in so much pain she could not even walk up the stairs of her home. But now she has a new lease of life thanks to an exercise programme.

Jean daily faces a daunting set of debilitating health complaints ranging from diabetes to rheumatism and osteoporosis, but that has not stopped the 71-year-old from fighting to get fit.

She is one of a growing number of people in Worcester to benefit from a cutting-edge 13-week programme which enables GPs to recommend patients for diet and exercise programmes at local leisure centres.

She learned about the programme from a nurse at her doctor's surgery - Haresfield House in Newtown Road. Now the 13-week scheme at Nunnery Wood Sports Complex is over she is determined to keep the momentum going.

She has even invested in a walking machine so she can keep fit at home.

The benefits of the exercise recommendation programme, run by Worcester City Council in partnership with Worcestershire Primary Care Trust and Sports Partnership Herefordshire and Worcestershire, have been immense for Jean.

She has suffered from polymyalgia rheumatica - which causes pains, stiffness and tenderness in large muscles - for the last two years and the steroids she was taking to treat the condition made her put on three-and-a-half stone (more than 22kg).

Jean, of Barnes Way, off Bath Road, Worcester, said: "I was in a terrible rut. I was in so much pain, I couldn't walk. I was having trouble even crawling up and down stairs. I feel much better now - I can get up and down the stairs now when before I struggled.

"Before the programme, I couldn't walk for longer than a few minutes, my muscles and bones hurt, and I rarely bothered to go upstairs in my own house. I now regularly walk more than 7,000 steps a day, my sugar levels have dropped and my blood pressure is down on average by 15 points. Most importantly, I have lost 11 pounds (5kg) in weight, which I never thought I could achieve on my own."

She has since managed to lose more than a stone (6.4kg) after keeping the momentum going once the pilot programme finished.

Harry Amos, of Chelmsford Drive, Worcester, said his life had been transformed by the programme - and now it is over he is determined to join a gym after catching the fitness bug.

The 55-year-old, who was off work for several months with stress, said he was astonished how much he had benefited from a tailor-made fitness programme, including food and exercise diaries and a free pedometer.

The weekly classes at Nunnery Wood sports centre consisted of exercise, advice on health issues such as nutrition and stress, relaxation techniques and group work.

Harry, who suffers from high blood pressure and migraines, was at a very low point when he saw a poster for the exercise recommendation programme in his doctor's waiting room and asked if he could take part.

He said: "I didn't want to leave the house. I couldn't bring myself to speak to people and I couldn't tie my own shoelaces as it made me dizzy. I hadn't done any exercise for seven months, and I was having numerous dizzy spells and at least two migraines a week."

Harry's own physical and mental health was suffering and so was his wife's, so he knew he had to do something. At his first session, he was relieved to find there were other people with similar problems.

He has now radically changed his lifestyle and walks to work rather than taking the car, Harry, who admitted he did almost no exercise before the programme, said: "I now walk on average 9,500 steps a day, I no longer get headaches or dizzy spells, my blood pressure has come down, I don't have the aches and pains I used to have and I can now tie my own shoelaces without fear of passing out. The programme has changed my diet, the way I buy my food, my physical activity levels and body shape, my attitude to achieving goals and my outlook on life."

Harry has now changed what he eats dramatically, cutting unhealthy items such as cakes, sweets, junk food and red meat out of his daily diet, and eating more fresh fruit and vegetables.

How to get involved

The programme is by GP referral only. Now the pilot is finished the scheme will be rolled out across Worcester at Nunnery Wood Sports Complex, St John's Sports Centre and Perdiswell Leisure Centre with outreach in Warndon from April.

For more information, contact Peter MacKenzie-Shaw, sports development officer for Worcester City Council, on 01905 722317.