In 2011, biking advocates from the non-profit group Gearing Up convinced prison administrators to let them bring in bikes to teach indoor cycling to the incarcerated women of Riverside Correctional Facility in Philadelphia. Founder Kristin Gavin says that she had mentored ex-offenders out in the community before and that every time she had conversations with women they always complained of gaining weight since the first time they entered the facility. Then she would ask them how long they were in prison and she says they'd usually respond, "six months."
This is what drove Gavin to make sure the women stay fit while they're in the facility. The Department of Justice surveyed the health of state and federal inmates in 2012 and found that women are more likely than men to be obese. The gym at Riverside Correctional Facility in Philadelphia is through the metal detector, two heavy doors and down the hall. There's a basketball court like one you'd see at any high school, except there's a corrections officer on guard near the three-point line. Sixteen stationary bikes are set up in a half circle in the corner.
When Health.com visited the facility, another inmate, Lakiesha Montgomery, 32, from Philadelphia, was peddling fast and singing along to Nicki Minaj's "Fly" on bike number 2. Montgomery said she spends time in the prison yard most days but doesn't get much exercise there. The outside is not a real outside, it's like a small garage. They have a basketball court there, but I don't play basketball. There a lot of people that come out so there's no room to really jog or walk. It's like you sit out to just get some air," she added. Montgomery was charged with assault this year, and has been in county jail for about six months. She has arm tattoos and a sprinkle of freckles across her nose. She also has high cholesterol.
Montgomery enjoys attending the spin class, she says it's something to do for now. "It keeps away the frustration of being locked up, it helps you get through," she added.
