Move To Heal: how movement, therapy and community support long term recovery

Move To Heal is a community wellness program in the United States that brings together free group workouts, mental health counseling, nutrition support and peer connection to help people recover from addiction, trauma, anxiety, depression and other life challenges.

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Featured on ’s Good at Heart podcast with host Randye Kaye, co-founder and licensed therapist Allie Hershman explains how the program is designed around one idea: when you combine movement, therapy and community, you give people a powerful path to long term recovery rather than a quick fix.

Today, Move To Heal runs across four states and welcomes between 2,500 and 3,000 participants every month. 

1. What is Move To Heal?

Move To Heal is built on a simple structure that makes it feel more like a welcoming community than a clinical service:

• A free group workout suitable for all fitness levels
  
  

• A guided support meeting immediately after the workout
  
  

• Optional one-to-one therapy with a licensed therapist
  
  

• A 16-week nutrition program to support healthier daily habits
  
  

• Subsidised gym memberships at some partner locations
  
  

The organization partners with local gyms in Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Florida to host its sessions, using spaces such as CrossFit boxes and Orangetheory studios that already have a strong group training culture.

Crucially, every part of the program is either free or heavily subsidised, so cost does not become another barrier for people who already have a lot to carry.

2. The story behind Move To Heal

Move To Heal was created by three people whose lives all intersect at the point where mental health and physical health meet:

• Allie Hershman is a licensed therapist who wrote her graduate thesis on how movement can help reduce anxiety and depression.
  
  

• Her father, Ethan, has more than 30 years in recovery from drugs and alcohol, and found that training regularly, attending therapy and improving his nutrition were central to staying sober.
  
  

• Co-founder Colleen Delaney brings deep experience in fitness and coaching.

They took their lived experience and professional expertise and asked a simple question: What if all of this support existed in one place? The answer became Move To Heal, a program designed to merge mental health and physical health rather than treating them as separate worlds.

Allie often says that if even one person is positively impacted by a Move To Heal session, the team has done its job. That mindset explains why the program continues to grow while remaining grounded in empathy and lived experience.

3. Inside a Move To Heal session

A typical Move To Heal session is intentionally structured so that anyone can walk in, even if they have not trained in years.

1. Inclusive workout

   • The session starts with a workout that can be scaled for every fitness level.
     
     

   • Whether you are an experienced gym-goer or someone who feels nervous simply walking into a gym, coaches adapt the exercises so you can participate safely.
     
     

2. Support meeting
   
   

   • After the workout, everyone sits together for a facilitated support meeting.
     
     

   • The group explores topics that many people can relate to: coping with grief, managing anxiety, rebuilding trust, or staying sober one day at a time.
     
     

3. A genuinely safe space
   
   

   • People in the room might include someone with decades in recovery, a family grieving a loved one lost to overdose, and others living with anxiety or depression.
     
     

   • What they share is the desire for a safe, non-judgmental space where movement and conversation both count as healing work.
     
     

This combination reflects what growing scientific evidence tells us: structured physical activity can reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety, especially when it is part of a broader support system.

Large umbrella reviews and meta-analyses show that exercise based interventions meaningfully improve mood and psychological distress, and can sit alongside traditional treatments for many people.

If you enjoy training in a group setting, you will see similar themes in how GymNation group fitness classes are designed to build both physical fitness and social connection.

4. Who Move To Heal serves – and where

Move To Heal is open to anyone facing mental health challenges, addiction, depression, anxiety, grief or other difficult life experiences, not only to people already in a formal recovery program.

The program currently:

• Operates across Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Florida
  
  

• Runs at partner gyms that already offer group training formats
  
  

• Welcomes 2,500 to 3,000 people every month across its locations
  
  

Move To Heal also runs weekly sessions on college campuses, including Sacred Heart University and the University of Rhode Island, giving students, faculty and staff access to regular workouts and meetings at a time of life that can feel especially vulnerable.

5. Accessibility, cost and how people join

One of the most striking aspects of Move To Heal is how low the barrier to entry is:

• There is no need to pre-register or sign up in advance.
  
  

• People can check locations and times at movetohealct.org, then simply turn up.
  
  

• The workout and support meeting are completely free.
  
  

• Participants can access free individual therapy and a free 16-week nutrition program.
  
  

• In some locations, gym memberships are subsidised so that people can keep training outside the weekly sessions.
  
  

For individuals who may not have transport, stable income or reliable insurance, this kind of accessibility can be the difference between getting help and staying isolated.

6. How Move To Heal is funded and supported

Behind the scenes, Move To Heal is powered by community generosity:

• The program relies on donations to fund its free services.
  
  

• Partner gyms host fundraising events and charity workouts throughout the year.
  
  

• Social media plays a big role, with the team encouraging people to share posts, invite friends and spread the word to anyone who might need help.
  
  

Financial support keeps the therapy and nutrition programs running. Just as importantly, awareness helps people who feel alone realise that there is a place where they can move, talk and be heard without judgment.

7. Key lessons from Move To Heal for any gym or wellness community

Move To Heal reflects several principles that any gym, recovery group or wellness community can learn from: 

1. Treat body and mind together
   
   Programs that blend movement with emotional support often feel more effective and more sustainable than “body only” or “mind only” approaches.
   
   

2. Make spaces genuinely inclusive
   
   Scaling workouts, offering clear guidance and normalising all fitness levels makes it far easier for beginners, older adults or people returning after illness or addiction to join.
   
   

3. Build community, not just classes
   
   The support meeting is just as important as the workout. Connection, eye contact, shared stories and simple gestures of encouragement are part of the therapy.
   
   If you are training at a GymNation club, you can find similar benefits through run clubs or social training groups that emphasise both performance and mental health.
   
   

4. Lower the financial barrier where possible
   
   Free or subsidised access, especially in partnership with local gyms, opens the door to people who might otherwise never step into a wellness space.
   
   

5. See exercise as a complement, not a replacement, for care
   
   Exercise can powerfully support mental health, but it does not replace professional medical care. Anyone living with severe depression, suicidal thoughts or complex trauma should seek help from licensed mental health professionals or local crisis services.
   
   

If you are inspired by the Move To Heal model, look for programs in your area that combine movement with support groups or therapy.

You can also build your own routine by pairing regular workouts at a local gym with counselling or peer support, using resources such as the GymNation Fitness Hub for training guidance and education.

Source:  .org

The opinions shared in the blog articles are solely those of the respective authors and may not represent the perspectives of GymNation or any member of the GymNation team.