As we get older, we experience a variety of life changes. While these life changes can be either positive or negative, one constant is our bodies go through all of it with us. One of the most common changes people experience is a loss of muscle strength, endurance, balance, and coordination. Enter Resilient Fitness!
In March 2022, Resilient Fitness (RF) launched its inaugural “Balance & Power” (B&P) class. The class is led by Coach Karina, who has a background as both a personal trainer and a licensed physical therapist assistant. The goal with B&P was to attract older adults who wanted to work on improving their balance and strength in a safe and controlled environment. The class incorporates various balance strategies, including promoting both static (non-moving) and dynamic (moving) balance, coordination, strength training, and endurance activities.
First, we began by asking each participant what their goals were and used that input to create specific movements to promote functional fitness and balance.
For example, one of our participants, Gloria, has a two-year-old grandson she wants to be able to keep up with, pick up, and put down. So, to help Gloria feel confident in these movements, she has been practicing deadlifts, squats, and dynamic balance activities. Kay, another one of our participants, spends a lot of time in her garden moving bags of soil or bending down to tend to plants. We mimic these movements by teaching Kay how to manage her body during squats, how to lift irregularly shaped objects, and increase her endurance by having her practice moves in a half-kneeling position so she will feel comfortable while kneeling in her garden. Patty, our third and final participant, wanted to be able to go paddleboarding with her family. Patty worked hard on core strengthening, balance, and single-leg strength and after a few weeks, was able to successfully stand and paddle on a paddleboard!
Second, all of our coaches make it a priority to spend time on education. It’s important to be able to safely train for balance, strength, endurance, and coordination, but it’s just as important to understand the why behind it all. Why are we doing this particular exercise? How is this movement going to help me with balance? Every movement we perform in class has a purpose. Your feedback is not only welcome but encouraged. The more participants are able to understand their own body mechanics and how the body works together as a whole to influence balance and coordination, the more empowered they become.
Overall, the class is designed to promote functional fitness; in other words, what movements do you perform on a daily basis? Of those movements, are there any you feel insecure about? These two questions are asked throughout the class in order to create a collaborative program that everyone benefits from. We want to keep our athletes strong and safe at any age!
Our 9 am class is full, but we are currently enrolling for a 10:30 am class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The 10:30 am class will start on June 7th.
If you’re interested in participating in B&P, drop us a line at https://www.resilientfitnesstucson.com/contact or call us at (520) 263-1317.