Over the Christmas holidays, I took the opportunity to volunteer my services and time as a movement instructor at the Anderson County Senior Citizen Center in Lawrenceburg, KY. I met with the center director to discuss implementing a light exercise course for the participants to offer the experience of having an activity exclusively designed for their needs. I now call this program The Déjà-Fit: FitnessWise Program for seniors. The program was specifically designed for the Anderson County Senior Citizen Center to provide physical activities for seniors and to initiate the awareness of healthier lifestyles through light fitness movements.
Two important factors which made this program a success were my assessments and the ability to gain the trust of the attendants. I did an assessment of each possible participant with the assistance of the director to find out any medical conditions or movement limitations which could cause complications for the seniors. Based on each person’s file, I decided to use sedentary exercises which permitted even the less mobile person to participate. The primary focus of the program was about inclusion, allowing each person to contribute what they were able to without fear. The age group ranged from 75 – 94 years and they were fantastic.
The music selection was also a key factor in gaining the interest of the participants. I chose music which was appropriate for their age group and preferences. For the first session, I took a chance and brought a few “jazzy tunes” such as Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald singing Cole Porter, and to my luck, they were perfect selections. The group began with 5 people and by the end of the session, I had about 15. The activities that were performed were mainly based on imitation. Each person took a turn to create a movement and the others (including myself) had to follow. This type of activity stimulated their minds to think and respond quickly. Everyone was informed that they were only required to perform what they were physically able to do. This, I believe, created a sense of trust between me and the seniors for the assurance that they would be in “safe” hands.
Following the “light exercise” portion of the program, the seniors had the opportunity to express their feelings and to reflect on their experiences during the course. This, I thought was a great way not only to learn about the participants but they also had the chance to learn more about me. In addition, I found that encouraging the seniors to set realistic goals which they could obtain during the course of the class was an excellent memory stimulant; it also added a since of value to what they were achieving in the class.
Although the classes lasted for no more than 4 weeks, I know that this will be an experience that I will always remember. I not only developed a fantastic program for a wonderful group of people, I also learned the beauty of giving and truly sharing myself with people whose only desire was to feel that they were important and appreciated. Encounters like these always reaffirm the value of my career choice and the importance of how giving a little bit of my time to others can often make a big impact.
For further information on The Déjà-Fit: FitnessWise Program please visit:
http://deja-fit.com/fitnesswise.html
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3 comments:
I read with interest your use of contemporary music (Relative to the Clients age). I think this is a fantastic way of keeping the sessions interesting for people, both old and young!...Well done...JJ
Great work.
Very interesting article. I rarely read articles about fitness geared towards the seniors. This is something I can have my parents do to motivate them to take fitness seriously. That bit about the music selection, I believe, is quite an important factor.
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