Over 60s' Keep Fit

Over 60s' Keep Fit

Hello and welcome to the Over 60s' Keep Fit website.  My name's Michael and I'm your fitness instructor ... that's a picture of me on the right.

You'll find all the information you need here. You'll also find some useful resources to help you build your fitness.

It's all about FUNCTIONAL FITNESS ... the fitness you need to live a long, active and enjoyable life well into your later years.

About the activities:

Trainers like me who specialise in working with older folk talk about ADL. That stands for Activities of Daily Living. That includes things like being strong enough to lift a bag of dog food into the car and being able to get down onto the floor and back up again. And, of course, you need to be able to open bottles and jars and walk up a couple of flights of stairs.

You'll find that many of the exercises mimic Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and come naturally. Some will take you back to the sort of things you did at primary school! And a few are adaptations of gym exercises, modified to take account of creaky knees and stiff joints. All of them work on (i) building the capacity to enjoy life more and for longer and (ii) to maintain independence.

About the classes:

These classes are suitable for you if you are aged 60+ (or even a tad under 60) no matter what your fitness level. All the exercises have regressions (easier options) and progressions (more challenging options) so you can pick and choose the correct level for yourself. No matter whether you are deconditioned or already super-fit, you'll find that you get the workout you want.

To repeat, the classes are based on the idea of FUNCTIONAL FITNESS ... getting and staying fit enough to lead a full, active life well into old age.

Variety:

Every class starts and ends with a similar Warm-Up and Cool-Down. But we have a different focus each month. Every class is a whole-body workout, but we'll focus on your back one month (for improved posture), legs another month (for improved walking and agility), another month it will be upper-body strength (for improved carrying, lifting , pushing and pulling)  etc.

There are TWO aspects to fitness:

• Health-Related Fitness - how aerobically fit, strong and flexible you are

• Skills-Related Fitness - how quick, agile and graceful you are.

The classes address both of these.

Each class consists of 5 sections:

• Warm up - to get your muscles warm and to loosen and lubricate your joints.

• Aerobics - to get your heart rate raised a little, to tone muscles and improve dynamic balance.

• Strength - to strengthen muscles to make everything you do a little easier.

• Balance and Agility - to keep you steady and help you recover from stumbles and prevent falls.

• Flexibility - to help with bending down, twisting and reaching up.

Each section is a full-body workout and strengthens your legs, mid-section and upper-body.

Poor Balance?

All exercises can be done using a chair for support should you need it. Also, many of the exercises can be done seated and you still get the same benefits.

Homeworkout

There is a homeworkout sheet handed out every month so you get exercises to do at home a couple of times a week to consolidate your fitness.