THE QUICK READ
• Strength , stamina , and flexibility significantly decline after age 55 , but with appropriate training these declines can be reversed
• Despite consistently being listed as a leading fitness trend , many fitness professionals and businesses appear reluctant to embrace training programs for older adults
• Fitness training for mature adults also makes sense from a public health standpoint , as it increases health status and reduces government spend on health conditions
• Fitness professionals may be limiting their own business success by failing to cater to a market that has greater discretionary spending power than younger fitness consumers .
“ What Billy showed is pure resilience and determination ,” says Leigh , “ he was more than capable and many seniors are – if they are coached properly . They want to be challenged .”
I could not agree more . Who would want to be constantly reminded of their ageing and be treated like they are frail and incapable ?
“ How amazing was Dave ?” I ask Leigh as we continue to reminisce about some of our remarkable and sometimes flamboyant senior members . Dave used to come to Leigh ’ s and my classes . I don ’ t think anyone knew exactly how old Dave was , but he was in his seventies , at least . Sadly , Dave recently passed away . I continue , “ It was just remarkable how he travelled all around Sydney to attend ‘ his ’ classes . Just his presence was so inspiring for the other members in the classes .” We miss Dave .
Why is training mature age participants considered so unsexy ?
It may be one of the biggest paradoxes in modern Western life ; we all want to live for as long as we can , in good health , but we keep denying the fact that for this to happen we age . Involuntarily . You can ’ t have one without the other . No matter how hard you try or pretend .
We know that strength , stamina , and flexibility significantly decline after age 55 . We also know that many of these functional losses can be reversed with the correct exercise approach . There is a clear , almost desperate , need for mature age fitness training , as we all try to escape our ageing . Yet the image of mature fitness remains an enormous cliché , especially , ironically , among fitness professionals .
Why is training older people embraced by so few fitness professionals and generally considered so unsexy , when it is so rewarding ? Our senior clients and members give our work an enormous amount of purpose and meaning ; “ The achievements of my mature clients are so gratifying ,” says Leigh . “ One of my clients came in with a fractured hip , this is in my capacity as an Exercise Physiologist . He is now leg pressing around 90kg . When he started , he had no confidence and was questioning everything . It was affecting his mental state . He doesn ’ t need his walking stick anymore and goes for 8km walks every day . This is extremely rewarding .”
Leigh also makes another point , “ This kind of intervention is a significant contribution to health status and the spend on GDP in terms of health conditions . This is making a real dent .”
I can tell by looking at Leigh ’ s face how passionate she is about her work and her clients – she is a woman on a mission .
One of the Top 10 Fitness Trends for 2020
‘ Fitness Programs for Older Adults ’ was named one of the Top 10 Fitness Trends by the ACSM ( American College of Sports Medicine ) in its Worldwide Survey of Fitness Trends for 2020 . It has been ranked in the leading trends since 2017 .
Leigh and I are witnessing this growing trend first-hand . We see it every day . Leigh runs seniors ’ classes on Sydney ’ s Northern Beaches . “ When I started my classes I had a handful of people . I managed to grow these classes to more than 50 participants , pre- COVID . Now , in a COVIDSafe environment , we have had to add more classes to the timetable to cater for this rising need .”
54 | NETWORK SUMMER 2020