In order to reduce the risk of a fall, a person must first be assessed in order to know what exercises will help her prevent a fall from happening. Sure, walking is a wonderful way to keep fit. There’s no doubt that following along with your favorite senior exercise video several times a week will help keep your body limber and doing seated strengthening exercises will keep your muscles strong.  It’s been proven; consistent exercise is the number one way to reduce the risk of an accidental fall….way to Take 5 to Exercise!!!

But each of us ages differently.  Due to our unique life experiences, we are all facing different physical challenges and as a result, the exercise program that will help one person remain independent can be entirely different from his/her neighbor’s routine.   The Fullerton Advanced Balance (FAB) scale is a unique 10-item test that helps identify possible impairments and weakness unique to each person.

I have been out testing older adults in my community the past two weeks and the results are amazing.  Each person scored differently and everyone was amazed at the difficulty of what appeared to be a simple test. The FAB test items challenge each of the body systems involved in balance, making the participant instantly aware of a weakness.

Every group I worked with was hungry for the multi-sensory training that I am qualified to teach.  As I briefly educated them about some of the FallProof training techniques, their eyes lit up.  These people want to learn how to improve their balance and mobility skills.  Unfortunately, I am busy with my graduate studies so I am currently unable to offer the intensive 12-week FallProof (TM) program to community residents.  However, I gathered some vital baseline data, referred them to the appropriate medical and/or fitness resources and will be returning to retest in 3-4 months.

My Therapeutic Recreation Specialist internship with the Cordova Senior center will be when and where I begin to offer FallProof training to Sacramento residents.  Summer 2010.  We will be ready for Fall Prevention week next year!

All Content Copyright © 2007-2010, Take 5 to Exercise.

It’s official:  September 21-September 25 is Fall Prevention week!  As the Fall Prevention lady, I am out and about in the community each day this week to increase awareness about the risk of accidental falls and what people can do to minimize that risk.  For instance, following a consistent physical activity program is one of the best things a person can to do remain strong and upright.

In addition to regularly engaging in fall prevention exercises, a person should practice her balance skills.  As balance and mobility specialist, I am out in the community conducting the Fullerton Advanced Balance scale in hopes of identifying adults who are moderate to high risk of falling BEFORE they fall.  I have been testing the ladies at the Belle Cooledge and South Natomas community centers and they are loving it!  These ladies already walk and regularly engage in both standing and seated exercise routines but now they are learning the importance of training the balance systems.

Thursday I will be testing older adults in Grass Valley at the Nevada county Falls Coalition Fall Prevention week celebration.  I am super excited about that because the falls coalition also receives grant money from the Archstone foundation, who supports Dr. Debra Rose’s Center for Successful Aging FallProof program.  I know they will love the FAB testing as it’s a real eye opener about the integrity of your balance systems.

Finally this week, I will be at the West Sacramento senior center to do some FAB testing.  They are an active center and very receptive to new, scientifically proven methods of reducing the risk of falls.  The Fullerton Advanced Balance scale was designed for community dwelling adults who are not even aware of the risk of a fall.   Some people think falls happen to “old people” and they don’t have to worry about ‘falling’ since they walk and do seated exercises each week.

WRONG!  Accidents can happen to anyone, including a fall.  Take 5 to Exercise each day and get your balance systems checked!  Look for a local certified balance and mobility instructor in your community and request a FAB screening.  I’m out and about!  Happy Fall Prevention Week.

All Content Copyright © 2007-2010, Take 5 to Exercise.

As a certified personal fitness trainer who works with clients of all ages and of all physical abilities, I am frustrated by the lack of a governing body that oversees the fundamentals of practicing trainers. The reason I am so perturbed by this is what I saw when I observed a fitness class at an active senior center in my area. As a fall risk reduction exercise instructor, I want to be able to refer older adults to decent classes that are offered locally.

This particular instructor spent a disgusting amount of time working the shoulders. The shoulder is not only the most flexible joint in the body but also the most likely to be injured. This woman had the participants doing side and front raises using resistance bands that were not appropriate for shoulder work. Purple and grey bands are good for lower body work but are too difficult (for me) for shoulder and upper body work in the full range of motion. She even commented how her shoulders were hurting as she did the front raises.  The reason her shoulders hurt was because she was doing them incorrectly. OUCH.

I cringed when I watched the instructor begin to do squats.  Knees were shooting out over toes everywhere. DOUBLE OUCH. No wonder older adults think they can’t do squats, they haven’t been properly instructed how. Improper function results in injury. This woman didn’t have a clue how to squat and she was perpetuating the cycle of pain and lack of movement.

This killed me. No, it outraged me. There is no governing body that checks up on these “certified” trainers and how they practice. The result is thousands of bad experiences, unnecessary injuries, and wasted efforts. The older I get, the more I value my time and my effort. I consider the older adults whom I strive to help and if they have one bad experience, they might give up on the message: it’s never too late to benefit from consistent activity; when the consistent activity is done correctly. In my seated exercise routines, I constantly cue the viewer how to breathe correctly, what muscle to be concentrating on during each movement, and to stop if they feel pain.

I do not claim to know it all or to have all the right answers. Quite the contrary, I am a person who is forever seeking more wisdom, more knowledge, more insight into the movement of the human body, especially corrective exercise techniques. I want to know how can I help a person the most? If I observe an inefficient movement pattern, I feel it is my obligation as a certified health and fitness professional to be able to prepare an effective program that will help them move easier, with less pain.

Passionate about working with older adults, I see myself as a protector of the vulnerable. I am a consumer advocate. I want people to get the best training possible but mostly, I do not want people to get hurt. I realize budget cuts or the lack of a budget result in a lack of qualified trainers and instructors working with the older population. I am not discounting the good intention of the thousands of instructors who have stepped up to the plate to fill a need but who is regulating these classes?

Times have changed and there is more knowledge about correct form, sequence and type of exercise that is appropriate for older adults. Effective classes are more than shoulder rolls, arm raises and rubber bands. There is a sequence that classes should follow:

· Warm up

· Balance work

· Leg strength

· Chest/Back

· Shoulders

· Arms

· Core

· Cool down

In the meantime, please be careful. It may be my calling to help establish a regulating body that implements ‘surprise visits’ to senior fitness classes everywhere. Each instructor should be “graded” on principles, techniques and overall safety. I am deeply disturbed that unqualified instructors are not only causing injury but also shaping people’s attitudes about exercise which ultimately increases the risk of an accidental fall.

All Content Copyright © 2007-2010, Take 5 to Exercise.