Santa Barbara’s Older Adult Fitness Trainer

Fundamentals of older adult fitness development

To be safe and effective you shouldn’t train an older adult like you would a young adult. Older adult fitness requires a constant focus on optimizing risk/benefit, thoughtful and appropriate exercise choices, body-respecting movement techniques and gentle exercise progressions. Older adult fitness should have its own fundamentals based on the physical characteristics and individual requirements and challenges of older adult bodies. Some older adult fitness fundamentals are below and read more about the unique characteristics of aging bodies.

Optimize risk/benefit at all times – an aging body has less margin for error and requires a more thoughtful and conservative exercise approach (read more)
Establish fundamental movement and body control skills before other aspects of fitness and emphasize movement quality and control at all times
Emphasize and work to enhance optimal alignment, posture and balance
Prioritize from-the-hips-down lower body functional development – train your “wheels” and train on your feet whenever possible
Emphasize high-significance exercises that enhance more than one functional quality at a time – I call these “two-fers and three-fers”
Emphasize movement patterns with the most “functional carry-over” – movements which have the greatest positive impact on your daily life, movement ability and individual physical challenges
Demonstrate competence with lower body movement skills using your own body weight before adding external resistance like dumbbells or kettlebells
Encourage steady progress with small “bite-size”, step-by-step movement pattern progressions which are appropriate for your unique body and current ability level

Fundamentals of older adult fitness development:

Optimize risk/benefit at all times – an aging body has less margin for error and requires a more thoughtful and conservative exercise approach (read more)
Establish fundamental movement and body control skills before other aspects of fitness and emphasize movement quality and control at all times
Emphasize and work to enhance optimal alignment, posture and balance
Prioritize from-the-hips-down lower body functional development – train your “wheels” and train on your feet whenever possible
Emphasize high-significance exercises that enhance more than one functional quality at a time – I call these “two-fers and three-fers”
Emphasize movement patterns with the most “functional carry-over” – movements which have the greatest positive impact on your daily life, movement ability and individual physical challenges
Demonstrate competence with lower body movement skills using your own body weight before adding external resistance like dumbbells or kettlebells
Encourage steady progress with small “bite-size”, step-by-step movement pattern progressions which are appropriate for your unique body and current ability level