28 Tips instructors need to know to offer AWESOME Senior Fitness classes
1. Greet everyone personally, say your name and learn participants’ names.
2. Offer different levels of classes- one class cannot be adapted to meet all fitness levels
3. Perform a wellness/fitness screening or evaluation prior to beginning any class.
4. Recommend the appropriate class based on your evaluation findings
5. Re-evaluate clients to show progress
6. Give clients a report of the initial evaluation, summarizing your findings and recommendations.
7. Post your credentials
8. Always explain why you are doing an exercise and how they will benefit.
9. Provide detailed class descriptions so patients will know what to expect when they attend class.
10.Offer instruction as to how clients will participate, modify, and adjust the class to meet personal needs and abilities.
11.Make exercise hard and intense enough to show progress
12.Understand clients’ goals and incorporate them into classes.
13.Progress from simple to complex combination of moves, always allowing for the patients to stay at the simple moves if necessary.
14.Remember that choreography, isn’t the goal--improved health is.
15.Use the Borg Scale and talk test to monitor fatigue limits.
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16.Cue visually (use hand gestures) and verbally throughout the class.
17.Keep verbal cues short and concise.
18.Explain why an exercise is relevant, and describe its purpose.
19.Use movement patterns that reinforce agility, balance, and stability.
20.If it’s not too confusing, face the participants as much as possible during class. This helps to promote a personal relationship with the participants.
21.Be sincere, enthusiastic, caring, and compassionate.
22.Have a sense of humor.
23.Make eye contact with each participant at some point during class.
24.Volume and music selection should always be FUN for older adult classes.
25.Encourage members to sing along with the music
26.Personal appearance is not a top motivator in this age group- rather focus on improving quality of life, and time with family and friends.
27.The main goal of participants is to improve fitness, not become a martial arts, dance or yoga expert.
28.Notice and comment on client progress of any sort.
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