If you read my blogs or follow me on Social Media you know I am not one to swear or use expletives to get my point across but for this blog’s title I am literally taking the words right out of my students’ mouth. The idea for this blog came from the Breathwork class I taught last Monday night at The Den Meditation Center…
Although there are natural physiological changes that occur with age, memory loss is neither normal nor a natural process of aging. It is important to take a proactive role in retaining the strength, resiliency, and vitality of the brain. Research has shown that just as the body needs strength-building exercises to maintain muscle strength, so does the brain.
Last year, I received an email from a wonderful woman who lives on the New Jersey Coast. She had read my books and wanted to know if she could fly herself and her 82-year-old stroke survivor husband to Florence Oregon, to train with me. She shard some stories of trainers refusing to work with him and those who did not have the knowledge needed. She also shared a couple stories about physical therapist not wanting to bother with using specific equipment that was needed for him. This is so disappointing. He is now almost 4 years post-stroke and she has still searched out some guidance toward a better recovery for him. It saddens me with all that she has gone through, but I am grateful that I could help, the best I know how. I made some great life time friends.
I am honored that she reached out to me. I am still in “ahh”, by the whole experience. Often stroke survivors and their caregivers do not find the help needed to further their recovery after physical therapy ends. Unfortunately, some survivors do not even get good physical therapy in the crucial, early stages in recovery, when it is essentially needed. She shared with me some not so good experiences she and her husband had faced, like many others I have spoken with.
They arrived the last week of September 2018, and we met to train almost every day for 4 weeks. It was a productive training month for him. He made some important gains, but has much more hard work to do. I am helping them find a professional near them with the neuro and biomechanics knowledge, needed to bring him further in recovery.
She shared with me that what sold her to come see me was a handwritten note I sent to her inside of the book order she had. She ordered “The Stroke of An Artist, The Journey of A Fitness Trainer and a Stroke Survivor.” I knew she would get more out of help with that book if I sent her my second book “Tipping Toward Balance, A Fitness Trainer’s Guide to Stability and Balance.” I included it with the other book as a gift. I had no idea that that would lead to her and her husband taking a journey from the Jersey coast to the Oregon coast to train with me in person. It is very special.
I have surveyed 100s of stroke survivors in the challenges they have faced finding good guidance in further recovery. Even though there are good stories, there were a much higher amount of disappointing experiences many survivors and their caregivers have faced. Some keep pushing forward and some gave up.
Article reprinted with permission from Tracy Markley.
Fitness Specialist and Educator Tracy Markley is the Founder of Tracy’s Personal Training, Pilates & Yoga in Florence, OR. Tracy has over 2 decades experience in the fitness industry; she holds numerous specialty certifications, including many for those with medical conditions & chronic disease. She’s also studied the Brain and the neurological system, and has had great success working with seniors and special populations in stroke recovery, neurological challenges and fall prevention. Tracy also serves on the MedFit Education Foundation Advisory Board
She’s authored 3 books: “The Stroke of An Artist, The Journey of A Fitness Trainer and A Stroke Survivor” and “Tipping Toward Balance, A Fitness Trainer’s Guide to Stability and Walking” and “Stroke Recovery, What Now? When Physical Therapy Ends, But Your Recovery Continues”. Her books bring hope, knowledge and exercises to those in need, as well as sharing her knowledge and experience with other fitness professionals.
Given that in the United States alone, there are close to 30 million people who have diabetes and five to 10 percent of those have type 1 diabetes (and must use insulin), many of your clients may be insulin users…
I am reading a recent article by Jonathan Mike (in PFP Winter 2019 issue) regarding scope of practice for personal training. I feel that I should respond to this for a couple of reasons – first to add some clarity to his foundation of SOP in wellness, and second…
Humanity is racing toward a brain-health crisis, according to the World Health Organization. The number of people with dementia is expected to triple in the next three decades.
The helpful news from WHO is this: Exercise plays a key role in fighting cognitive decline and dementia.
So, those of us in the fitness industry have a greater chance than ever to make a big impact by including brain health in our training and interactions with people over 50.
That’s the message of Ryan Glatt, a brain health coach at the Pacific Brain Health Center. Ryan and the Functional Aging Institute worked together to bring you the Brain Health Trainer Certification. It’s a unique program that teaches about the connections between brain and body health – and about how fitness professionals can help mature adults with both.
“We can play a significant role in delivering exercise interventions for the primary outcome of brain health, and not just as a secondary benefit of exercising,” Ryan says. “We need to do more.”
Fitness professionals have three steps to follow, he says.
Trainers need to encourage clients to have a well-rounded exercise routine that includes balance, resistance training, and cardio work. It helps to know how some activities can have specific benefits on memory, attention and other brain functions. That includes, for instance, dance, sports and martial arts, which involve some level of choreography, which is good for the memory.
Even in initial assessments with prospective clients, fitness pros can learn to raise the topic, Ryan says. For example, if a prospect in her 50s says she wants to lose weight, you can bring up the topic of brain health even at that early stage. “There’s a growing body of research that links exercise to brain health,” you might say. “Does that sound like something you’d like to work on, as well?”
That can open the conversation to topics that might indicate a referral is necessary – or help you build a fitness program to address them.
“We like to tell people that exercise will help them be able to play with their grandkids,” Ryan points out. “But we can also help train them so that they also can remember their grandkids’ names better.”
Brain health is a big, rich topic that we’re going to be hearing more about. Any fitness professional helping mature people live well should be educated on how to help with their brain health, too.
Ryan Glatt, FAFS, BSc is a psychometrist and Brain Health Coach at the Brain Health Center in the Pacific Neuroscience Institute. With a strong background in exercise science and human health, Ryan develops curricula specifically targeted towards those with dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), and traumatic brain injury, coaching individuals towards optimal brain health.
In July, I had the opportunity to deliver a webinar for MedFit Network on data analytics and population health for the medical fitness profession. I believe the MFN is spot on in their interest in data, and here’s why….
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