Staying fit isn’t a game but seniors are having fun

Published 11:16 am Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Seniors at the Shoreline-Lake Forest Park Senior Center have a number of options to help them stay fit. As a result of a new partnership between the senior center and Shoreline Fire Department, those who use the center can consider one more.

The purchase of a Wii Fit electronic exercise system should help seniors practice balance and exercise while also providing the opportunity for group games or friendly competitions, according to organizers of the Safe Steps, Say No to Falls event on Sept. 27 at Paramount Park.

“In many ways this type of exercise is for all of us as we age because the big picture is Shoreline Fire is responding to hundreds of falls a year,” said Melanie Granfors, public information officer for the Shoreline Fire Department.

The Wii Fit system was purchased using a $7,000 grant, also used to pay instructors. The system consists of a hand-held controller and a step and is used by an individual or a small group to practice exercises and games that are meant to help someone improve their balance.

“It’s fun,” Sue Aker, 68, said after trying the system at the senior center on Sept. 5. “I have grandkids who play games on it.”

Through yoga instruction, activities to practice balance and games, the user is challenged to gain higher scores and strengthen their balance.

Falls by people aged 65 and older can often lead to injury or death, Granfors said. One in 10 falls by a senior results in hospitalization, according to www.kcsafesteps.org.

“It’s a huge number of our medical emergencies,” Granfors said.

People are signed up on waiting lists for a spot in the Matter of Balance class at the center, according to senior center program coordinator Jon Ann Curver.

“When they finish the Matter of Balance class, we try to encourage them to go onto another class that we’ve got here,” she said.

Instructor Toshiko Aramaki has taught seniors who could not exercise or leave their home because they were afraid of falling.

“We teach them they don’t need to be afraid and ways to prevent falling in everyday life,” Aramaki said. “Gradually, little by little they start moving and at the end of the class they really have confidence because they know how to prevent falling.”

The Safe Steps, Say No to Falls event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. will feature a variety of ways for seniors to stay healthy including vision checks, dietary information, ways to prevent falling and blood pressure and blood sugar checks.

“The whole goal is a lifestyle change to get people to stay independent, stay healthy and stay active,” Granfors said.