For the residents of VI at Silverstone, there is an emphasis on maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
“We want to keep our folks healthy and active,” said Jacqui McCormley, the Lifestyle Director with Vi at Silverstone.
Many of the residents in this Scottsdale independent living community, like Jerry Anderson, are motivated to exercise daily.
“I swim a half mile every morning,” said the 81-year-old. “I would feel uncomfortable if I didn’t do it. It is just like eating breakfast. You just come and do it.”
Resident Jane Tillman tries to exercise at least 5 days a week even though it can be a difficult task.
“Sometimes it is a struggle cause I try to do it early in the morning,” Tillman said. “But when I am through, I just feel better for the whole day.”
But not everyone is as dedicated as Anderson and Tillman.
In the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, researchers found that baby boomers were more likely to be obese, more likely to have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes–and less likely to be physically active.
“Many of our residents have never exercised,” McCormley said. “So the concept of coming to a fitness center is brand new to them and quite intimidating.”
So the staff of Vi at Silverstone provide a variety of fitness activities to make the residents feel more comfortable.
“We really just try to keep it fun,” McCormley said. “We have belly dancing, Zumba and different workshops. That works well for us.”
What makes the VI fitness program really unique is the incredible state of the art fitness center.
“We boast about our Technogym equipment which is especially designed for an elderly population,” McCormley said. “It is very easy to operate. It is very user-friendly. And it keeps them engaged.”
With the Technogym system, each resident is given their own key that stores data including their training program.
Residents first walk into the fitness center and they insert their key into a kiosk. The first exercise is then displayed on the kiosk screen and the workout begins.
When the residents insert the key into a specific machine, it will pre-set the machine, guide them through the workout and track everything that they do.
The ‘state-of-the-art’ label may intimidate some of the residents but it doesn’t last long. Tillman can’t imagine doing her workout without Technogym.
“You don’t have to think about what you are doing,” Tillman said. “You just put it in the machine and it tells you what to do or it does it. It just makes it easier.”
From fitness classes to the Technogym, the VI staff is doing whatever it takes to motivate their residents.
“We take great pride in eliminating those fears for those people and introducing what a difference this can make,” McCormley said.
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