Exercise is important for individuals of all abilities. Even a few minutes of activity a day provides both physical and mental health benefits.
Many people struggle with maintaining exercise habits due to a lack of knowledge about the type and safety of exercises, accountability or fear of injury.
Join us for Gerofit on the Veterans News Network.
Did you know there is a program that already exists to help Veterans overcome these barriers? It’s GEROFIT.
Originating from VA’s Geriatric Research, Education & Clinical Center (GRECC) in Durham, NC, Gerofit is a personalized exercise program developed specifically for older Veterans.
Over 4000 Veterans have benefitted from the program
Serving over 4,200 Veterans within the last year alone, the Gerofit program provides supervised exercise to Veterans across 17 VA health care systems.
Many of these VA facilities offer onsite Gerofit programs where Veterans can exercise alongside other Veterans and work with trained professionals who will help them develop an exercise plan specific to their abilities and goals.
Some programs offer the ability to connect and exercise virtually – from the comfort of the Veteran’s own home. All that is required to participate is a smart device (laptop, computer with webcam, smartphone, tablet) and an internet connection.
Search #GerofitExercise on VA’s YouTube page
The Gerofit Program has developed several videos available 24-hours a day.
Anyone with access to the internet can go online to visit the Veterans Health Administrations channel YouTube page. Just search #GerofitExercise in the YouTube search bar.
The videos vary from short stretching and cardio routines to full-body routines, appropriate for varying abilities and comfort levels. Safe and challenging, Veterans can even do these exercises entirely from the chair.
Learning more about Gerofit
Click here for a short video about sharing more about Gerofit. Learn about the importance of exercise to maintain physical function and find great resources that can help achieve it.
This blog is courtesy the Office of Rural Health & Geriatric Research, Education & Clinical Center.
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