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Active Aging – a new program for seniors
Choose to Move is back in Cranbrook
By Rebecca Collett
A new program to help seniors get up, get out, and get active is coming to Cranbrook Leisure Services. This exciting new pilot program, Choose to Move, is a six-month physical activity support program that helps people over 65 to become physically active.
Based on research, Choose to Move aims to help seniors to set and meet physical activity goals. The program is for people who are not currently active, but want get moving again. Participants work one-on-one with an activity coach to develop a personal plan that fits with their preferences and lifestyle. For the first three months, participants will meet with their activity coach for guidance, and will connect at least once a month with their peers and coach for support.
Choose to Move includes private consultation with a certified activity coach, four group meetings for encouragement and motivation, and regular phone check-ins with an activity coach. In these calls, participants discuss how their goals are progressing and any challenges that have cropped up.
Choose to Move is offered through the BC Recreation and Parks Association and YMCA of Greater Vancouver, with the support and co-ordination of the Active Aging Research Team, a group of researchers at the University of British Columbia’s Centre for Hip Health and Mobility. The researchers will monitor the Choose to Move pilot across the province and evaluate its outcomes.
“One reason why this program seems to work is that participants are choosing the activities,” explained Amanda Frazer, one of the researchers, “We know that when people can choose, they tend to focus on interests, and choose activities that fit within their budgets,” Frazer said.
In fact, the early evaluation of the program revealed that many participants echoed Frazer’s words, “Choose to Move has been beneficial for me, particularly because of its flexibility. My activity levels have increased and my days are busier. I love that. I have more choices so I am choosing to move,” said *Antonio da Silva, a participant in Vancouver.
The motivation that comes from support is also central to the success of Choose to Move. *Sarah Davis, a participant in Kamloops, explained that Choose to Move has, “motivated [her] to get up and do something…almost every day,” She added that, through the program, she has now has a group who help to motivate each other to continue to stick to their physical activity goals.
So far, Choose to Move has run in 23 communities across British Columbia. It is available at Cranbrook Leisure Services, beginning on May 16. To register for the program stop by Leisure Services at Western Financial Place or call 250-489-0220.
(* Names have been changed to protect the identity of the participant.)
