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The Legacy Willow Bend, Plano’s only true life care retirement community, recently hosted a day-long celebration of National Senior Health & Fitness Day® (NSHFD) for the second consecutive year. The residents at the community fully embraced this year’s theme, “If You Keep Moving…You’ll Keep Improving,” as they participated in a variety of exercises and activities throughout the day planned by Alice Carpenter, the wellness coordinator at The Legacy Willow Bend. From a fitness combo class that included lively music to keep them all dancing for Zumba Gold® to a “Water Workout” in the pool and a session of the newest class offered regularly there – Drums Alive/Golden Beats®, the seniors certainly were kept moving all day long. They also had entertainment provided by their own fellow residents’ team of Line Dancers who closed out the day as they all enjoyed fresh smoothies in the community’s bistro.
“We all enjoyed this nationwide celebration last year and were so pleased with the level of participation among our members that we knew this had to become an annual occurrence,” said Carpenter. “Our residents across all levels of care–independent living, assisted living and memory care–were encouraged to try new things and get active. That’s exactly what they did. I believe everyone did a fantastic job of supporting this movement’s common goal across the nation for the day – keeping older Americans healthy and fit. And more importantly, I love that seniors living here make that a goal for themselves every day.”
The seniors started out with a one-mile walkaround the campus, and then members enjoyed a fitness combo class with aerobics, strength training, balance components and Zumba Gold. Others participated in various games like horseshoes and a bean bag toss outdoors. Afterward, Carpenter took them to the aquatic center and led a water workout class in the pool. That afternoon, the community’s on-site primary care physician Dr. Doug Fullington with Village Health Partners gave a presentation on “Home Safety and Fall Prevention.” The final organized exercise activity was a session of Drums Alive/Golden Beats. Having become certified recently to teach this as a regular class at The Legacy Willow Bend, Carpenter led the group in this fun-filled, 30-minute workout that involves drumming and specific movement therapy to enhance emotional and cognitive education. This fitness craze has been growing in popularity across the nation, and those at The Legacy Willow Bend are now officially part of the fan club.
“It was yet another wonderful experience for all of us here at The Legacy Willow Bend to enjoy as we engaged in unique and fun physical activities together,” said Marilyn Israel, executive director of The Legacy Willow Bend. “We love the concept behind National Senior Health & Fitness Day – to help promote active, healthy lifestyles through physical fitness, good nutrition and preventive care. We can visibly notice the increased energy and upbeat attitudes of the seniors here when they are regularly exercising, and we always want to offer opportunities for them to do that each and every day.”