Aqua-Fit Helps Ease Arthritis<br>Classes Offered Free During Arthritis Awareness Month
The Aqua-Fit class works at loosening up their shoulders.
“The program is designed to help relieve the pain and stiffness caused by arthritis while providing a fun, social opportunity,” Sarah Lacy, instructor of the program, said.
The class is provided through Northland Pioneer College and the City of Winslow.
Classes are held at the indoor pool, located at 505 E. Cherry, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 9 and 10 a.m.
Attendance in the classes is free beginning April 29 and continuing until May 17. After that, the classes are $45 for a semester through NPC. Those 60 and over get a half-priced rate from NPC. Registering for the class can be done at the indoor pool or at NPC.
This is a recreational class, not a therapeutic class. “This shouldn’t replace what a physician has told you to do,” Lacy explained.
Participants in the class do not need to know how to swim due to the water being only shoulder height. Lacy explained the warm water covering the joints helps movement and flexibility.
She said the exercises move every joint from the neck down. For those who have had surgery or problems with a specific joint, modifications to the exercises help prevent them from overworking those joints.
“We spend most of the class being social. I think we exercise our jaws more than anything,” she added with a chuckle. “We have fun, we do the hokey pokey and have some choreographed routines we do every once in a while,” Lacy said.
There are three types of exercises the program offers. The range of motion exercises help get the joints moving and minimizes stiffness. The strengthening exercises help keep muscles strong and provide support and stability to the joint they surround. The endurance exercises help keep the person in overall good fitness.
The jacuzzi at the pool is available after the workout. “It’s kind of like dessert after exercising,” Lacy said.
Both men and women participate in the class and some married couples come together.
The class was first offered in January of 2001 and had an enrollment of nine people. This semester, Lacy will have 30 in the two classes. “We even get people from Jo City and Holbrook,” she concluded.
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