Here’s What It’s Like to be a Fitness Trainer for Seniors & Why It’s Harder Than it Looks

In Singapore where work-life balance is pretty much a joke and the pace of life is extremely fast, there are times (okay, many times) where we neglect our parents.  

We get so caught up in our lives we forget about the people who made it possible for us in the first place.  So there we are, working and enjoying our lives while our parents while their days away in an empty home, wishing their kids will come back for dinner once in a while.

And that’s where NTUC Health SilverCOVE comes in 

Located below a studio apartment estate in Woodlands, the NTUC Health SilverCOVE centre caters specifically to the seniors living in the estate. Most of them come to the centre for recreational activities, for some company and to exercise.

A Fitness Trainer for the Elderly 

When you talk about being a fitness trainer, an image of a hunky guy or extremely fit girl comes to mind. You’ll imagine their clients to be young working adults, those who wants to look good and keep slim and fit.

But Mr Razak belongs to an entirely different category of fitness trainers. Part of his job scope requires him to modify exercise routines for seniors so that it won’t hurt their joints or bones, which requires him to know a lot about body physiology and sports science.

Every morning, he will bring the seniors through a “light” aerobics workout to keep them moving. And that’s not his only job.

It’s not just physical care

Every two weeks, NTUC Health SilverCOVE and NTUC First Campus will organise a get-together for the seniors and preschoolers.

Having had the opportunity to meet the kids, you can tell how the seniors brighten up when the kids play and chatted with them. It makes them feel less lonely.

The centre also organises monthly birthday parties to celebrate the month’s babies, both elderly and children.

A State-of-the-art Gym

The centre comes equipped with gym equipment that are senior-friendly. The user must be registered with a card which monitors and marks their progress. And most importantly, it ensures that the seniors do not overload on the weights.

After registration is complete, the machine which the elderly scans their cards at will determine the level the user is at and adjust the weight accordingly.

And best of all, the system helps to design a series of routines to give them the optimal workout.

The fitness trainer will always be at the side, looking out for the senior with ready advice and assistance when needed.

The seniors who visited the centre

Having had the opportunity to speak with the elderly in the centre, I discovered that for most of them, the reason for coming to the centre was that it’s boring and lonely at home.

At least at the centre, they have a place to meet up with their friends, gossip and most importantly, have fun in their golden years.

And at the centre of it all is the fitness trainer who must handle all these.

To find out more about NTUC Health and explore careers in health and eldercare within this social enterprise, visit http://ntuchealth.sg/careers/

This article was first published on goodyfeed.com