Chair Exercises To Keep Fit––

Working Out While

Sitting Down

By Dottie Evans

Whoever said a person cannot get a good workout if he or she is sitting down has never spent an hour at the Newtown Senior Center doing chair exercises with Debbie Kenyon.

The hour goes by quickly –– mainly because, while Ms Kenyon demonstrates the moves, she accompanies them with a steady flow of encouraging words.

“No holding the breath! Keep breathing, keep moving,” exhorts Ms Kenyon.

A group of eight senior citizens all raise and lower their legs, while comfortably seated in sturdy, straight-backed chairs.

“Inhale. Exhale!”

The scene is the regular Chair Exercise session in the back room of the Newtown Senior Center off Riverside Road in Sandy Hook, and the participants are seniors giving it all they’ve got.

To a visitor watching, the range of exercises they are able to achieve is most impressive.

Consider the following moves: Circling the arms; wiggling the fingers (called “playing the piano”); shaking out the hands; rotating the wrists (called “windshield wipers”); bending the neck; touching the chin to chest; turning the head from left to right; extending the chin up and down; raising and lowering the shoulders; tucking the tummy (“suck it in”); tensing and letting go the back muscles; twisting the ankles; and wiggling the toes.

And those are just the warm-ups. When Ms Kenyon feels that her clients are ready, she ramps up the pace and adds more vigorous moves.

“We can all be working on stretching and tensing and relaxing our muscles all the time, while we are playing cards, watching TV, or even sitting in a wheelchair,” said Ms Kenyon.

She hands out rubber stretch bands for the seniors to use in strengthening their arm and shoulder muscles, and emphasizes ankle and leg stretches to help strengthen the legs for balance and stability.

Finger action exercises include touching the index finger to the thumb to make a circle, and then wiggling each finger in turn –– isolating it to practice coordination and dexterity.

“Now shake it out.”

Ms Kenyon demonstrates vigorously, as though both her hands and fingers have gotten very wet and need to be shaken dry. The seniors are laughing at the sight of a whole room full of people sitting down, madly shaking their arms and hands in the air.

Anything that improves circulation is going to be beneficial to a person’s overall health, Ms Kenyon explains, as she leads the way with her cheerful patter.

“Chair exercises can be fun as well as productive.”

“Stick that leg out. We’re going to strengthen those quads and stretch those hamstrings. Point your toes to the ceiling. Now here we go!”

When the session is over, the seniors finally stand up and stretch. Some comment that they feel more relaxed and invigorated. No couch potatoes here.

(Starting on Monday, September 8, Chair Exercises With Debbie will take place twice a week: Mondays at 1 pm, and Wednesdays at 10 am. The Newtown Senior Center is at 14 Riverside Road in Sandy Hook, and any older Newtown resident is welcome to stop by and join the activities. Hours are Monday through Friday, from 9 am to 4 pm. Telephone: 270-4310.)