More fitness and zest for life through “Join us

Hamburg. The exercise project for seniors run by the Hamburger Sportbund and Abendblatt-Verein is now also available in inpatient care facilities

Fred flies through the air. The cube-like foam animal lands safely in the senior’s hands. “Fred?” she asks, somewhat surprised, and throws him back to the trainer. “You named it that!” Conny Prinz replies with a laugh as she catches the substitute ball and throws it to the next person in the seating circle. The trainer and her daughter Carina Prinz vom Bahrenfeld gymnastics club lead the weekly “Join in – stay fit!” lesson in Tabea retirement home in Hamburg-Osdorf.

The mother-daughter team is very popular with around 20 senior citizens Seniorswho regularly attend here. They are among the first nursing home residents to take advantage of the offer. Because “Join in – stay fit!” was launched over ten years ago by the Hamburg Sports Association and the Abendblatt Association and is currently taking place in more than 80 senior citizens’ meetings and residential complexes. However, the official start in inpatient care facilities did not take place until 2023.

Seniors in Hamburg: More fitness and zest for life through “Join us – stay fit!”

Since the interests of the very old and people in need of care are definitely different from those of younger seniors, the Institute for Exercise at the University of Hamburg, the Hamburg Sports Association and Tabea Diakonie had launched a pilot project in advance of the regular offer. A group of residents of the Tabea nursing home did gymnastics for twelve weeks under the guidance of trainers who were specially trained to meet the requirements and support of very old people – with astonishing results: after three months, many of the seniors had not only improved their fitness level, but had also achieved one noticeable improvement in their general mood. At the beginning of the program, some were unable to get up from their chairs on their own. This is no longer a problem for most people.

“Fred” is what the seniors called the foam cube that they were supposed to catch every now and then.
© FUNKE Photo Services | Roland Magunia

Elisabeth Rahn, co-initiator and coordinator of “Join in – stay fit!” from the Hamburg Sports Association, states: “Success at this age is usually defined as when skills do not deteriorate. Many people’s skills even improve here. In most exercise groups, the work threshold is too low. There has to be a real training incentive.” That’s why “Join in – stay fit!” is, on the one hand, aimed at the limitations of seniors in nursing homes, and on the other hand, it aims at incentives and motivation: the movements are from simple to more complex processes. From week to week there are not only new learning incentives, but also new experiences of success.

Muscle groups are strengthened and mobility is promoted

There is a significant improvement within just one hour of the course. After the warm-up round with various throwing objects, Conny and Carina Prinz lead stretching exercises on the chair, linking numbers with specific arm and leg movements, so that brains are also required when only the numbers are called out. Various muscle groups are strengthened, mobility is promoted and the cardiovascular system is stimulated.

“Sensational!” Conny Prinz repeatedly calls out to the seniors when they manage to control their arms and legs, hands and feet in a coordinated manner, lift their right heel and left arm at the same time, pull their knees towards their stomach or cross their hands and knees to merge cross. At the end there is a really short choreography that the participants go through – still sitting.

The trainers have special instructor licenses and come from regional sports clubs

Finally, all participants manage to get up from their chairs. Even if three of them need a little help, this is a great success. The physical and cognitive requirements of seniors are very different: of the 18 participants today – including 17 women and one man – two are in wheelchairs, seven have their walkers with them, some suffer from mild dementia, others are mentally fit. Conny Prinz, who leads the gymnasts with good humor and lots of praise, is enthusiastic about the course and says: “The group is really great. For us it’s always like coming home, it’s a give and take.”

Hartmut Berndt (Tabea), Angelika Schweiger (Social Service Tabea) and Join us – stay fit!” project coordinator Elisabeth Rahn
© FUNKE Photo Services | Roland Magunia

Hartmut Berndt, assistant to the Tabea facility management, is also impressed by the development of the old and very elderly and says: “People are enthusiastic about it. The program is really demanding.” The decisive factor is the know-how of the trainers. The trainers, who need at least a level two trainer license, come from regional sports clubs and are brought together by the Hamburg Sports Association with a care facility, although the situation in the Tabea home with two trainers is an exception. Before their deployment, the trainers undergo additional training on the special needs and needs of the elderly. A measure that pays off! Angelika Schweiger, head of social services in the seniors’ facility, says: “The difference to the in-house exercise offerings is the professionalism of “Join in – stay fit!”

The Hamburg Sports Association is providing start-up funding

In addition, there is regular consultation between trainers and nursing home staff. This means that the trainers are always up to date on the health conditions of their elderly course participants. The coordinating function of the Hamburg Sports Association as a cooperation partner also contributes to its success. For example, when using the trainers, it is taken into account that “Join in – stay fit!” in retirement homes should take place in the morning, as the very old then have more physical resources.

However, the Hamburg Sports Association not only acts as a coordination point, but also provides start-up funding for the development of new “Join in – stay fit!” courses. The care facilities then pay for the continuation themselves through the sports clubs. Facilities that cannot cover the costs on their own can apply for regular funding from the Hamburg Sports Association. Five nursing homes in Hamburg are currently implementing the offer, and expansion is planned because the successes speak for themselves:

Together with her mother, Carina Prinz is an exercise instructor at the “Join in – stay fit!” class at Tabea.
© FUNKE Photo Services | Roland Magunia

Tabea resident Ursula Hilken, 79, suffered from paralysis on one side after a stroke. The training has significantly improved her ability to move. “I can now spread my hand again and make a fist without pain,” she reports. She prefers to practice finger exercises. The former civil servant has been living in the care facility for ten years and still misses her own home. “Join in – stay fit!” is a ray of hope for her. “I enjoy the course,” she sums up.

Seniors in Hamburg: Other inpatient care facilities can register

Inge Hack also had a stroke. She has been in a wheelchair for three years. Thanks to “Join us – stay fit!” and constant practice in the room, she can lift her foot several centimeters again. “Conny’s achievement” and “role model,” the 75-year-old, whose speech skills are limited by the stroke, says again and again and always points to Conny Prinz with a smile. According to her own information, she also had two strokes. “Through training and positive thinking, I managed to restore my full mobility,” says the trainer. There couldn’t be a greater motivation for seniors!