International Longevity Centre Global Alliance - Designing the Future of Ageing

7th April 2021

A new project, titled: “PERMANENTO – everyday functional exercise for older adults” is designed to help older adults to maintain the fundamental components of functional fitness. The main goal is to contribute to a broader perception of physical activity, especially its effects on the ageing processes and quality of life.

The author of the project, Katerina Machacova said: “I would like to help people of all ages to perceive exercise as an essential hygiene for the body, to help them understand the wider context in order to be able to live actively and responsibly for as long as possible.”

We will organize educational-exercise workshops tailored to the needs of the older adults. Participants will learn why it is so important to take care of one’s own body and what the benefits of exercise are. They will learn how to do so with regards to their own preferences, possibilities and current health status. The goal for each participant is to be independent in home exercise but at the same time nobody will be left without support. All participants will receive an access to the instructional videos with short routines designed to support fundamental components of functional fitness such as strength, flexibility and mobility. Furthermore, in each locality, we will offer training courses to encourage more active older adults to become authorized trainers of Permanento group lessons.

The project also includes long-term care facilities since an adequate physical activity is very beneficial for the residents. In this case, we will collaborate with social workers and carers. They will be offered accredited educational seminars and be provided with all the crucial information, instructions and exercise videos to be used in long-term care settings.