An 82-year-old woman, diabetic for 20 years, credits the class for keeping her off insulin. A 72-year-old man with Parkinson’s disease said his balance has improved dramatically. Others say they avoided knee surgery, got her osteoporosis under control, or stopped getting steroid injections for back pain.
Thanks to the class, Bonnie Resig said, she feels as good at 75 as she did when she was a cheerleader in high school.
“I don’t know if I can do a cartwheel anymore,” he said. “But I can move and dance.”
Exercise is good for you, as everyone, including those who live under rocks or those who just got back from Mars, now knows. Specially for Old people. Numerous studies show that physical activity can help protect against heart disease, stroke, diabetes, dementia and some types of cancer. It is associated with better mental health and quality of life.
The only hard part is, well, actually doing it.
That’s why Anne Tudor ForeverWell class for older adults in Ridgedale YMCA in Minnetonka it is so popular. The participants, whose ages range from their late 60s to mid-80s, say they are drawn to the instructor.
“Anne is my inspiration — you want to go, go, go when she’s doing it,” said Don “Punch” Benson. After stent placement 30 years ago, Benson began taking gym classes. These days he runs a hobby farm. “If I hadn’t been doing this class, I wouldn’t be able to do half of what I do at 80.”
Slim and 75, Tudor is as good an advertisement as any for the benefits of physical activity. He often calls exercise “medicine.”
“I’ve seen the results and I’ve seen the health issues,” Tudor said. a resident of Wayzata. “People are getting stronger, people are improving their posture.”
But it is at Tudor’s instruction that many participants say they show up.
“I love his sense of humor, it makes my day,” said Sharon Rescorla, 71, who has osteoporosis. “This has kept my numbers from getting worse.”
“I program my life around Annie,” said Sandy Harvey, 68. “She’s my fitness goddess.”
highest draw
At one of Tudor’s classes about a week ago, more than 50 people packed the gym, moving steadily to music ranging from the 1920s standard “Has anyone seen my girl?” to Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl” from 1967.
Her classes draw more participants than any other Y group class for any age, said Y ForeverWell coordinator Molly Skoro. Before COVID, attendance hovered between 70 and 100 and “parking was a problem,” she said.
The Y tried to remedy the problem by scheduling a second ForeverWell class with a different instructor. It didn’t work: people kept signing up for Tudor’s class.
“People came from New Hope Y and Southdale Y because they had heard that she was a great instructor,” Skoro said. “People told me they would actually put alarms on their phones so they would know to sign in to get in.”
In class, Tudor stands in front of the group, shouting instructions: “Two steps to the left! Two steps to the right! Work the insides of your legs! Hard in the middle! Kick those feet!” Put your toes back on!”
She performs all the moves (in reverse, acting as a mirror image of the class) with more vigor than most: kicking her legs higher, swinging her arms more widely, punching the air. She delivers a continuous monologue that some people find more charming because she’s from England.
“Sometimes I say, ‘Can we have an interpreter?’ because no one understands me,” Tudor joked. “I never stop talking to them. I keep telling them and reminding them, ‘How’s your posture? Are you contracting your abs? How do your legs feel? Take it easy, if you’re not comfortable making a move, don’t do it.'” . Don’t do it, just go ahead and smile.
Most students’ movements were smaller than Tudor’s, their steps shorter, their kicks lower, and their arm movements less vigorous. But aside from quick water breaks, they kept moving through an hour of warm-ups, aerobics, weight lifting, balance and stretching.
“She’s strong,” said Julie Appel Duncan, a ForeverWell coordinator who helps with the class. “It can be a challenge.”
It’s hard work, 82-year-old Jane Laurance agreed. “But you don’t look at the clock.”
Build trust
More than a third of people over the age of 65 do not engage in physical activity, the highest percentage of any age group. Aging brings loss of muscle strength, weight gain, pain and diseases that make movement difficult. But fitness can improve at any age.
“A lot of people think, ‘Oh, I’m at my limit, I’m not going to progress in strength or balance; I’m always going to be sore,'” Skoro said. But Tudor helps build students’ confidence, he said. “She believes in everyone, and because she believes in them, they believe they can do it too.”
“I always tell them that age is just a number and you do what you can,” Tudor said. “If you don’t want to go too high, slow down a bit. Listen to your own body.”
Tudor’s class is among the few places you’ll hear people vying to sound older. “I’m 82 and a half years old,” said one woman. “I’m 83, almost 84,” said another. “I’ll be 83 before she’s 84,” the first assured.
Hans Gasterland said his age was “69, almost 70” and then admitted that his birthday isn’t until February.
“I have already adopted 70 as my identity,” he said cheerfully.
social aspect
The participants who exalt their enjoyment of the class may not realize that Tudor says that she needs him as much as they do.
“My life is quite difficult lately,” he said. “It just lifts my spirits.”
Tudor’s Husband, John Tudor, former professional footballer In England, has dementia and cannot be left alone. Three mornings a week, her son, Jonathan, drives from Belle Plaine to relieve her so she can teach the class. But he is also a soccer coach with a busy life. So the rest of Tudor’s time is spent as John’s caretaker.
The couple moved to Minnesota nearly 30 years ago so John could train. Tudor worked as a caretaker for his apartment building. Since he had always liked to exercise — “I was the champion of my school,” he said — he took gym classes. Eventually, she got the idea to start teaching them herself. She acquired the qualifications and became an instructor around 2004.
Many of Tudor’s students started in the years since and have formed friendships. They get together for coffee, celebrate birthdays, get together for happy hour.
“The social aspect is very healthy as you get older; you can get a little lonely if you’re alone,” said Eunice Schutt, 70, a longtime attendee.
“It’s so much fun to see how they take care of each other,” Skoro said.
“I really don’t like skipping class,” Schutt said. “We all leave smiling and very happy to have come.”
