Growing up I always enjoyed sports and fitness activities, and as a legislator have tried to encourage healthy lifestyle policies. When I learned about UD’s Senior Fitness Training Specialist Certificate less than a week after my retirement from DuPont, I had to explore the opportunity.
The curriculum and instructor team were well thought out, and give the certificate candidates appropriate exposure to the many aspects of working with the target senior population. All of the instructors like their subject matter and genuinely care about their clients. The setting at the Hockessin Athletic Club is ideal for getting hands-on personal experience in both the fitness center and in the physical therapy clinic.
A few years as a physical education teacher early on and a career at DuPont worked out well for me, but I really felt like I got part of my life back when I became a spinning instructor 16 years ago. There are potential fitness, social and emotional benefits of group exercise classes. Because we start and finish together there is an element of cooperation, and while any competition is with yourself, you can gain energy and inspiration from others in the class.
It may be the perfect time to join a field focusing on senior fitness and health. The fitness needs of an aging population are well known, and healthy lifestyles can have social, emotional and societal benefits as well. It is very likely that fields focusing on senior fitness will grow rapidly in the near future, and getting in early is very exciting to me.
Delaware Senator David Sokola is a graduate of UD’s Senior Fitness Training Specialist Certificate. Also a UD alumnus, Sokola is a certified spinning instructor and teaches classes at the Central YMCA in Wilmington.