News Release

August 2, 2006

Contact: Carolyn Pennington, 860-679-4864
e-mail: cpennington@uchc.edu

Powerful Aging Exercise Program Now Offered in Avon

Classes Begin at the Senior Center in September with a Special Open House on August 17

FARMINGTON, CONN. – Powerful Aging, part of UConn Health Center’s Good Health, Good Life Programs, is branching out. The supervised exercise program for people over 50 will now be offered at the Avon Senior Center, 635 West Avon Road, in addition to the Seabury Retirement Community in Bloomfield, the UConn Health Center in Farmington and UConn Health Partners in West Hartford.

Classes will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., beginning September 12 through October 26. The cost is $78 per session; $66 for Celebrate Aging members. To register in person and learn more about the program, stop by the Avon Senior Center on Thursday, August 17, from 1 to 2 p.m.

Powerful Aging is designed to safely and effectively improve strength, endurance, mobility and coordination. The program is based on ten years of research and training of older women and men at the UConn Center on Aging. “We include strategies that will maintain enthusiasm for an active lifestyle and incorporate strength training that is designed to improve concentration, balance, and a sense of well-being,” says certified personal trainer and Powerful Aging instructor Mary Carroll Root.

“For older people, exercise can have a significant impact on quality of life, helping to prevent heart attacks and protecting against the “silent disease,” osteoporosis. Powerful Aging is great for those that have controlled coronary artery disease and other monitored medical conditions. It gives special attention to health care problems - something many other exercise programs can't offer,” said Root.

For more information about Powerful Aging or directions to the Avon Senior Center, call 860-679-7692 or 800-535-6232.

The University of Connecticut Health Center includes the schools of medicine and dental medicine, John Dempsey Hospital, the UConn Medical Group and University Dentists. Founded in 1961, the Health Center pursues a mission of providing outstanding health care education in an environment of exemplary patient care, research and public service. To learn more about the UConn Health Center, visit our website at www.uchc.edu.

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