Enhance®Fitness
About the program: Enhance®Fitness is an ongoing group program that includes arthritis-appropriate exercises. Enhance®Fitness partners with YMCA clubs across the United States to offer the program for free to YMCA members.

Objectives:
Enhance®Fitness uses exercise to:
- Decrease risk for falls.
- Increase social connections.
- Increase strength.
- Improve flexibility and balance.
- Boost activity levels.
- Elevate mood.
Population of Focus:
- Adults with arthritis.
- Older adults.
- Any adult who is interested in increasing their physical activity level and lessening their risk for falls.
- Adults with disabilities.
Proven Benefits:
- Improves physical function.
- Decreases depression.
- Protects against falls and fall injury.
- Provides a social benefit.
- Promotes a physically active lifestyle.
- Reduces medical care utilization costs.
- Decreases unplanned hospitalizations.
- Decreases mortality rates.
Key Activities:
- One hour exercise class consisting of a 5-minute warm-up, 20-minute aerobic workout, 20 minute strength training, 10-minute stretching workout, and 5-minute cool-down.
- There are balance exercises throughout the class.
Setting: Community/ Group-based workshop (in person and remote).
Suggested class size: In-person maximum of 25 participants. Remotely delivered classes maximum of 12 participants.
Duration: Each class is an hour long and offered three times a week.
Costs:
- Participant: Cost varies. A wide variety of locations offer the program for free or for low-cost. See here for a list of licensed sites.
- Leader/ Host Costs: For the most up-to-date information on cost, please visit Project Enhance Become an Affiliate web page here.
Program Enhance®Fitness Requirements:
- Licensing: Host organizations require a license with Project Enhance to deliver Enhance®Fitness. Learn more about getting a license here.
- Instructors: Enhance®Fitness Master Trainers train qualified instructor candidates to provide the Enhance®Fitness protocol. Instructor candidates should hold a nationally recognized Fitness Instructor Certification and CPR certification. Enhance®Fitness recommends instructors have experience working with older adults or adults with activity limitations.
- Enhance®Fitness also offers opportunities for instructors to receive training. Learn more here.
- Equipment: Class sites should have armless chairs, adjustable resistance soft wrist or ankle weights, a stopwatch, tape measure, and cone or other distance marker, such as a garbage can or large bottle. Music and a sound system are encouraged but optional.
- For remote delivery: The instructor must have a technical assistant, strong internet connection, satisfactory audio-visual equipment, and video conference software.
More Information:
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