Whether it is the “pong!” of the pickleball court or the splash of the pool, many older Americans are heeding the siren call of exercise.

Which is fortunate because, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, all older adults could benefit from regular, moderate physical activity.

The CDC points out the benefits of regular exercise for seniors include bone loss prevention, relief from osteoarthritis pain, boosting immunity, and prevention of chronic diseases such as diabetes and colon cancer.

Organizations and gyms are working to meet the increased demand.

Beth Herold, director of the Butler County Area Agency on Aging, has seen an increase of older exercisers.

“Aging individuals want to be more independent and active, and they are turning to exercise classes to stay independent,” she said.

“I can definitely say people in their 40s and 50s are interested in their health and wellness. That will extend as they get older,” she said.

She said fitness centers and gyms are marketing to the baby boomer generation, those born between 1946 and 1964. She said her own parents, who are 81 and 82, are going to a gym every day at 7 a.m. for classes.

Herold noted that many health insurance companies are contracting with fitness centers to offer free classes to their older clients.

“If they (the insurance companies) keep the people healthier longer, that’s a lower cost to them,” she said.

Many of these classes for older participants emphasize low-impact exercises designed to improve balance to prevent falls, strength training to combat the muscle loss that comes with aging and group classes that through socialization can improve social and mental health.

And there are specialized classes such as boxing tailored to those with Parkinson’s disease and chair exercise sessions that are customized to people who have mobility issues, Herold said.

Herold said her agency offers fitness classes catering to the older population.

The agency’s classes are called SAIL (stay active and independent for life) and are taught at Butler Senior Center’s temporary location at Butler Township Park. The agency hopes to move into its new permanent center in the former racquet club on North Duffy Road by summer.

SAIL classes focus on adults 65 and older and people with a history of falls. The classes can accommodate people with a mild level of mobility issues. The classes focus on exercises to improve strength, balance and fitness and can be done standing or seated.

The present classes are open to people from 60 to their late 90s and are taught by instructors from the Butler YMCA. Herold said SAIL classes don’t require medical clearance to attend.

“People do better in classes where they are supervised correctly,” she said. That way, they can avoid “weekend warrior” syndrome when they overdo an activity that leaves them sore and hurting the next day.

“As you get older, your recovery is not as quick, there’s not as much endurance,” Herold said. “Guidance is needed. I think as you age you don’t need the high-impact exercises that would have stress on joints and could lead to injuries and falls.”

Older exercisers should avoid running on hard surfaces, heavy weightlifting with poor form and high-impact aerobics. Preferable alternatives could include tai chi or chair yoga.

Herold said the classes offer more than physical benefits. They provide socialization as well.

“They come to our exercise class and then stay to socialize and have coffee. It’s a nice service for them,” said Herold. The socialization aspect can keep the mind moving and combat loneliness, cognitive decline and depression, she added.

Heidi Nicholls Bowser is director of healthy living at the Butler YMCA, which trains the SAIL instructors. She also is in charge of adult wellness programs at the YMCA, which have also seen an increase in older exercisers.

Nicholls Bowser said the YMCA has 37 classes a week geared to active older adults ages 62 and older in both land and water classes.

She mentioned many seniors take part because their health insurance pays for the membership through the Silver Sneakers program, a free health and fitness program included in many Medicare Advantage programs.

Nicholls Bowser said the classes the YMCA offers active older adults are very well attended. “We have hundreds a week doing exercise easily,” she said.

Nicholls Bowser said, “With aging comes some difficulties, muscular and balance issues. We lose muscle mass as we get older, but we don’t have to.

“You can build muscle mass at any age, it’s been proven. Someone who’s 70, 75, they can increase their muscle mass” through regular exercise, she said.

All of the YMCA’s senior classes are built on the three pillars of improving cardiorespiratory fitness, strength and balance. “As you get older you have to consider these pillars,” said Nicholls Bowser. Another consideration is joint mobility, keeping a full range of motion as you age.

A good way to address these three pillars of senior exercise are the SAIL classes. Nicholls Bowser said instructors teach SAIL classes six times a week at Butler Township Park, twice a week at the Cranberry Township Senior Center, once a week at the Slippery Rock Senior Center and once a week at Westminster Church on North Main Street in Butler.

“It’s a strength, balance and fitness program for those 65 and older,” Nicholls Bowser said. “Essentially, it is a fall-prevention program. It’s designed to be a fall-prevention program.”

Each class lasts about 45 minutes, all equipment is provided, and participants have to wear loose, comfortable clothing and fitness or tennis shoes. Participants have to register with the Area Agency on Aging through a sign-up sheet before their first class.

Nicholls Bowser said SAIL classes are very well attended with over 100 people a week at the sessions. Like Herold, Nicholls Bowser said the social aspect of the classes is just as important as the physical component.

“It’s not just the exercise,” Nicholls Bowser said. “It’s been proven longevity and health is just as dependent on social interaction. Seeing like-minded people each week is just as important to overall health, and this ties into the YMCA’s mission of promoting a healthy spirit, mind and body.”

The SAIL program is a good place to start for seniors looking to improve their health and fitness, Nicholls Bowser said. The class can work for physically active seniors and those looking to improve their fitness.

“It’s a good place to start, and it’s a good place to stay,” Nicholls Bowser said. “You can stand up or go into a chair. It’s for people who have been exercising all of their lives and those getting started.

That’s the same message Jarrad Pencek has for those thinking of exercising. He is the co-owner with his wife, Cassie, of two Burn Boot Camp locations, including one at 271 New Castle Road.

“In our perspective, there is no real age when you shouldn’t be exercising. In fact, it is more important as you get older,” Pencek said. “Muscles and joints can breakdown and deteriorate with age. The less you do as you get older, the worse you will feel.”

Moving is important, he said. Burn Boot Camp’s 45-minute workouts are appropriate for any age and fitness level.

Each workout includes a warm-up, a challenging workout scaled to any fitness and age level, and a finisher.

The group sessions include one-on-one instruction from a trainer who gets participants to use the right form for each exercise. There are no machines. Instead, the emphasis is on strength and conditioning-based training.

“We have older members — the oldest is 76. The workout includes a range of motions and movements under the guidance of a certified trainer,” he said.

Pencek said if age prevents someone from doing an exercise, the trainer will adapt the exercise to accommodate. For example, a standard burpee, an exercise combining a squat, a pushup and a vertical jump, can be performed using a box.

“Everyone will be doing the same workout, but it may look a little different for some,” he said.

As an indication of the older generation’s commitment to exercise, Nicholls Bowser said that behind family memberships, senior adult memberships — often through insurance-based programs such as Silver Sneakers — make up the second-biggest block of YMCA memberships.

Nicholls Bowser doesn’t see that proportion changing anytime in the near future.

Nor does she see membership in the active older adult classes shrinking either.

“They will stay the same. There’s people right behind the boomers. As long as I’ve been here, we’ve had a robust senior population taking classes,” Nicholls Bowser said.

Older Americans will continue to pursue exercise as a way to improve their health, Herold said.

“I think with social media, TV or movies, older people are presented as much more active than they were in the past. Look at people like Jane Fonda. You would never guess they are the age that they are. It’s become the norm,” Herold said.

Burn Boot Camp’s Pencek said, “No one should say, ‘I’m too old to do that.’ If you can move at all, you can exercise. There’s no age where you can’t.”

And he added, there’s a really good incentive to maintain an exercise routine. “There is a lot of science behind it, exercise and staying fit. The longer you can exercise, the longer you can live.”

This article originally appeared in the April edition of Butler County Business Matters.