Denise Guy is a fitness instructor par excellence. She knows how the body functions, how to motivate you, and how to keep you laughing so working out is painless. Among her many other classes, Guy teaches “Sit 2B Fit” at the YMCA of Martha’s Vineyard on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, at 11:15. From her chipper, energetic approach, you would never know it is the third class in a row that she teaches those mornings.
“Sit 2B Fit” is part of the Y’s Healthy Agers’ offerings. It’s an excellent fit for older adults. Kathy Forrester told me, “The class is perfect. I don’t have to get down on the floor and get back up. It’s right at my level.” Another student, Debby Rosenthal, said, “I think it’s a wonderful opportunity. It gets me out and into the Y, which I did not belong to because I play tennis and pickleball. An exercise program is working on other things. You think you are in shape, and you’re not. You let things go, even if you’re still active.” “Sit 2B Fit” is also fabulous for those starting to exercise for the first time, and anyone recovering from an injury. Falling into the latter category, I was reassured by Guy’s initial comment to us all: “Your body talks to you. Listen to it!” Guy provided different versions of each exercise throughout the class to accommodate people’s varying abilities.
As the name suggests, you primarily work out while seated in a chair. In just 45 minutes, Guy guided us through exercises that improve cardiovascular capacity, strength, flexibility, and balance. With great music playing in the background, we began with simple stretching warm-ups for our legs, ankles, feet, wrists, and arms. We also performed gentle twists, lifting one knee and turning our torso to bring the opposite elbow toward it, then alternating to the other side to loosen our torsos. We engaged our thighs and lower back as we transitioned from sitting to standing, activating our core (abdominal muscles) as we moved up and down.
One of the fun aspects of the class is using all sorts of equipment, including various weights. We repeatedly lifted and lowered them from an upright, seated position, leaning over our knees with our backs straight at an angle. Throughout, Guy frequently reminded us to maintain our posture alignment, which helped us maximize the benefits of the movement and prevent injury.
Using a Pilates ring was new to me. Squeezing this flexible, lightweight, circular resistance ring with padded edges between my hands engaged the biceps, while doing so between my knees gave my inner thighs a significant workout.
When it came time to stand, we could do the exercises using the chair for extra balance. Repeating leg lifts forward, back, and side, I could feel my hamstrings, quads, and glutes getting a workout, as well as my calves with the lifting and lowering of my toes. We did modest lunges, with some holding on to the chairs and others not. While there were no complicated movements, the repetition helped give the workout that extra oomph.
We returned to the seated position for the cooling down, stretching, rolling, and lengthening. Afterward, putting away the chairs and equipment, I spoke with Cathy Brennan, who has noticed her improvement in just a few months. “My muscles are much more toned, and stronger. We do some basic things in every class, but it’s varied, so we get all muscle groups.” Felicity Russell added another good way to use the class: “I am about to have knee surgery. My knees hurt, so doing something measured like this keeps me from doing something silly.” Both women also take Guy’s water aerobics classes. Russell says, “Everything she teaches is just great!”
Guy, a full-time instructor since 2008, is passionate about her work. “Before I was even teaching, I was on the other side, thinking I wanted to become an instructor. I just loved it, and I still do. Honestly, it doesn’t feel like a job. I like seeing people progress from when they first started to what they can do now. It’s rewarding.”
She continues, “I want to boost students’ confidence. You don’t have to be the fittest person in the world. It’s about getting out of the house, socializing, moving, and maintaining balance and strength. We do lots of different stuff to keep it fresh and exciting, keep folks moving, and prevent anyone from getting bored.” After taking Guy’s class, I can guarantee you not only won’t be bored, but you’ll have a lot of fun and smiles along the way.
For more information about “Sit 2B Fit,” visit ymcamv.org/healthy-agers-1.
