Sit & Be Fit 2
Photo by Tharon Giddens
A portion of pool noodle takes on many forms in the hands of Terri Spicer. One minute it’s a dishrag, for twisting and wringing dry. Then it’s a steel beam, to be bent by the Wonder Woman in each of her students this day. Finally, it’s a log to be stepped over repeatedly.
There are 19 women in this hour-long exercise class Wednesday at the Petersburg Public Library, all following Spicer’s lead. They’re getting a low-impact workout as they sit in chairs in the Sit & Be Fit class, which helps build cardio fitness, strength and flexibility.
It’s a mix of ages, with 94-year-old Gertie Williams leading the way. The Petersburg resident has been coming to these twice-weekly classes for four months.“I love it,” she says.
She was driven here by Lois Bryant, who has been working out here for a year and a half. It offers an appealing mix of fun and fellowship, says Bryant, and the price is right, too. The classes are offered twice a week at no cost at the Petersburg Public Library, courtesy of the Healthy Living and Learning Center.
Think of the program, which is nestled into a second-floor office, as a health and fitness adjunct to the main reference desk. It links people with information and also refers them for needed services. For instance, a senior dealing with diabetes can get a blood pressure check, read up on their condition and print out a healthy recipe, says Robert Noriega, the program coordinator.
The need for such a service is evident in state health rankings that place Petersburg next to last, at No. 132 on the list, just above the city of Emporia. According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s annual rankings, Petersburg leads the state in unfortunate categories including poor health behaviors (factors such as sexually transmitted disease and adult obesity) and quality of life (factors such as low birth weight and overall poor or fair health).
“I want Petersburg to go up in those rankings,” says Noriega. “I want us to be a healthy city.”
The center opened in 2014 and is paid for through a grant from the Cameron Foundation. It works in partnership with the Crater Health District, the Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center and the Petersburg Library Foundation.
Noriega and two volunteers staff the facility part time, but the door is always open during library hours for anyone to come in and peruse its books and pamphlets. The center also conducts community outreach efforts at churches and events.
The Sit & Be Fit classes are usually full, with 32 people in attendance, says Petersburg resident Sharon Tate, who has been coming to the sessions for 2 1/2 years. "I retired, and I needed to do something with this body," she says.
There are tangible results, according to Spicer. Some participants have worked their way into regular workouts at commercial fitness facilities, and others have even been able to improve their health to the point where they can eliminate the use of some medications, she says.
And there are the advantages of being in a close-knit group, says Spicer. The first 10 minutes are usually spent chatting, and participants look out for one another. "I love to see that," she says. "They've really gotten close."
The program also provides free classes during the workweek in yoga, mindfulness and meditation, and Tai Chi.
HEALTHY DEVELOPMENTS
A roundup of the week’s health and medicine news
- Get tips on how to stay safe and prepare for emergencies in a Public Safety Day and Emergency Expo to be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the Bon Secours Westchester Emergency Center, 601 Watkins Centre Parkway in Midlothian. The family-friendly event includes hands-on experiences with emergency services equipment, free hot drinks and popcorn, and free bicycle helmets for children (limited to the first 100 visitors).
- The McGuire Veterans Affairs Medical Center's efforts to enhance environmental sustainability have resulted in national honors. The facility has received a Practice Greenhealth Partner for Change award, given to health care facilities for pro-environmental initiatives.
- The VCU Massey Cancer Center reports a new treatment for early stage pancreatic cancer. The treatment involves a device called a CivaSheet, which shields healthy tissue as it provides targeted radiation therapy from one side of its flexible membrane. The device is implanted during surgery and was first used for this purpose in early March on a 70-year-old patient from Sandston. No complications have been reported after six weeks. The National Cancer Institute estimates 53,670 new cases of pancreatic cancer will occur in the United States this year. The five-year survival rate is 8.2 percent.
- Bon Secours’ new facility in the East End has a new name: The Bon Secours Center for Healthy Living Sarah Garland Jones Center. The facility, at 2600 Nine Mile Road, is named for a medical pioneer who was the first African-American woman to be licensed as a doctor in Virginia, according to a release. The center will be a focal point for programs that promote population health and workforce development. It includes a 1,100-square-foot commercial kitchen for cooking and nutrition instruction and as an incubator for start-up businesses; a 900-square-foot community room for programs including group therapy, workforce readiness and neighborhood meetings; and the 1,400-square-foot Front Porch Café, which is still under construction. The café will be operated by Church Hill Activities and Tutoring as part of its job training program.
- Teens are engaging in less binge drinking and consumption of alcoholic beverages, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC reports a dramatic decline in alcohol abuse by teens, with a decline in binge drinking from 31.3 percent in 1991 to 17.7 percent in 2015. Overall, about 50.8 percent of teens reported consumption of alcoholic beverages in 1991, but that behavior dropped to 32.8 percent in 2015.
