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At LaughActive, we believe that everybody needs regular physical activity, and including older adults in senior living communities.
We also believe exercise programs must be fun to succeed.
Our unique training program combines healthy movement with the benefits of laughter — in a way that’s seriously smart business.
Yes, laughter.
Why? Consider this?
- Seniors need to exercise, and they need to do so regularly and with professional supervision to ensure safety and maximum results.
- Seniors in senior living communities often feel lonely, bored, and depressed.
- Your employees are hungry for ways to help the residents they care about.
- You want to keep residents happy and healthy, and your teammates feeling like they’re making valuable contributions every day.
- Everybody loves to laugh.
Now picture one of your activity rooms full of residents being led by one of your employees. They’re engaged in moderate-intensity group exercise that’s dedicated to develop strength, balance, endurance and flexibility — the four key facets of physical fitness for seniors.
They’re also smiling. Looking each other in the eye.
And laughing.
Can you see it? Can you hear the laughter?
‘Simulated laughter’ is the key
Laughter brings added benefits to exercise that are physical, emotional, and social.
But this isn’t a comedy club. No one’s telling jokes or practicing punch lines.
You don’t need something to laugh at — you can simulate laughter and gain all the same benefits. That’s because the benefits of laughter don’t require anything funny.
Your body can’t tell the difference between “simulated laughter” and laughter caused by humor.
The same cardiovascular and muscular benefits are achieved. The same endorphins are released.
And inevitably, before you know it, simulated laughter leads to the real thing.
How we help
We created the LaughActive Exercise Instructor Training Program.
We designed the program for people who don’t have an extensive education in fitness or exercise. And we made it video-based, so it’s fun and easy to follow.
The training takes just 16 hours to complete and is delivered in easy-to-digest, snackable bits that are easy to manage with any schedule.
When someone completes the training, he or she is certified to lead LaughActive classes. They’ll know everything they need to bring this unique type of exercise to older adults in your senior care organization.
The cost is minimal — for a senior living community with 100 residents, the cost works out to less than a dollar a day per person.
Is it worth it?
Consider these Top 3 Reasons to Add Laughter to Exercise for Seniors:
- Your residents
We know that wellness is important to keeping senior citizens physically healthy, mentally sharp, and enjoying day-to-day life.
Wellness includes aspects of health that are physical, emotional, and social.
Physical activity helps stave off cardiovascular issues, high blood pressure, stroke, and Type 2 diabetes.
It fights anxiety and depression.
And, especially when combined with laughter in a group setting, exercise has social benefits as well.
“It’s uplifting,” one participant said. “It made you feel happy.”
Senior-living communities have physical activity programs, of course. And we all care about the programming we provide the residents.
But no other program helps aging adults like LaughActive — physically, mentally, socially, and emotionally.
“I felt more of a personal connection due to laughter than I have in other programs,” another participant told us.
LaughActive engages residents and helps them be more independent and happier.
That means they’re more likely to stay and to share positive feedback with family and friends.
Watch this TV news report from one of our classes.
Wouldn’t you like your residents and family to see this in your organization?
- Your employees
Residents aren’t the only people you need to keep engaged.
That goes for your employees, too.
Retention of good employees is a challenge across the industry.
Some might feel overworked, underpaid, and not appreciated. Competition for their experience is high among your competitors. Turnover doesn’t help your residents, or the stability of your business.
Training like LaughActive’s can go a long way in keeping your best employees on the job.
- It gives them extra skills they can use to help the residents they care for each day, and fosters those relationships.
- It makes them feel special — like you care about their development as valued team members.
- It builds morale and pride in your organization among the people who work there, and helps them feel invested in what you’re doing.
- Training reduces sick days and improves productivity.
Plus, just by teaching the classes, they gain the benefits of laughter exercise, as well!
Learn more about our pricing plans and the benefits you’ll gain from enrolling your staff.
- Your business
Happier, healthier residents.
Plus a loyal, engaged staff.
Those two components help add up to a successful business for you.
The population of older adults is growing. And the traditional models of senior care and of exercise are changing.
More and more of your potential clients and their families will be expecting good wellness programming.
Imagine a family visits one of your competitors. The facilities and staff are OK, the pricing is within their budget. But they see an exercise class in progress that is nothing more than a group of sad-looking seniors batting around a balloon, while a staff member mutters vague encouragements.
Next, that same family visits your community. Again, the facility, staff and pricing meet their needs. But they can’t help but notice that your exercise room is full of laughing, smiling seniors, and an instructor who’s actively, deliberating guiding them through an exercise-and-laughter session.
That family knows instinctively that happier residents are healthier residents.
You know that healthier residents stay longer and cost less. These are just a few examples of how.
- Since physical activity is a key part of wellness, investing in exercise really pays off. For example, investing $1 in physical activity, through time and equipment, leads to saving $3.20 in medical costs – World Health Organization/Centers for Disease Control
- Spending $1 on physical activity for seniors with hip fractures returns $4.50 – CDC
- Older adults who exercise 90 minutes a week have lower annual medical costs by an average of $2,200. – HealthPartners Research Foundation
LaughActive can help give you a competitive advantage and boost your growth through:
- Word of mouth
- Media coverage
- Employee satisfaction
- Family satisfaction
- New residents with higher spending ability — and higher expectations
Consider your initial investment bringing in a new resident, compared to keeping your current members healthy and active.
Remember it costs less than a dollar a day to provide LaughActive training — and that’s just on a baseline assuming 100 residents.
Clearly, the actual cost-per-person will vary — but just as clearly, it’s a minimal investment you can’t afford to miss.
Step up from your desk and into the hallway.
Can you hear the laughter?
Watch this TV news report from one of our classes.
Wouldn’t you like your residents and family to see this in your community?
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