Ability Not Age-Rethinking How We Design and Deliver Movement Programs for Older Adults

About this episode

This episode discusses the Ability, Not Age paper and its impact on rethinking movement programs for older adults.

This episode highlights a project close to my heart: the Ability, Not Age paper — a collaborative effort by the Ability, Not Age Task Force, a team I brought together through what’s now known as Agents of Movement . Our goal was to challenge ageism in fitness and wellness by rethinking how we label and design programs for older adults. Too often, classes are defined by age — “Senior Fitness,” “Silver Yoga,” “Older Adult Strength” instead of by ability or interest. We wanted to flip that script and focus on what people can do and want from their movement experiences, regardless of their age. The result was the Ability, Not Age paper, portions of which were published by the American Society on Aging , soon to be published in the Journal on Active Aging . Our work also earned the Mather Institute Promising Practices Award , a recognition for innovative approaches to serving older adults. In this episode, you’ll hear from several of the writers who helped bring the paper to life. We’ll explore how the idea emerged, what it represents for the future of our field, and how we can all contribute to creating more inclusive, ability-centered movement spaces. If you’d like to stay connected…

People in this episode

Host: Erin Eleu

Topics covered

• ageism in fitness
• movement programs for older adults
• inclusive movement spaces
• ability-centered design
• collaborative projects

Keywords

• older adults
• fitness
• wellness
• movement experiences
• ageism
• inclusive design
• Ability Not Age

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Ability, Not Age Task Force, American Society on Aging, Journal on Active Aging, Mather Institute

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