General wellness programming is an exciting trend in outpatient physical therapy nowadays. Well designed and executed programs can not only draw new potential patients to a clinic, but can also keep patients healthy and active in the clinic even after therapy discharge. Several of our practices have endeavored upon various wellness and fitness programs in the last few years. In July 2007, our Fairwood Physical Therapy clinic in Renton, WA began offering GRAVITY classes. I recently connected with Jeannette Baker, NASM, CPT, a personal trainer who teaches the classes at Fairwood PT and asked her to explain the GRAVITY program and share some of its successes…
Lori: How does the GRAVITY program work?
Jeannette: The classes are taught mostly using a machine system called Gravity. If you’re familiar with the Total Gym that sells for home use . . . the Gravity machines are similar but a little more versatile and built for a health club/physical therapy environment. You can read more about the system on their website. The classes work using your muscles to lift a variable portion of your body weight and focus a lot on core strength as we build muscle strength, cardio endurance, and flexibility. During the course of the classes we also do some complementary exercises off of the machines to work on balance and core strength as well. Sometimes the classes are a total body workout and sometimes we spend a session focusing on a specific area of the body. I try to tailor the classes to each participant.
Lori: How many people at a time participate in a GRAVITY class?
Jeannette: We have a maximum of 4 participants in any given session so there is LOTS of one-on-one attention. The small classes also allow the participants to get to know one-another and have lots of fun! I have some clients that have been with me for 4 sessions now and thoroughly love the program! The other instructors and I are constantly working to find new and fun things to do with the classes on the machines so that we don’t get bored too 
Lori: So how long is a session?
Jeannette: We have our program structured in 10-week sessions – either coming twice a week for 30 minutes each time or once a week for an hour. We also do offer drop-in sessions (as space allows) but the pre-requisite for that is either having gone through our program once already or having a personal training session first with me on the machines so that you know the ins and outs of the machines (working on them, adjusting the machines, knowing some of the moves, etc) when you drop in. I also do individual personal training sessions with people. The group classes are offered in the early morning hours, evening hours, and on the weekends.
Lori: What benefit have you seen this program have on the participants? and for the clinic?
Jeannette: The initial measurable benefit that I have seen from the clients is their drop in body calculation figures . . . body fat, measurements, weight, blood pressure, etc. (All are measured at the start and end of each 10-week program – we’ve seen some amazing changes!) But far more impacting than those numbers has been the increase in self esteem that I have seen in each client. At the start of the program many of the clients are pretty quiet and timid about the exercises and the levels that they push themselves. However, after they get through a few weeks of classes, a few “test days”, and some “workout pains”. . . they start to see their hard work pay off and become hungry for more and learn to enjoy the journey along the way. They learn how to push themselves appropriately, how to deal with and overcome minor setbacks in their program, and become proud and confident about the person they are. Just this last weekend I had a client come off the machine with a grin ear-to-ear after doing a set of pull-ups at an incline level 8 (the machines progress from level 1-8). She told me the first week she doubted that she would ever be able to even accomplish the exercise on a level 3; and now in her second session she has already made it to level 8! She then giggled and said “I know you’ll find a new way to challenge me on it though!” The clients also use the time we have together as a basis for a change in their overall lifestyle. We help the clients develop short and long-term goals at the start of their time with us. Many choose to adopt additional workout activities or healthy eating patterns in addition to our program to help them reach that goal. We provide knowledge and support to help them meet their goals.
As for the benefits to the clinic, the program creates more opportunities for the clinic to touch the community and promote healthy and active lifestyles. The classes are also quite often a bridge for clients between physical therapy (as a patient) and a safe new workout lifestyle. Clients who join the program feel that they are still in the safe and supportive environment of the physical therapy office that they have become familiar with, but are learning how to help themselves stay healthy on their own. I am able to provide my background knowledge from my personal training certification as well as interact with the therapists in the clinic to design a safe and effective program for the individuals. Some PT patients have witnessed the fun classes happening during their treatment times and have also been excited to work through their PT time and be released to join in the program – hopefully providing a good goal to help motivate their progress as well.
Jeannette Baker and two GRAVITY clients
