Forever in Motion is an active lifestyle program for participants 50 years of age and older. The program has been in operation for Humboldt for some time as part of an initiative supported by the Saskatchewan Health Authority and Saskatchewan Parks and Recreation Association. It’s a wonderful opportunity for residents to keep in shape in order to partake in their favourite activities like gardening or hiking.

Jeanette Barlage has been one of the facilitators of the effort, and she invites new members, men and women, to come out, get active and have fun. The program runs from September to the end of May. 

“It’s functional fitness,” Barlage explains. “It’s 25 minutes of aerobics and 35 minutes between balance and strength exercises, including weights. The idea of it is to keep you moving. They want to make sure that as you age, you can keep doing the things you like to do.”

The program is geared to people of all abilities, Jeanette notes. In fact individuals with levels of restricted movement due to medical conditions can participate to their own capabilities. 

“We’ve had people come with Parkinson’s Disease or knee and hip replacements. The idea is that you do what you can. It’s really flexible that way.”

A five-week course offered by the Health Authority prepares facilitators to lead the activities. The program lets leaders and participants share in the benefits. Barlage points out that there are social and mental health benefits to the program.

“It does get you out in the community. If you’ve come to Humboldt from another community and you’re looking for something to do or meet some new people, it’s great. We go for coffee sometimes, and you can come to that. And the program is not restricted to people from Humboldt; we’ve had people from Muenster and Lake Lenore come at certain times too.”

The program runs on Monday and Friday at 9:30 am at the Humboldt Community Gathering Place. On those days, there is a $5 drop in charge for the Gathering Place, or patrons can purchase a year long membership for $45. The Wednesday sessions are held at the same time in Uniplex at no charge. All that participants need to bring is some comfortable clothing, a water bottle, and the motivation to get up and moving. 

For more details, call Jeanette at (306) 682-5334, Lorna at (306) 231-8717, or Bev at (306) 231-8235.