Personal Training Certificate on Agility

Guest Post by Cody Sipe, PhD

Almost all mature clients need to work on their agility as it is an important aspect of safe mobility, basic function and performance (for work or sport). Older and frailer clients may need better agility to prevent from falling and hurting themselves. Independent clients may need better agility to perform their activities of daily living and recreational activities with greater ease and confidence. Fit mature clients may need better agility to enhance their sports or athletic performance.
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A great test of agility and dynamic balance is the Timed Up and Go test which has been used extensively in research. There are several versions of this test but we typically use the 8’ Up and Go test which is part of the Senior Fitness Test Battery developed by Rikli and Jones.

Not only is this a great test that helps you to quantify whether or not they have an agility impairment and an objective way to gauge improvement over time but it is also a great exercise to use with mature clients.

As Gary Gray, PT would say “The Test is the Exercise and the Exercise is the Test”.

Place a cone eight feet directly in front of a stable standard height chair (preferably placed against a wall). Have your clients perform the 8’ Up and Go as an exercise (without timing them) six times. Three times have them go around the right side of the cone and three times have them go around the left side of the cone (although during the test they get to choose which way they go).

Each time they should walk “as quickly and safely as possible”. Give them around 30 seconds of rest in between each one.

As a progression you can add variety and challenge by using two cones. Place another cone 4 feet past the first cone. Have them now go around both cones making a figure eight pattern. This will further target their ability for bi-directional maneuvering.

As a regression or if they tire quickly (for older, frailer clients) you can use a chair with arms so that they can push off if they need to. You can also raise the height of the seat by placing phone books in the seat. This makes it easier for them to stand up (good for clients with really low leg strength).

Test their agility using the 8’ Up and Go test at baseline; have them perform the exercise two times per week for 4-6 weeks; and then re-test them again using the 8’ Up and Go test. They should have made considerable improvements in their score especially if they are performing other power and agility exercises in their program.

The reason this test is also such a good exercise is because it is working on multiple aspects of function simultaneously.
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First, lower body power is needed to quickly rise from the chair. Secondly, there must be a quick acceleration followed immediately by a quick deceleration as they approach the cone. Thirdly, they must maneuver around the cone without tripping over it or their own feet. Again, they must quickly accelerate and decelerate before having to turn their body and sit back down in the chair.

There are several key aspects to observe. In addition to their overall time you should closely observe the different parts of the 8’ Up and Go sequence to determine where their deficits might lie. Clients with very similar scores could struggle with different aspects of the test.

For one it might be the power to get out of the chair that is lacking. For another it might be quick acceleration and deceleration. And for another it might be maneuvering around the cone (I see this often) that gives them the most trouble. These keen observations will give you insight as to which areas might need more attention in the overall training program.

As always, safety is paramount. Spot them closely and make sure the area is very wide open so that if they do stumble they will not trip over another object or fall into another machine. Anytime you are training balance and ability it is important to remain diligent because as soon as you relax your guard or turn around someone will fall. It is also helpful to eliminate or reduce distractions (such as loud music, TV’s, lots of people) as much as possible.

Cody Sipe, PhD