Photo by Erin Nelson.
Sarah Brumfield started Graceful Aging to help people, particularly seniors, improve their functional fitness.
For 18 years, Sarah Brumfield worked in physical therapy, helping people recover from surgeries or falls.
Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and the number of falls she was seeing increased dramatically.
“All the older adults were fearful of going out, so they became more sedentary, which led to decreased strength and balance,” Brumfield said. “And because of that, there were more falls.”
So the next step in her career made perfect sense — she shifted to preventative training and started Graceful Aging, which offers functional fitness training to help older adults with strength, balance, flexibility, endurance and fall prevention.
“I’m in-home — I come to you,” said Brumfield, who lives in Mountain Brook. “We provide training to optimize quality of life. Flexibility is huge — as we get old, everything gets tighter.”
Graceful Aging offers an all-inclusive workout designed specifically for each client. In addition to her background in physical therapy, Brumfield is certified in personal training, with a specialty in senior fitness training.
“It’s based on what you need,” she said. “We take into account your past medical history, current functional level and whatever personal goals you have, then we design an individualized plan to meet your goals.”
Since starting Graceful Aging in 2021, she’s also added two more trainers so she can expand her reach.
“Ninety percent of our clients we see in their homes, but a few we meet at their offices,” she said. “We can meet you anywhere — in the park, at a gym, whatever location you want.”
Brumfield said there’s no particular age required to be a client — she’s trained clients as young as 26 and as old as 98.
“You’re never too old to start, but the sooner you start, the better,” she said. “A lot of people look at it as, ‘I don’t need it yet,’ and they wait for that fall or injury or something scary to happen.”
Brumfield encourages seniors to be proactive with their flexibility and strength.
“If you have that preventative mindset, you can prepare so you don’t have an injury or fall,” she said.
Brumfield said it’s very rewarding to see clients get stronger and meet their goals.
“It’s the little things that matter to my older clients,” she said, noting that they tell her stories of limitations they have and she helps set goals to overcome them.
For example, one client told Brumfield she used to hate going to public restrooms because she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to get up on her own.
“She’s conquered that fear now by increasing her flexibility,” Brumfield said. “I love hearing stories of how my clients used to have functional limits but now they have no more limitations. They’re stronger and more confident and more steady on their feet.”
Brumfield said it’s “all about aging with grace and moving with confidence.”
For more information, call 601-597-2442, visit gracefulagingbirmingham.com or follow them on Instagram @gracefulagingbham or Facebook @gracefulagingbirmingham.
