Populations around the world are rapidly ageing, and this presents both challenges and opportunities for astute fitness professionals. As more focus is placed upon the need for physical activity as a preventative measure for the health risks commonly associated with ageing, skilled fitness professionals are ideally placed to assist and contribute to the healthy ageing process.

However, exercise prescription is only one piece of the healthy aging process. To ensure that older clients remain fit, healthy and functional as they approach their later years of life, fitness professionals need to be able to consider and coach their older clients on not only appropriate exercises to do, but also what to expect as their body ages, how to assist their clients in respect to falls prevention and management and what the most appropriate nutrition recommendations for health are as their clients age.