Your Healthy Family: Exercise & cognitive decline

NAPLES, Fla. — Doctors say two of the biggest factors when it comes to risk of Alzheimer’s Disease are age and genetics. But regular exercise can also play a role. And a local fitness coach uses a unique tool with older clients to prevent cognitive decline and memory loss.

Coach Nino Magaddino is the owner of Max Flex Fitness in Naples. He’s 82-year-old Lane’s personal trainer.

“We’re going to work on his memory and cognitive function,” Magaddino said.

They use a CT Max Board. It’s a square-shaped mat, separated into 9 smaller squares with a different letter in each square.

“I’m going to have him move around the board and give him a cognitive task while he’s exercising,” Magaddino said.

While doing bicep curls with dumbbells, Magaddino had Lane move from one square to another, giving a female name that starts with the letter in the square he’s standing on. As Lane made is way through the board, he was exercising his brain and body. Once he finished the board, Magaddino had him go back to the beginning and use the same names he used the first time. Lane was able to successfully finish the board.

“That was mentally a lot harder than the physical part,” he said.

“Working on sharpening his cognitive skills while he’s exercise. We got his heart rate up, but now it’s important to work on that memory as well. And multitasking while while he’s exercising,” Magaddino said.

Max Flex Fitness works with the David Lawrence Centers for Behavioral Health, a Your Healthy Family partner, to help its patients with exercise.