Getting Back Up: One Client’s In-Home Strength and Balance Journey
Updated: Oct 1
When Charlie’s niece contacted me, she was looking for someone to help her uncle continue his exercise program after he was discharged from outpatient physical therapy.
I met Charlie in April 2025. His goal was simple: feel more confident going about his day, with guidance to progress his exercise program.
We started where he was. At my first visit to his home, I checked his strength, balance, and mobility and built a plan around his goals. Early sessions were seated leg exercises, upper body work with light resistance bands, and standing balance exercises. As he got stronger, I raised the challenge.
That summer, while weeding, Charlie realized he couldn’t get up from the ground. He eventually pulled himself to standing, but it left him exhausted and afraid. New goal: get up from the ground without difficulty. Challenge accepted.
“I am transformed. I’m in the best shape I’ve been in, and I haven’t felt this good in many years.” — Charlie
He started with small squats, then progressed to half lunges, full lunges, kneeling, and half-kneeling. Today he gets up from the ground without using his arms and is no longer afraid of weeding his flower garden. It didn’t come easy. It came with hard work and determination.
“I used to think twice about getting down in the garden because I wasn’t sure I could get back up. Now I move better without any hesitation. Stairs are easy now,” Charlie said. “I am transformed. I’m in the best shape I’ve been in, and I haven’t felt this good in many years.”
His one-hour sessions now include weighted chair rises, counter pushups, lunges, modified burpees, and balance challenges. Each step was earned, at his pace, in his home.
Charlie does his part, too. He has never canceled a session, and most mornings he walks 6,000+ steps before the day gets going.
The results:
Gets down to the ground and back up on his own, without support
Performs weighted chair rises holding a 10-pound weight, rising from the second step of his staircase
Works on resistive walking (yes, like the football players do) for better balance and more stamina
Charlie didn’t start out doing burpees. He started with a goal and a plan built around it.
What would you like to get back to? I offer a free in-home consultation in Massachusetts and Rhode Island: a health history review, a mobility and balance check, and a plan built for you. Call (774) 955-0677 or contact me today.
