Salt Lake City, UT -- (ReleaseWire) -- 12/07/2020 --Most people take their good health and ability to physically move for granted. Others, due to injury or illness, may not be able to move as they would like and strongly desire to get moving again. Being physically active empowers people, makes them feel incredible, and improves all facets of their lives.

Experts agree, exercise is a tool that enhances overall health. Regular exercise or physical movement can improve physical and mental health, build confidence, improve sports performance, improve daily function, enhance the ability to sleep, reduce stress, reduce weight, and improve general appearance. Regular physical activity can transform your health and your life.

Intermountain Healthcare's LiVe Well program provides services at hospitals and clinics throughout the state. A LiVe Well Center Assessment, particularly a Functional Fitness Assessment, helps clients know where to start and how best to create an exercise plan to improve physical movement and overall health. The LiVe Well Centers provides wellness testing, fitness classes, and personal consultations with certified health coaches, dietitians, exercise physiologists, and medical professionals.

"The St. George LiVe Well Center is the preventative arm of Intermountain Dixie Regional hospital," said Tiffany Gust, MS, CISSN, an exercise physiologist at the LiVe Well Center who specializes in balance and mobility. "We help people get well, stay well, and live well for the rest of their lives. We help keep people healthy and out of the hospital. As a certified health coach, I help clients identify and meet their fitness and health goals to help people realize their potential and live the healthiest lives possible."

"When I meet with a new client we discuss what goals they are ready to pursue," said Gust. "It is very rewarding to me to help someone reach their goals such as: lifting grandchildren, reducing stress, maintaining a healthy weight, participating in a triathlon, managing diabetes, or improving sleep. Most people just need a support framework to empower them to reach their potential and a health coach provides that."

"The Functional Fitness Assessment examines a client's strength, flexibility, balance, and mobility," Gust said. "The Functional Fitness Assessment is customizable for anyone 16 to 94 years old. The personalized assessment also looks at upper and lower body strength and cardiovascular strength to develop a personalized exercise prescription and help us determine which Wellness Class will best suit each client's needs."

The St. George LiVe Well Center offers a variety of small group and virtual exercise classes. Classes such as Strength & Conditioning, Chair Yoga, Mindfulness, Stress Reduction, and Balance & Mobility are available virtually and some are offered in-person with a limited capacity to adhere to CDC guidelines during the pandemic.

"Exercise classes are a gift from the heart to the heart," said Gust. "Giving the gift of exercise or a Functional Fitness Assessment tells someone you want them to live the healthiest and longest life possible. Functional Fitness Assessments can also be done virtually and one fee gives access to all the LiVe Well Center's virtual classes. We are offering quite a few virtual classes each week, and they are a great way to start an exercise program within the comfort of your home."

Thirty to sixty minutes of exercise each day is all that is needed to transform and improve wellness, explains Gust. "A 30 or 60 minute exercise class is only two to four percent of an entire day. Isn't two to four percent of your daily time worth it to improve your life one hundred percent?"

"It's never too late to start moving more," Gust said. "Exercise is free and has very few side effects. Regular exercise helps the heart work more efficiently, reduces heart disease, lowers blood pressure and blood glucose, improves memory, combats stress, reduces pain from arthritis, and exercise slows the aging process. It's use it or lose it, so start today."

Get moving today! Gift yourself or a loved one with a better quality of life by making exercise a part of your day – everyday during the holidays and beyond! For more information of Functional Fitness Assessments, Wellness classes, or other LiVe Well Center Assessments and consultations call 435-251-3793 or visit https://intermountainhealthcare.org/services/wellness-preventive-medicine/live-well-centers/st-george-live-well.

About Intermountain Healthcare
LiVe Well. It's not a diet. It's not about a quick fix, a six-week program, a band-aid, a fad. It's a lifestyle, not a crash course. It's about learning how to LiVe Well. Based on research and a better understanding of the complex challenges we face in managing our health for better quality of life, LiVe Well is about fresh ideas to help you make healthful choices and become more physically active in your journey to well-being through a healthier lifestyle. Intermountain Healthcare is a not-for-profit system of 24 hospitals, 215 clinics, a Medical Group with 2,500 employed physicians and advanced practice clinicians, a health insurance company called SelectHealth, and other health services in Idaho, Utah, and Nevada. Intermountain is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare by using evidence-based best practices to consistently deliver high-quality outcomes and sustainable costs.