June 24, 2026
Senior fitness and mobility
Staying active as we age is key to maintaining independence, confidence, and overall well-being—and in this episode of Docs in a Pod, we’re diving into exactly how to make that happen. Hosted by Carmenn Miles and Dr. Brooke Mobley, this conversation focuses on senior fitness and mobility, exploring practical ways older adults can stay strong, balanced, and moving safely. Joining the discussion is special guest Dr. James Dinn, who shares expert insights on maintaining physical health, preventing injury, and improving quality of life through movement.
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Show transcript
Podcast transcript
INTRO
Welcome to Docs in a Pod presented by well. Over the next half hour, Docs in a Pod will educate you about the health and wellness of adults everywhere. Co-host Dr. Tamika Perry and Carmenn Miles will share information to improve your health and well-being. And now here are Carmenn Miles and Dr. Tamika Perry.
CARMENN MILES
Hello everyone and thank you so much for joining us today on the award winning Docs in a Pod presented by WellMed. I'm Carmenn Miles, and I'm excited to jump into another great conversation centered around health and wellness topics that really matter, especially for our seniors. If you're listening for the first time, you can find this podcast on any podcast listening platform. We're also available on the radio and several Texas markets. Each week we share practical health information that hopefully helps all of us live healthier, happier lives. We're thrilled that you're tuning in. We have a great topic for discussion today, but before we go there, I want to introduce our co-host for today. She is none other than Dr. Brooke Mobley. Dr. Mobley graduated from Xavier University of Louisiana, where she obtained a master's in business administration from Saint Joseph's Hobbs School of Business and Doctor of Osteopathic from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Mobley began her nephrology career in Lake City, Florida, where she established a renal disease clinic and served as medical director of a dialysis clinic for DaVita Kidney Care. In 2015, she moved to Tampa, Florida, where she started her hospitalist career with Optum. Today, she is the medical director of post-acute care for Optum and WellMed. Hello, Dr. Mobley. Where have you been? It's been some time since you've been with us.
DR. BROOKE MOBLEY
It has. I've been doing my own strength and flexibility and mobility training after back surgery. So, this is a topic I know about not just as a physician, but also as a patient.
CARMENN MILES
Oh, my goodness. How long ago did you have your back surgery?
DR. BROOKE MOBLEY
Six weeks ago.
CARMENN MILES
And you're with us this soon. Tell us, how's it going?
DR. BROOKE MOBLEY
It's going great. I cannot complain. All the initial pain and neuropathy complaints that I was once having are gone. I go on Friday to get cleared to start physical therapy and weight bearing exercises, but I've been driving two weeks after the surgery. I've been on planes. I've been walking. I've been trying to do what I can outside of the restrictions for recovery.
CARMENN MILES
Well, I hope you're following the guidelines. They say doctors and physicians are the worst patients, so follow the guidelines.
DR. BROOKE MOBLEY
Yeah, I was it was a patient at first. That's why I needed surgery. I was in pain before I went and got a bulging disc taken care of that was totally compressed in my nerves.
CARMENN MILES
Well, I'm glad you were able to get it taken care of. Good for you.
DR. BROOKE MOBLEY
Yes, ma'am.
CARMENN MILES
Wishing you a great recovery. Our guest doctor today knew at the young age of five that he wanted to be a physician, and when Dr. James Dinn's brother was diagnosed with a chronic illness, his family spent years looking for a physician who would simply listen. Today, Dr. Dinn strives to be a physician who truly hears his patients. He's a Texas native. He completed the entirety of his medical education in my hometown of San Antonio, Texas. He attended the University of the Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine and graduated with honors before completing his internal medicine residency at the Texas Institute for Graduate Medical Education and Research. His care philosophy embraces intentional listening, which he believes greatly aids in making proper diagnoses. Welcome to the show, Dr. Dinn. Is this your first time with us?
DR. JAMES DINN
Thank you for having me. It is. I'm excited to be here and excited to help educate where I can. That's what I do as a hobby. I'm also an assistant professor and the director of ambulatory education for the residency program here.
CARMENN MILES
You are at WellMed at Division in San Antonio, Texas.
DR. JAMES DINN
Yes, ma'am.
CARMENN MILES
Listeners are interested to know. Today we're talking about how seniors can stay strong, mobile and independent. Aging doesn't mean slowing down or focusing on what we think we've lost. It means training smarter and strengthening what remains is what I like to tell my senior aunts and uncles. Strengthen what remains. Don't worry about what you think you've lost. Dr. Dinn, I've heard the term over the years, motion is lotion. In other words, staying mobile helps keep our joints and muscles happy and working well for us. In medical terms, Dr. Dinn, tell us why strength and mobility is so important to maintain, especially for our seniors.
DR. JAMES DINN
Absolutely. Use it or lose it is something else you've no doubt heard before. It's a phrase my mother like to use growing up. Kind of a fun fact for the listeners, muscle strength declines even faster than mass. About 10 to 15% per decade until age 70, and then 25 to 40% per decade after that. The good news? Resistance training can slow or even reverse these declines, even in people in their 80s and 90s. So, big takeaway, 3 to 8% per decade accelerating after 60. Sarcopenia is the fancy term for this type of muscle loss, and it affects nearly 1 in 5 adults. So, exercise can kind of help reverse and prevent this.
CARMENN MILES
Very good. Let's take a moment to welcome those who may have just joined us. You're listening to the award winning Docs in a Pod presented by WellMed. Our podcasts are available wherever you listen to your podcasts. We're also available on the radio in several Texas markets. I'm Carmenn Miles alongside our co-host today, Dr. Brooke Mobley out of the great state of Florida, and our guest today, Dr. James Dinn, at WellMed at Division in San Antonio, Texas. Dr. Dinn, I know that when I make the time to even just take a 15 minute walk in the morning before starting my day, my disposition is completely different in a positive way. I just seem to have more clarity of mind. You were talking about exercise and whatnot. I don't I don't think that's my imagination that I have more clarity of mind, but what areas of our lives does a regular exercise regimen or routine influence? What are some of the obvious and not so obvious areas in our lives that it affects?
DR. JAMES DINN
Well, Carmenn, thank you. That's a great question. Since you brought up walking, let's talk about walking first. There is a large meta-analysis of about 100,000 people that found mortality benefits begin at just 2,600 steps per day. There's a magic number floating around out there. Everyone says I'm trying to get by 10,000 steps. You don't need that. A little goes a long way. Obviously, the more you do, the better it is for you in a dose dependent fashion. There is another study that said compared to taking 4,000 steps, taking 8,000 steps a day was associated with roughly half the risk of dying over the study period from all-cause mortality. Now, you mentioned your brain. Regular physical activity, regardless of the type, is associated with a lower risk of dementia. If you want numbers, it's 28 to 30% based on, again, meta-analysis. Both aerobic and resistance exercise improve memory, attention, executive function. Not just in our older adults but in people of every age. Fun fact for those listening, there was a study done by the UK Biobank, 78,000 adults walking 10,000 steps a day. That was the greatest reduction in dementia risk, but they saw a reduction in just 4,000 steps today. So, the point I'm trying to drive home here is whatever you do, whether it be large or small, just get it in. Personally, exercise is not something I always love to do, but I love what it can do for me.
DR. BROOKE MOBLEY
I think that's a great point, Dr. Dinn. Also, when we're talking about the elderly population, the population that's more susceptible to things like dementia, not everybody has the same physical mobility. Sometimes there are restraints and issues, and people can't necessarily physically walk for 4,000 steps or go to a gym and do Silver Sneakers. So, there are other things we can do to get cardio in and to get our bodies moving. When I was a nephrologist, we did something called chair exercises. So, if you're somebody who's limited by weight or limited by arthritis or limited by, say vertigo, so walking isn't necessarily the safest thing, you can sit in a chair and watch your favorite one hour TV show and if it has commercials, it has 20 minutes of commercials, and every commercial break you pick a limb. Say the first commercial break, you decide your arms. You can, without any weight, move your arms up and down. The next one, move your legs up and down. If you do that for every commercial break, you've done 20 minutes of cardiac exercise, which is what the American Heart Association recommends at its lowest levels. So, don't let restrictions limit what you can do. There's still movement involved, even if you have any skeletal or functional restrictions.
DR. JAMES DINN
Absolutely, Dr. Mobley. That is something we call the lifestyle integrated functional exercise. It's a multi-component approach that embeds exercises into daily routines. So, like she said, if you watch TV incorporate some exercise. You can do calf raises while you brush your teeth. If you are able, squats while you pick things up. Building these little routines into activities of daily living has been shown to reduce falls and improve function over time. So, whatever it is, just build a little exercise into it if you can. It's never too late to start. I have 80 year olds who say, well, I have never exercise. What's the point now? Older adults gain substantial health benefits from physical activity, even if they don't meet the full recommended AHA targets. The One Open Network study showed that meeting both aerobic and strength guidelines was associated with 20 to 30% lower mortality across all age groups, including those 85 and older. So, the consensus now frames exercise is a medical treatment that should be prescribed like a drug, with specific doses and modalities tailored to the individual. For those physicians listening, there is a website called ExerciseIsMedicine.org, and they have templates for you to use to help write an exercise prescription for your patients.
CARMENN MILES
I hadn't heard of that before. Talk to me a little bit more about those templates specifically, if you can.
DR. JAMES DINN
Sure. ExerciseIsMedicine.org has a whole series of today's most common chronic conditions and their exercise prescriptions. For example, they have foundational exercises for individuals who are frail. So, if you go there and you click open, it will map out that kind of life approach. So, incorporating physical activities in all you do. Making it fun. It'll talk about what to do, how often to do it, how hard and how much. It also has recommendations for staying safe and injury free. It's just kind of a general how to guide on the way this should work in our population. It's sponsored by the Academy of Sports Medicine, the ACSM, and I really enjoy their templates. It's very useful, and it's something easy that you don't have to kind of create from scratch and it's evidence based. So, they have stuff on Alzheimer's. They have stuff on COPD, hypertension, low back pain, NAFLD, osteoporosis. You name it, it's probably there and there are templates.
CARMENN MILES
Very good. Great nuggets of information. We need to take just a quick break, but please stay with us as we continue this great discussion on strength and mobility for seniors and the importance thereof. You're listening to the Docs in a Pod presented by, WellMed. We'll be right back.
AD
For over 35 years, WellMed has redefined health care for older adults and people on Medicare. We're physician led and nationally recognized as an Age-Friendly Health System. Our doctors take time to listen and support your unique needs, working with Medicare and select Medicare Advantage plans to keep you healthy and independent. With 24/7 nurse support, telemedicine, in-home, and office visits, care is always within reach. WellMed. Compassionate care. Proven results. Visit wellmedhealthcare.com to learn more.
CARMENN MILES
We're back on Docs in a Pod. I'm your host, Carmenn Miles with co-host Dr. Brooke Mobley and our guest today, Dr. James Dinn. We're talking about the importance of strength and mobility in seniors. Dr. Dinn, there's one particular medical incident that lands over 300,000 of our seniors in the hospital or in an E.R. room within a year's time. And that is falls. There were 290,000 hospitalizations just last year and 318,000, E.R. visits related to hip injuries and fractures. About 1 in 4 seniors falls each year. Hundreds of thousands of older adults break a hip every year. It's one of the most serious injuries in aging. Over 95% of hip fractures are caused by falls, and approximately 20% of seniors die within one year's time after a hip fracture. Hip fractures aren't random. They happen often. They're usually the result of a fall, which is often preventable. Dr. Dinn, how can our seniors best avoid falls and avoid this type of medical incident like a hip fracture or injury?
DR. JAMES DINN
Absolutely. Those are staggering statistics. Just a recap, that equates to about 14 million adults over 65 falling every year. As she mentioned, it's the leading cause of injury related death in that particular age group. About 20 to 30% of older adults fall annually. Exercise, regardless of type, reduces fall rates about 23%. That's, again, based on meta-analysis of 64 randomized trials. The most effective programs combine balance exercises with resistance training. Evidence suggests a minimum of 50 hours, is needed for meaningful fall prevention. So, it's not just about how often you do it, it's about how consistent you are. I just want to remind those listening, strength training isn't just for young people. It may be the most important exercise for seniors. Only 19% of adults over 65 do strength training twice a week compared to 34% of their younger counterparts. Yet, resistance training in older adults improves walking speed, balance, the ability to do everyday tasks like getting out of a chair or carrying groceries or picking up your grandkids or your pets. So, it's really, really important that people understand the utility. It may be uncomfortable. It may be, difficult. It may be a hassle. But at the end of the day, it's really worth it.
CARMENN MILES
The statistics about the number of seniors who pass away within a year's time of a hip fracture, is that largely because they cannot return to living independently and being able to continue with any type of strength training routine? What do we think that piece is about?
DR. JAMES DINN
I think it's probably multifactorial. One of the biggest things that we see in people who are debilitated after a fall is it's kind of a loss for that zest of life. It's almost like giving up because it feels like you may may not return to that baseline. It's hard to speculate on exactly the cause. But again, it is one of those things that we see time and time again, the reason for each individual is different, but fortunately it's preventable.
CARMENN MILES
Sure.
DR. BROOKE MOBLEY
I agree with Dr. Dinn. I particularly work in skilled nursing facilities, and I run the skilled nursing facility program for the entire state of Florida, so I would say the hip fractures probably make up as much as a third of our patient population. One of the things that we see quite often is there are a lot of associated conditions that come along with it like Atelectasis, which sometimes becomes pneumonia. Any time a patient is in bed for three days or more, they lose a certain amount of body percent muscle mass, which we all know is very important in strength, conditioning, flexibility and mobility. So, they're losing a lot of their muscle mass. They are not eating the way that they normally eat. So, albumin levels tend to be lower. Also, like what Dr. Dinn said, in skilled nursing facilities, there is a lack of zest, right? A lot of the patients who are having hip fractures live alone. So, going back home alone isnÕt feasible. They're in these nursing homes, which aren't necessarily the environments that foster for them to have that zeal and that zest back. Just as important as it is to what you should be doing to help prevent things like falls, there are also a lot of risk to falls. Some of the things that Dr. Dinn talked about are risks, and we need to work around those. Having pets. While pets are great to have and they give autonomy and companionship, it's important to have a certain type of leash. It's important that if you are of a certain age or a certain size, not to have a big Rottweiler or Doberman or a dog who can carry more than your weight. I've had numerous patients who walking their dog, the dog sees something, the leash goes around their legs, and it's like the cartoon where they pick them up and dog goes one way and the body goes the other way. So, I think a part of prevention is education. In order to prevent it, it's not just the things we should be doing physically, but there should be some home visits from the PCP to make sure that they have the railings that they need. To make sure that they're in houses that doesn't have too many steps, or the items that they need on a daily basis aren't too far or too restrictive for them to get to. To make sure they have the proper resources when having a pet. Things of that nature goes along with all the amazing things Dr. Dinn said, so that we don't even have to get to the point where they had the hip fracture and are in a skilled nursing facility. We're preventing it before it even gets to that point.
CARMENN MILES
Absolutely. We talked a little bit about options and exercising. Those who may need the assistance of a chair, for example, to lift weights during the commercials of their favorite shows. What are some other resources? There are probably some listeners going, I'm not going to get a gym membership. I don't have that. I don't want to go out of the house, but what are some options? I know there are a lot of online exercise routines and options. Do you guys want to speak on that a little bit? What are some options? You don't even have to have weights these days, right? Go in your pantry and grab a couple of cans of corn and use that as your weights.
DR. BROOKE MOBLEY
Actually, resistant bands are going to be the best thing for the elderly population. Things like weights and heavy cans can become cumbersome. They can slip out of their hands. They can become more dangerous than helpful. Recently, they have strongly suggested using the resistance bands to help get that same weight bearing exercise fill. A lot of times at that age, doing exercises that are just of your body weight are going to be safer but as impactful as lifting weights if that's not something that is feasible, or if you don't have the proper hand eye coordination or if you have a little macular degeneration, glaucoma or cataracts.
CARMENN MILES
Sure. Dr. Dinn?
DR. JAMES DINN
Absolutely. For those of the individuals out there who have access to technology, there are a number of online options. Physical therapy is offered for free. There's a lady, her website is Ask Dr. Joe, and she has stretches and exercises designed to strengthen for example, that are for hamstrings. So, for people who have knee pain or for people who have weak lower extremities and are having difficulty getting out of the chair. They're all online. It's all free. She is a Doctor of Physical Therapy. She's registered. I hand out her info to all of my patients that might need it. It can be anything from pain relief to strengthening exercises. The other thing is YouTube. There are some tai chi classes. Tai chi is basically a fancy yoga, if you will.
CARMENN MILES
IÕve seen a lot of that.
DR. JAMES DINN
Yes. There is evidence for improving balance and reducing falls, especially in those with frailty. Like Dr. Mobley said, not everybody is equipped to go around lifting heavy things, and sometimes stretching things apart can be difficult, even though that's the end goal. We want you to be able to use those resistance bands that she mentioned. So, starting with something as simple as tai chi could be a good option. If you are frail, if you have limited mobility, you can start in a chair.
CARMENN MILES
Absolutely. We're almost out of time, but I do want to touch on diet because that's all important as well when you're entering into a new routine. What are some of the dietary needs that should be met when entering into this type of regimen?
DR. JAMES DINN
That's an excellent question. I'm going to kind of distill it down to one single macro. We're going to talk about protein intake. Experts recommend 1 to 1.2g/kg per day for healthy adults, higher than the standard recommendation that's out there floating around in various things. But the research says that I am correct about this. I would say 1g/kg per day should be sufficient. Try to time it around your exercise. Make sure you're eating that meal. What does that look like? Don't forget your meats. Hopefully you're thinking lean, white meat. So, chicken or fish, but don't forget black beans. There's protein in all kinds of things. There are websites that can help you sort out who's got the highest protein counts. I think it would be useful for you to go and explore that.
CARMENN MILES
Very good. Thank you for all of that great information, Dr. Dinn and Dr. Mobley. Unfortunately, we are out of time for today. Thank you for joining us for this episode of Docs in a Pod presented by. WellMed. Listen, seniors, no more excuses. You're not too old to start. You don't need a gym membership to start. You just need to get started, even for just ten minutes a day. Commit yourself to finding a regimen that works for you and work at it every day. Listen, don't be a stranger. Subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode. If today's show helped you, sharing is caring. Tell your friends and family where to find us on any podcast platform, and you can also catch us on the radio in several Texas markets. Thank you for listening. Until next time, stay well.
OUTRO
Executive producer for Docs in a Pod is Dan Calderon. The producer is Cherese Pendleton. Thank you for listening to Docs in a Pod presented by WellMed. Be sure and listen next week to Docs in a Pod presented by WellMed.
DISCLAIMER
This transcript is generated using a podcast editing tool; there may be small differences between this transcript and the recorded audio content.
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