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When Judith Gerst started training at APOGEE Bedford Hills a year ago, she hoped that regular cardiovascular training and work with weights would help maintain the strength of her bones. Gerst says, “In 1996 I was diagnosed with osteoporosis,”  or dangerously thin bones. Her doctor prescribed a drug, Fosamax, which treats osteoporosis. Doctors also recommend weight-bearing exercise to make her bones more dense.

With her skeleton in mind, Gerst started training three times a week with Lynn Ozzello, a personal trainer at APOGEE Bedford Hills. Now the 67-year-old Gerst has progressed to doing weighted lunges, explosive moves with a heavy medicine ball, squats using the Smith machine and upper-body work on the Gravitron. “I got so much stronger and my balance improved, I no longer experience back pain,” Gerst says. She is able to lift her 4-year-old and 18-month-old grandchildren with ease. “This is functional—it’s not just for looks, it’s for health,” Gerst says. “It’s definitely made a difference in my daily life.”

Of course, Gerst was hoping to slow or even halt her bone loss and a recent visit to her doctor showed something completely unexpected: “The osteoporosis was gone,” Gerst says. Her bone density had improved so much that she was out of that dangerous category altogether and her doctor told her she can take a break from the medication (she will need to test her bone density twice a year). With improved strength and balance from the personal training, Gerst moves with confidence—she knows she’s strong, inside and out.