About Buff Bones®
Buff Bones® has been a trailblazer in exercise for osteoporosis for more than a decade, guiding midlife women to move safely and confidently – and to appreciate our bodies in the process.
How does this support midlife bone and joint health?
Our structured approach applies scientific evidence with clinical and creative techniques to help you alleviate joint pain, strengthen your bones, and improve your balance. It draws on Pilates, strength training, functional movement, somatics, and therapeutic exercise. It relies on research findings on bone and fascia, along with teachings of motor control, biotensegrity, and movement quality. This conditions and trains your body to support you through the anticipated and unexpected events of daily life.
So is this more than “just lifting weights”?
Bone health should take into account muscle strength, balance, responsiveness, function, core control and fall prevention, along with mobility and posture as key factors to avoiding fractures. Strength training is essential to maintaining bone mass, and research points toward lifting moderate to heavy loads to *increase* bone density as you age with osteoporosis or low bone mass (osteopenia). In order to perform those large muscle movements, you should also fine tune your muscle activity. You need not only strong muscles but also SMART muscles. You achieve this through sequencing and calibrating the muscle firing with your nervous system. This is especially important if you have injuries or other conditions that have held you back or made you cautious, and is pivotal to your success in lifting heavier loads and other fitness pursuits.
We’ve got your back. Literally.
All this is built into our method – we figured it out so you don’t have to. That’s why we’re your exercise hub for bone health. Our mission is to help you mold a strong, resilient body and toss the fear of fracture. We want you return to the activities you’re passionate about and explore others you’ve yet to try, now and in the years to come.
A global leader in exercise for bone health since 2009
- Trained exercise professionals in more than 30 countries
- Presented at scientific conferences and resorts around the world
- Trained therapists at Johns Hopkins Rehabilitation Network
- Trained staff at Hartford Hospital’s Bone and Joint Institute
- Included in level 1 research showing statistically significant improvements in muscle strength and functional performance
“Rebekah has provided us with an excellent resource to continue to improve America’s bone health.”
Richard Carmona, M.D., 17th U.S. Surgeon General
The Buff Bones® Story
It all started over a glass of wine…
Rebekah was a Pilates teacher trainer in New York City when she learned that she had osteoporosis. So she did what many do when they receive a medical diagnosis. She panicked.
Fortunately she had never broken any bones. But at that moment her world broke.
But throughout the next year, she sought advice and guidance from everyone from doctors and physical therapists to acupuncturists, nutritionists, and a personal trainer. She scoured the web for information and her entire reading list centered on osteoporosis.
But there were very few resources in the exercise community for her at the time and she realized that she could share with others all the information that she had buried herself in. So she developed a workshop for exercise professionals on osteoporosis and was soon asked to write an evidence-based research paper for one of the leading medical education providers. Instructors asked her to take things a step further and develop a workout. So between the research she’d read and her extensive background in movement, dance, exercise and sports medicine, she developed a new system for bone and joint health.
Back to the glass of wine… Rebekah was at a bar brainstorming names for this program with a colleague, searching for something that would convey the sense of empowerment she wanted to provide in giving options for others in regaining control of their bodies and their health. The word osteoporosis had such negative associations – and that was not her message. This led to the name BUFF BONES.
What started as a weekly workout in New York City evolved into an entire curriculum and training program for exercise professionals throughout the U.S. and around the world, with trained instructors in more than 30 countries.
The method has been presented at conferences and prestigious resorts like Canyon Ranch and Rancho La Puerta. The DVD won the About.com Readers’ Choice Award. In 2015 it was introduced to the International Osteoporosis Foundation World Congress for Osteoporosis Patient Societies. In 2023 UCLA Health joined as the Health Sponsor for free public educational webinars on topics related to bone health.
It started at osteoporosis but that’s not where it ends.
