ABOUT MOVE EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGY
Onero: Evidence Based Exercise for Osteoporosis
The exercise program developed from Australian bone research, now available in Gawler with Accredited Onero Practitioners.
What is Onero and who is it for?
Onero is a high intensity resistance and impact exercise program designed specifically for people with low bone mass. It was developed from the LIFTMOR study, run at Griffith University under Professor Belinda Beck and published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research in 2018, and it has been delivered at The Bone Clinic since 2015. Move EP is a licensed and accredited Onero provider, which means our Exercise Physiologists have completed the required training and are approved to deliver the program as it was designed.
The key things to know:
- Who it suits. Adults with osteoporosis, osteopenia or low bone mass who want to do something active about their bone health.
- Always supervised. Onero can only be delivered by an accredited practitioner, either a physiotherapist or an Exercise Physiologist, because safe delivery depends on close supervision.
- Not the same as general exercise. Low intensity exercise is not an effective way to build bone. Onero uses the specific type of loading the research has shown can be both safe and effective for people with low bone mass when properly supervised.
- An initial assessment is mandatory. We assess your health status, injuries and existing conditions before you start, then adapt the early stages of your training around them.
- Your GP stays in the loop. Accredited practitioners report baseline and yearly results back to you and your doctor.
- Reviewed at 12 months. A review assessment looks at changes in your balance, posture and other functional measures related to fracture risk.
- Small supervised groups. Currently we offer two classes per week. Wednesdays and Fridays 12-1pm.
Funding
Onero can be accessed privately, with private health rebates where your policy allows, through a GP Chronic Condition Management Plan for Medicare rebates processed in our clinic, or through Support at Home and DVA funding for eligible clients.
What the program involves
If the words “high intensity” are already making you nervous, you are not alone. Most people with osteoporosis have spent years being told to be careful, so lifting heavy and doing impact work feels like the opposite of sensible advice. The research says otherwise. Injuries are rare in Onero training when it is properly supervised, and that supervision is exactly what the accreditation exists to guarantee.
Your first appointment is the mandatory assessment. We look at your bone density results, your medical history, your medications, any previous fractures, and your current strength, balance and posture. That gives us the starting point. From there you train in a small supervised group where every lift is watched, corrected and progressed only when you are ready for it. Nobody is thrown in at the deep end, and nobody is left to work it out alone.
Data collected at The Bone Clinic sites indicates that Onero increases bone mass, improves posture and reduces falls, with 86 percent of clients improving bone density at the lumbar spine and 69 percent at the hip. Those are their results rather than a promise about yours, and we will talk honestly with you about what is realistic in your situation. Onero is also aligned with Healthy Bones Australia, and the training course behind it is accredited by Exercise and Sports Science Australia.
