It's been nearly 10 years since Irene Murphy sat in her car in the Show Me Center parking lot fighting back tears before going to her first Pep Up Your Life fitness class.

She was so intimidated, she said of that experience. It was around the time her husband, Dan, died, and she had signed up for the class after reading about it in the newspaper.

Now she calls that experience "the smartest move she ever made."

Pep Up Your Life and Beginning Aquatics were the first two fitness classes offered in 1990 by the Senior Learning Program at Southeast Missouri State University.

Marliee Roethemeyer, an instructor in the fitness program, said many seniors are hesitant to come to that first class, but once they come they enjoy it.

"People don't realize how good it is, what it does for you," Murphy said. "The body is a wonderful piece of machinery, but it will rust up on you."

The Senior Learning Program offers a variety of classes to people 60 and older, including special-interest classes and classes in the humanities.

Spring semester the program offered 17 fitness classes in such areas as aquatics, line dancing, yoga, swimming, weight training and walking. It also offered People with Arthritis Can Exercise (P.A.C.E.). and Pep Up Your Life.

In the Pep Up Your Life class, seniors exercise for an hour three times a week to increase their range of motion, flexibility and strength. The exercises promote fitness and well-being, said the program's brochure.

Murphy has taken classes ever since that first class and says she feels 10 years younger. She's 79.

Murphy attended classes seven or eight hours a week spring semester, enrolled in Tai Chi Chuan, Beginning Swimming and Pep Up Your Life. Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese exercise that helps people reduce stress and improve balance.

Improving balance is important to older people because it helps prevent falls, which older people are prone to do.

It's a word-of-mouth thing, Roethemeyer said of the program. People tell a friend, and a friend tells another friend.

That's how Loreen Gladish, 76, became involved in Beginning Aquatics spring semester. A woman at her church who had had back surgery and had good results from the classes recommended the aquatics class to Gladish.

Gladish has advanced arthritis in her right hip, moderate arthritis in her left hip and some arthritis in her right knee and right shoulder.

With all that arthritis, she says she doesn't take any special medicine, only Advil. She's healthy otherwise.

Roethemeyer said a diverse group of men and women make up the classes, and most have some physical problems, including circulation problems, arthritis, fibromyalgia or muscle weakness, Parkinson's disease, osteoporosis. Others have had major surgeries.

The Senior Learning Program, under Southeast's human and environmental studies department in the College of Health and Human Services, is funded through grants.

The program has grown over the years and had 232 people enrolled in fitness classes spring semester. Last fall was the first time classes were conducted in Jackson.

This is not just an exercise program, Roethemeyer said, explaining that the two instructors, she and Beth Mueller, the program's coordinator, reinforce the exercises with materials on health and fitness.

There are no tests, and people can retake classes as often as they like. Murphy has taken Beginning Swimming three times.

Most people in the classes are repeaters, Roethemeyer said, estimating that between 80 percent and 90 percent return to take classes.

"Once people start," she said, "they stay with the program," although they might take a different class.

Gladish was enrolled in the aquatics class for summer session, which started Monday.

Gladish isn't new to the senior program as she has taken trips through the program and humanities and special-interest classes. After taking a biometrics class, she realized how much of an arthritis problem she had. That class was too involved and strenuous for her.

She likes the idea she can go at her own pace.

Roethemeyer said it's the process and not the product that counts in the exercise classes.

Studies have shown older people who exercise regularly recuperate faster from major illness or injury than those who don't, she said.

Many people in these classes don't want to be in an exercise class with a "bunch of young people bouncing all over the place," she added.

There are people who are 90 in the classes, and they want to keep what they have and improve their strength a little, Roethemeyer said.

While some seniors have specific physical goals, many just want to maintain their health to continue an active, independent lifestyle, she said.

Gladish, who walks two miles on the city's trails several times a week, sees an improvement in her health.

She had trouble with pain in the hip when she sat down -- she couldn't get comfortable. Now she can sit comfortably.

The walking didn't bother her arthritis, it was the bending and sitting, she said. Through the aquatics class, she has become more mobile and has improved her side-to-side movement.

For some, the class is a time to socialize, and that's all right with Roethemeyer.

Socialization is a big part of the program, she said, explaining that the class is a place to develop a social network.

If people come regularly to class and then miss, someone will ask about them, Murphy said. Members of the class look out for each other.

So does the instructor.

Roethemeyer said she's like a "mother hen to these guys."

Murphy said many in the classes are women living alone or are single, and the instructors and class members are looking out for them.

The people in the classes have a sense of belonging, Roethemeyer said. They know they are not just a body.

They look at the class and say, "These are my friends. This is my class," she said.

Many members are active outside the classes. That's all right with Roethemeyer, too.

She said she tells class members if they have a better offer, like visiting children or grandchildren or taking a trip, to take it. Just come back to class.

Murphy missed the first classes of summer session to visit her granddaughter in New York.

"If you took a survey," she said, 98 percent of the people are volunteers -- at the veterans home, church, the hospital of Meal on Wheels.

Besides working half days for her daughter and son-in-law at Cape Prosthetics, she also does volunteer work, mostly sewing.

Gladish, who is a retired nurse, volunteers for her church and had helped students with their reading in the public schools. She also maintains ties to the Aubudon Society.

Murphy said she volunteers to give something back to society and thinks others should do the same.

Although many in the fitness classes are active, it's the subtle gains from the classes that Roethemeyer hears about.

There's the woman in the Pep Up Your Life class who last year hurt for three days after she cleaned her flower bed. This year, that chore didn't bother her.

Or, the woman in the aquatics class who always had to use the railing to pull herself up the stairs at the church. She climbed the stairs without having to pull herself up this year.

Murphy said she was a housewife before she attended that first class.

From the classes, she said she has become more outspoken, and where she used to have difficulty meeting people, she doesn't anymore.

And, she says, because of her intimidation that first day, she now greets new class members and offers encouragement.

Both Gladish and Murphy have plans for the summer. Gladish will take the Cahokia Mounds trip offered through the senior program and later will make a trip out West. She tries to have at least one trip a year.

For Murphy, she has a graduation to attend in New York. Her granddaughter will graduate from Sarah Lawrence College at Bronxville.

The trip will be a working one, as Murphy will help the graduate move into a new place in New York.

She also plans to sew a christening dress for her great-grandchild.

When Murphy was younger, she thought when people got older they sat around and twiddled their thumbs.

Now she's having fun working and keeping busy, and she doesn't understand why more people aren't taking advantage of the senior fitness program.

To get into the program, people can call 290-5944 and talk to an instructor.

SENIOR FITNESS COURSES PROVIDED

AquaticsExercise in warm water ... what a luxury! Aquatics is the exercise of the 90's due to its unique offerings. The buoyancy of water provides a cushioning effect for the joints and decreases the risk of injury. What a fun way to get fit! It is not necessary to know how to swim to attend this class.Pep Up Your LifeExperts say that weekly exercise helps you to stay mentally sharp as well as physically fit. This specially designed class will improve your strength, flexibility, and endurance. Work out with others who share your interests and goals.P.A.C.E.People with Arthritis Can Exercise provides participants with a fun, safe exercise program. It includes range of motion, muscle strengthening and/or endurance exercises, body mechanics and relaxation techninques.Tai Chi ChuanAn ancient art of self-discipline and body movements that can be very effective in reducing stress, improving balance and providing a good workout. No special equipment or experience is necessary. Students will learn a sequence of postures to perform which will leave them mentally and physically relaxed.Lap swimmingSwim laps for enjoyment or to get fit. Parker Pool is a beautiful indoor pool where you can swim at your leisure in individual lanes.The Great Walking ExperienceCome and join us two mornings each week to walk at different locations outside soaking up everything mother nature has to share. Heart rates will be monitored, target heart range will be figured to assure an aerobic workout. The distance you walk each class period will be measured to see how far you walk during the course of the summer session.