Oldies but goodies

Oct. 20th

"Age is not lost youth,but a new stage of opportunity and strength"

Betty Friedan

I attended a networking session yesterday at a retirement complex, to discuss the Silver Sneaker program. They now call nursing homes"managed care facilities" so it does not sound like a old folks home and the stigma of a aging warehouse. I was surprised to hear that the average age of the residents was 86 years old and most having physical limitations.

The Silver Sneaker fitness program is for the 65 and older adults who want to start or continue with some physical exercise to improve their well being. The program is supported by health care providers at no cost to the participant at a network fitness facility. The clients have a number of fitness options, from group activities to personal training geared to any level of physical capability. Not a bad thing to improve the quality of life of our must senior citizens.

When I think of seniors exercising Jack LaLanne comes to mind. He never did reach his WWII generation when it came to exercising. Jack is 94 years old and it still going, making money, and a TV actor. I don't think there is anyone out there today that has maintained such momentum in fitness, then Jack. Can everyone be like Jack and be as healthy as him? Probably not, as fitness was his business and avocation for a lifetime, and maybe, just maybe he has some genetics going for him and not just his healthily life style. Anyway regardless of what you think of this old huckster of exercise, he has done it,cheated the grim riper.

In thinking about the trends in our population, I just leaned last week that the first of the "baby boomers" have started to applied for SS benefits. This is a huge group who are now entering the retirement lifestyle and only time will tell what the long term effects will have on a number of factors in our society. One thing can be assured, the "baby Boomers" are not like my father generation who never spent too much time in physical exercise except work. Our new retired have a more active lifestyle that previous generations so I believe the need for managed care facilities should be less. Then again it could be more as they may have burned themselves out.

Today practice: 35 mile bike ride to Deerpark and back. Great fall day. Temperature was just right. what a great fall this year. The ride took me over two hours as I met up with 3 people I knew and stopped to visit.